Will segmented train routes work?

   An issue that is bound to be heavily debated in coming months is the idea of breaking up long distance Amtrak routes into segments
that involve a series of day trains covering the same routes. 

   The idea originated with anti-Amtrak sources in the Administration, but actually dates back further, having been proposed by various think tanks with anti-rail orientations. 

   The apparent money- saving idea is that there would no longer be a need for sleeping cars and the crews to man them. The day trains would cover the same route, but there would be no overnight operation, so that travelers whose routes included an overnight portion would have to occupy hotel rooms between train segments. 

   The National Association of Railroad Passengers has been performing comparison analyses of existing long distance routes and the segmented routes that would most likely substitute for them. The results are so weighted in favor of the long distance routes that no logical justification could be made for the segments.

   Rather than creating cost saving for Amtrak, the segmenting would actually either yield no savings or raise costs, while reducing patronage to such an extent that the segmented route would fail altogether. 

   Of course, creating a route failure might be the ultimate aim of the anti-rail originators of this scheme. 

   Amtrak President Kummant and other company officials continue to mention this plan while being fairly noncommital and saying it would be evaluated carefully. If the evaluation is indeed done carefully and rationally, it would seem that no possible case could be made for segmenting. 
 
 

HUNTINGTON, W.Va., April 1, 2008 /PRNewswire/ -- CSX Transportation is establishing a new dispatching center at its division headquarters in Huntington, with approximately 80 train dispatcher and related positions being relocated here, CSX Chairman, President and Chief Operating Officer Michael J. Ward announced today.

"CSX has a rich history in the Mountain State and we're delighted the company is investing in these good jobs in Huntington," said West Virginia Gov. Joe Manchin. "This is a partnership for success for both CSX and for West Virginia."

Train dispatchers plan, direct and respond to any issue relating to the movement of trains, maintenance and inspection equipment on CSXT tracks.

Ward thanked West Virginia Governor Joe Manchin for his support in bringing the new jobs to Huntington. The state has offered Economic Opportunity Tax Credits for each job created in the move and is providing up to $2,000 per employee for training.

Ward added that CSXT is spending about $4.5 million to create the dispatching center at the railroad's Huntington Division headquarters.

Construction is scheduled for completion in late May and the center is scheduled to begin operation in August.

     Maybe it's time that people writing news items about trains, whether in print or online, acquired some experience with and knowledge of the topic they are covering.

     In earlier times, trains, especially of the passenger variety, were more common, and most people probably knew something about how they operated. If a writer had declared that the train "rounded a corner", he or she would have been roundly ridiculed. But in today's world, such impossible phrases are found too often. And even some railfans insist on saying "the engineer blew his whistle" when he actually sounded his horn. 

     Some of these gaffes are simply amusing, but when they spread incorrect information or cast passenger trains in an undeservedly bad light, they become more serious.

     A case in point is the March 27 online and onair report from a Savannah GA TV station that an "Amtrak train derails, strands passengers in Savannah." 

     What actually happened was that a CSX freight train had derailed and blocked the line used by Amtrak. The derailment occurred near one of the Richmond VA stations the morning of March 27 and blocked one track, disrupting freight and Amtrak service. There was no derailment of an Amtrak train. The train that "stranded passenger in Savannah" was the Palmetto. 

     Amtrak was having difficulty busing passengers around the derailment because of a shortage of buses. 

     The station promised more news at 6:00. Let's hope it was corrected news.

Book by March 31, 2008 and receive a discount of up to 50% based on regular adult peak period fares aboard VIA Rail’s Canadian traveling between Toronto and Vancouver; the Ocean traveling between Montréal and Halifax; and the Chaleur traveling between Montréal and Quebec’s Gaspé region. The discount is available for travel through June 14, 2008, for Comfort and Comfort Sleeper services on the Ocean and Chaleur trains and until May 31, 2008 for Silver & Blue class service on board the Canadian. More

   Columnist Wes Vernon reported on Jan 28 that likely GOP presidential candidate John McCain would kill off Amtrak if he were elected president.

   Vernon was discussing influential conservative rail advocate Paul Weyrich's reaction to McCain's candidacy. Weyrich said he would leave the GOP if McCain were the candidate.

   Vernon wrote: "Weyrich knows that Senator McCain, throughout his career, has been very anti-rail, and in that respect 'would be [even] worse than the present [Bush] administration,' whose Transportation Secretary Mary Peters (a big highway booster) has fought tooth and nail (as commission chairman) to block the pro-rail efforts of Weyrich and others allied with his 9-to-3 [National Surface Transportation Policy and Revenue Study] commission majority."

   Vernon also reported "The Arizonan has said shutting down Amtrak —  if he's elected — would be 'a non-negotiable issue' for him. Short-sighted, indeed."

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