Meat Puppet
Lead Service Attendant
- Joined
- Apr 14, 2009
- Messages
- 342
Anyone else see this?
that is the only explanation i can think of. if true, imagine what it would do to eb depart times from sea/pdx and the eb "schedule" in generalPerhaps Amtrak is pulling the extra train set-what a disaster that would be for the Empire Builder.
i'm sure you will get a cute little e-mail from amtrak saying that in order to reduce costs they aren't going to run trains anymore. but they will thank you for your understanding and patronageI already have this connection booked for late April; will there be a disruption in my planned trip?
Where is NOAA expecting flooding? The NOAA forecasters in MT and ND do not expect any significant flooding this year. The snowpack in eastern MT and ND does not appear to be a concern. Perhaps in northern MN there will be issues, but I don't see how that will effect the EB, since the Red River of the North flows north and the Mississippi can usually handle all but the worst conditions.With historic flooding from all the snow expected and the Builder schedule already in shambles, Amtrak is likely trying to "isolate" that route as much as possible and not have to worry about dealing with train sets being out of place and constantly compensating or busing connecting pax.
I wondered about that too. The only scenario I could think of would be that Amtrak is negotiating with BNSF to move the departures from SEA and PDX back a few hours, to maybe noon or so. But that would require keeping the sixth train set permanently, and there doesn't seem to be any trace of that in the schedules. So who knows.Wait, I'm confused. The EB's problems have absolutely no bearing on whether someone should be able to connect to it.
You mean an email like this...i'm sure you will get a cute little e-mail from amtrak saying that in order to reduce costs they aren't going to run trains anymore. but they will thank you for your understanding and patronageI already have this connection booked for late April; will there be a disruption in my planned trip?
Hmmmm, given what she told you it certainly would appear Amtrak is going to pull the extra train set after 3-31 and just let the chaos begin! You are correct, with the current extra train set #28 should leave on time every day, no matter how late the incoming #27 is from CHI.In speaking with the lady at AGR this morning re the connection from #14 to #8. It will not be ticketed without an overnight stay in PDX(requiring another set of points). Had been planning a trip from LAX to Glacier for months. :angry:
She claims "service distruptions" on the EB because from "increased BNSF freight traffic" causing #7 to arrive very late. It doesn't make sense if there is a trainset to protect the #8's schedule departing PDX. But she said to "check back as they are trying to work things out with the freight railroad." :unsure:
Going into the summer season, it's probably revenue-maximizing to(1) isolate the Empire Builder and prohibit connections to itHmmmm, given what she told you it certainly would appear Amtrak is going to pull the extra train set after 3-31 and just let the chaos begin!
When Amtrak broke the connections coming off of the EB, AGR published a policy that said they would permit overnights (on the customers dime) on a single award.In speaking with the lady at AGR this morning re the connection from #14 to #8. It will not be ticketed without an overnight stay in PDX(requiring another set of points). Had been planning a trip from LAX to Glacier for months. :angry:
She claims "service distruptions" on the EB because from "increased BNSF freight traffic" causing #7 to arrive very late. It doesn't make sense if there is a trainset to protect the #8's schedule departing PDX. But she said to "check back as they are trying to work things out with the freight railroad." :unsure:
That is essentially what AGR told me this morning (only using BNSF freight traffic as the reason). Trying to connect pax off #14 to #8 the same day has been problematic for Amtrak.I'm wondering if part of the reason for breaking the connection from the Starlight might have to do with the need to reaccommodate people in the event of disruptions that cancel or truncate the train. If the passenger gets to PDX and train 28 isn't running for some reason (track washouts if there are major floods, for example), then Amtrak has to figure out what to do with them. If their origin is Portland, it's not Amtrak's responsibility to find them a hotel or what have you, but if they came from California, now Amtrak has to reroute them back to California or put them up in a hotel for a while.
If you can link me to that policy, I, and others, would appreciate it.When Amtrak broke the connections coming off of the EB, AGR published a policy that said they would permit overnights (on the customers dime) on a single award.In speaking with the lady at AGR this morning re the connection from #14 to #8. It will not be ticketed without an overnight stay in PDX(requiring another set of points). Had been planning a trip from LAX to Glacier for months. :angry:
She claims "service distruptions" on the EB because from "increased BNSF freight traffic" causing #7 to arrive very late. It doesn't make sense if there is a trainset to protect the #8's schedule departing PDX. But she said to "check back as they are trying to work things out with the freight railroad." :unsure:
You may want to call back and remind them of that and see if they'll accommodate you. Logically they should, but this is the AGR call center we're talking about.
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