When will Keystones resume?

[Oreius]

I’m just wondering when they will restart the Keystones again—at least the Harrisburg to Philadelphia portion. I want to hopefully take a long-distance trip to Florida later in summer, but would like to go from Elizabethtown.

 

[AmtrakBlue]

Will depend on when PA wants it to start running again.

 

[Oreius]

Wolf is (hopefully) going to start reopening the state May 8. It will probably start off by relaxing the shut-in (with precautions in place) for the northwest and north central counties. Philly will be the last place to open up. I know many people ride the Keystones between Harrisburg (especially Lancaster) and Philadelphia. All the counties the Keystones pass through (with the exception of Dauphin) have high numbers of cases.

 

[Skyline]

Same question, but for the Pennsylvanian?

 

[TinCan782]

Isn't that a question without an answer? Everything is still speculative at this point.

 

[AmtrakBlue]

Suspensions has been extended to 5/18/20

 

[TinCan782]

Amtrak has extended the suspension of its passenger rail service in Pennsylvania until at least May 18 — instead of May 4, as previously reported.
https://triblive.com/news/pennsylva...ension-in-pennsylvania-until-at-least-may-18/

 

[Green Maned Lion]

Keystones will return when people start building arches properly again.

yes people, I really am sort of back.

 

[IndyLions]

Keystones will return when people start building arches properly again.

yes people, I really am sort of back.

ok - I’ll admit I may be daft, but I have no idea what you’re talking about with the arches comment.

 

[brianpmcdonnell17]

ok - I’ll admit I may be daft, but I have no idea what you’re talking about with the arches comment.

 

[Metra Electric Rider]

Keystones will return when people start building arches properly again.

yes people, I really am sort of back.

EXCELLENT (well played)

(you must love Notre Dame where they teach architecture students all about stone construction)

 

[jiml]

There was a short Amtrak train passing the railcam at Paradise, PA, in the last two day's VR Grab Bag - around the 13-minute mark.

 

[AmtrakBlue]

There was a short Amtrak train passing the railcam at Paradise, PA, in the last two day's VR Grab Bag - around the 13-minute mark.

They may be running deadheads to keep the tracks "clean".

 

[MARC Rider]

The Golden Arches don't need keystones....

 

[IndyLions]

I guess that helps explain why I’m an electrical engineer and not an architect...

 

[Cho Cho Charlie]

I guess that helps explain why I’m an electrical engineer and not an architect...

OK, then this ... Keystone module - Wikipedia

 

[Thirdrail7]

I'm not sure why this has its own thread but the Keystone and Pennsylvanian cancellations are extended through 5/31.

 

[Willbridge]

They may be running deadheads to keep the tracks "clean".

Or for crew qualifications. After a six-week long transit strike in Edmonton we took steeple-cab electric 2001 out for a trip grinding grade crossings to make sure that signals worked. The union okayed it as a one day exception for safety reasons. The engineer and fireman were both electrical engineers. The flagman was the system's Marketing Officer. Perhaps the non-revenue train in PA was doing both purposes: qualification and signal safety. As I lost a couple of friends in the Nisqually crash, I hope they are doing both tasks.

 

[IndyLions]

OK, then this ... Keystone module - Wikipedia

THAT I understand!

 

[Acela150]

Or for crew qualifications.

Highly unlikely. Qualifications on Physical Characteristics expire after 1 year of not being the Engineer or Conductor on a piece of territory. We're no where near that mark.

 

[Oreius]

Just found out: Wolf has extended “The Great 2020 Shut-In” until June 4 for all counties in the “Red” Phase. This includes all counties served by the Keystones. He did state some more counties would move to “Yellow” in the foreseeable future.

 

[Cho Cho Charlie]

Just found out: Wolf has extended “The Great 2020 Shut-In” until June 4 for all counties in the “Red” Phase. This includes all counties served by the Keystones. He did state some more counties would move to “Yellow” in the foreseeable future.

The reality is that nothing is going to change. The virus isn't going to give up, and go back home (China?) on June 3.

I know the feelings here (AF), but the virus was worse in NYC, and you can see how NYC residents tried to escape it by heading west, bringing the virus with them, first nailing NJ, and then nailing eastern PA (the "red zones"). In some ways its better that trains like the Keystone stopped running. That helped slow down the NYC migration westward.

 

[Oreius]

Unfortunately, that is the truth. Berks, Northampton, Lebanon, and Luzerne counties in PA saw an explosion of cases in early April. This is because of the counties lying on the I-78 corridor; in the case of Luzerne, the I-80 corridor. Many people now living in Reading (a city of 90,000 people) are from NYC and travel constantly between the two cities. I live in Lebanon, and have seen many NY license plates in the city.

 

[Oreius]

There is good news. Allegheny County, which includes Pittsburgh, is moving into the Yellow phase next Friday, as well as the central and western counties The Pennsylvanian serves. Why can’t Amtrak restart the service initially from Harrisburg to Pittsburgh? As I said, Amtrak could restart the Keystones between Harrisburg and Philadelphia only for now, and just run a few trains a day until demand improves and those counties are cleared.

 

[AmtrakBlue]

There is good news. Allegheny County, which includes Pittsburgh, is moving into the Yellow phase next Friday, as well as the central and western counties The Pennsylvanian serves. Why can’t Amtrak restart the service initially from Harrisburg to Pittsburgh? As I said, Amtrak could restart the Keystones between Harrisburg and Philadelphia only for now, and just run a few trains a day until demand improves and those counties are cleared.

Pennsylvania will need to determine when it can run. It's a state supported route.