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Index to recent news postings Rail Travel News is a twice-monthly print publication, published since
Dec 10, 1970.
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AMTRAK SERVICE ADJUSTMENTS IN THE
GULF COAST
Amtrak issued the following announcement of service changes on Sep 5: The catastrophic destruction in New Orleans and the Gulf Coast will preclude operation through this area for a long time. Amtrak has made the following service changes: Crescent: Southbound train 19 originating now through Sep 11 will terminate at Atlanta. Train 19 originating Sep 12 and beyond will terminate at Meridian MS. Northbound train 20 originating now through Sep 13 will originate at Atlanta. Train 20 originating Sep 14 and beyond will originate at Meridian. Amtrak cannot turn the train in Meridian, so it will run with sleeping cars forward going one way and sleeping cars on the rear the other way. This change may also affect some Florida trains. City of New Orleans: Northbound train 58 originating now through Sep 5 originates at Memphis. Train 58 originating Sep 6-Sep 13 originates at Jackson MS. Train 58 originating Sep 14 and beyond originates at Hammond LA. Southbound train 59 originating now through Sep 4 terminates at Memphis. Train 59 originating Sep 5-Sep 11 terminates at Jackson MS. Train 59 originating Sep 12 and beyond terminates at Hammond LA. Service changes to the City of New Orleans: The consist will be one baggage coach, 2 accessible coaches, one Sightseer lounge, and one sleeping car--no diner. Sleeping car passengers will receive high-quality boxed meals similar to those on trains 27-28 Portland-Spokane. Checked baggage and regular express will be handled in the coach-baggage car at Chicago, Champaign-Urbana, Carbondale, Memphis and Jackson. Sunset Limited: This train will run through from Los Angeles to Chicago via San Antonio with no switching-out of cars at San Antonio. There will be no service at all on the route east of San Antonio. On the three days of the week that it runs, it will be designated at trains 421 and 422. Trains 1 and 2, and trains 21 and 22 go away on those three days. On the four days of the week when the Texas Eagle runs between Chicago and San Antonio only, it will continue to be shown as trains 21 and 22. Therefore, there is still daily service between Chicago and San Antonio, even though the trains are 21/22 four days of the week and 421/422 the other three days. The consist is transition sleeper with space sold to the public, one Superliner sleeper, one Superliner diner, one coach-baggage car, two coaches. Full dining car meal service is offered at one end of the diner, and sandwiches and snacks and beverages offered as lounge service at the other end of the diner. Given the totality of the destruction in the area, no date
for the resumption of service can possibly be given. New Orleans will not
be a destination for a very, very long time. There is no alternate transportation.
With the Sunset Limited running a diner split as diner-lounge, and the City of New Orleans running a lounge only, the two trains cannot be run-through consist in Chicago anymore. Train 22 will no longer become 59, and 58 will no longer become 21. With New Orleans gone as a destination, ridership will undoubtedly suffer. EVACUATION IN TODAY'S TRANSPORTATION MONOCULTURE By Robert W. Rynerson AMTRAK MAY HELP EVACUATE NOL (Sep 2) Amtrak president David Gunn and Mayor John Robert Smith of Meridian MS were reported on Aug 31 to be in talks to work out an evacuation plan by Amtrak train for trapped residents of the Gulf Coast following the devastation of Hurricane Katrina. Senators Trent Lott of MS and Mary Landrieu of LA were also involved in the planning. The plan would have to be approved by FEMA, the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Three lines might be used: the UP and CN to the west, the
NS and the Crescent line towards NY.
EFFECTS OF HURRICANE KATRINA UPON LOUISIANA (Aug 29) With hurricane Katrina approaching New Orleans, all rail service to and from that city was suspended on Saturday, August 27. Amtrak moved its equipment out of New Orleans on an evacuation train of 20 cars, believed to be destined for Memphis. About a million residents evacuated New Orleans on Sunday August 28, mostly by highway. As of Sunday night the storm was still at the Category 5 level. New Orleans has not been hit directly by a hurricane in forty years, and Louisiana has never before been hit by a hurricane of this magnitude. Unless some drastic change in the storm's path occurs,
which seems unlikely, rail operations will be devastated in the area, and
passenger and freight rail service might not resume for weeks. Click
here to view Amtrak's plans for modified service as a result of the
storm.
AMTRAK LAUNCHES UPGRADED EMPIRE BUILDER STARLIGHT TO EMPIRE BUILDER CONNECTION ENDED DOWNEASTER FUNDING IS ASSURED PIONEER ROUTE REINSTATEMENT REQUESTED IN LOTT BILL LOTT-LAUTENBERG BILL PROVISIONS IMPORTANT FOR PASSENGER RAIL SENATE COMMITTEE PASSES LOTT-LAUTENBERG AMTRAK AUTHORIZATION BILL SENATE COMMITTEE TO ACT ON AMTRAK AUTHORIZATION TODAY NARP applauds their bill SENATE COMMITTEE ADDS $50 MILLION TO AMTRAK FUNDING CALIFORNIA ZEPHYR TO BE HIT WITH DETOURS IN LATE SUMMER AND FALL CALIFORNIA TRAINS REACH MORE RIDERSHIP RECORDS SENATE SUBCOMMITTEE OKAYS $1.4 BILLION FOR AMTRAK DOT WANTS TO CUT OUT SLEEPING CAR, DINER, LOUNGE AND CHECKED BAGGAGE SERVICE ON AMTRAK TO SAVE MONEY. NARP RELEASES REBUTTAL TO PROPOSAL: HOUSE VOTE SAVES AMTRAK FUNDING SUMMER SOLSTICE IN BERLIN 1971 HOUSE COMMITTEE FAILS TO INCREASE AMTRAK FUNDS President Gunn Reacts to House Subcommittee's Anti-Amtrak Vote Amtrak President Talks of Acela and Food Service (see complete article) Amtrak computer outage creates problems with trains, reservations, tickets (see complete article) RailPAC endorses Amtrak-Laney funding proposal with reservations (See complete article here) Sources of hostility to Amtrak funding: Analysis AMTRAK VERSUS MINETA IN MONTANA: THE STRANGE BATTLE OVER THE EMPIRE BUILDER
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