California Zephyr, train #5

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siberianmo

Service Attendant
Joined
Oct 24, 2012
Messages
167
Location
25 miles west of downtown St. Louis, MO
G'day rail travelers,

I have two trips booked for travel aboard the California Zephyr from Chicago - the first to Reno, the second to Sacramento; both are in October.

As is my practice with long distance travel, I check (1) for schedule changes (2) trip interruptions - and - (3) on-time-arrival data at http://www.amtrakdelays.onlineschedulingsoftware.com .

For the past several days I have been trying to find out why the California Zephyr, train #5 has been departing Chicago at 2:50 PM as opposed to the scheduled 2 PM time. Also, the arrivals for

both of my destinations are shown as being much later than scheduled and when the "normal" lateness factor gets cranked in, I began to wonder whether the trips are worth it.

After several phone calls (Guest Rewards desk and the general "800" number) along with Email and snail mail (certified), I received the following information today:

==============================

[SIZE=10pt]Thank you for contacting us.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10pt]We apologize for any miscommunication. The Union Pacific track work project between Denver and the Moffat Tunnel will continue throughout September on the dates shown below.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10pt]Train 5 origin dates from Chicago September 14-21, 2014[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10pt]Train 5 (or 1105) will depart Chicago at 250p, 50 minutes later, and operate 50 minutes later at all stops through arrival Emeryville two days later, except as indicated in the next section below.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10pt]Train 5 origin dates from Chicago September 22-29, 2014[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10pt]Train 5 will depart Chicago at 250p, 50 minutes later, and operate 50 minutes later at all stops through arrival Denver the next morning.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10pt]From departure Denver through arrival Emeryville, train 5 will operate on the schedule below.[/SIZE]

Departures from Denver September 8-14 and 23-30, 2014

Train 5

[SIZE=10pt]Denver, CO (MT) [/SIZE]DEN ar 805a (50 min later) dp 1145a

[SIZE=10pt]Fraser-Winter Park, CO [/SIZE]WIP dp 143p

[SIZE=10pt]Granby, CO [/SIZE]GRA dp 212p

[SIZE=10pt]Glenwood Springs, CO [/SIZE]GSC dp 523p

[SIZE=10pt]Grand Junction, CO [/SIZE]GJT dp 715p

[SIZE=10pt]Green River, UT [/SIZE]GRI dp 902p

[SIZE=10pt]Helper, UT [/SIZE]HER dp1023p

[SIZE=10pt]Provo, UT* [/SIZE]PRO dp 1227a

[SIZE=10pt]Salt Lake City, UT (MT)* [/SIZE]SLC ar 206a dp 218a

[SIZE=10pt]Elko, NV (PT) [/SIZE]ELK dp 525a

[SIZE=10pt]Winnemucca, NV [/SIZE]WNN dp 744a

[SIZE=10pt]Reno, NV RNO (arr 9:15am)[/SIZE] dp 1031a

[SIZE=10pt]Truckee, CA [/SIZE]TRU dp 1132a

[SIZE=10pt]Colfax, CA [/SIZE]COX dp 143p

[SIZE=10pt]Roseville, CA [/SIZE]RSV dp 252p

[SIZE=10pt]Sacramento, CA [/SIZE]SAC dp D408p

[SIZE=10pt]Davis, CA [/SIZE]DAV dp D439p

[SIZE=10pt]Martinez, CA [/SIZE]MTZ dp D521p

[SIZE=10pt]Richmond, CA [/SIZE]RIC dp D554p

[SIZE=10pt]Emeryville, CA [/SIZE]EMY ar 605p

[SIZE=10pt]If you need additional information, please send us your reservation number or dates of travel.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10pt]We hope this information will be of assistance and we apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused.[/SIZE]

============================
Fortunately for me, my October trips appear not to be impacted - phew.

Astounds me that none of this information appears on Amtrak's web site - and if it does (or did) - I sure
in blazes never found it. Anyway . . .

Perhaps this information may be of help to others who have or are planning trips aboard the
westbound California Zephyr.

Later . . .
 
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Amtrak trips are "worth it" more if you don't worry about tight schedules. Always allow for significant delays, then relax and enjoy.
 
This is not a matter of "tight" schedules - this has to do with trains being rescheduled for arrivals 2 or more hours later than originally listed along with on-time-delays up to 3 hours in addition to that.

I do relax and enjoy and have for over 30 years - however, I get most annoyed when that travel impinges on other things at my destinations.

Appreciate your thoughts.
 
This is not a matter of "tight" schedules - this has to do with trains being rescheduled for arrivals 2 or more hours later than originally listed along with on-time-delays up to 3 hours in addition to that.

I do relax and enjoy and have for over 30 years - however, I get most annoyed when that travel impinges on other things at my destinations.

Appreciate your thoughts.
Sorry, I didn't mean to come off as snarky.

Just reading this forum helped me so much in my recent cross-country travel. I used airline to my destination, and Amtrak to return on the Empire Builder. I tried to be flexible in my expecations, figuring out what to do if I'd miss my connection and arrive home a day later than originally scheduled.

The CZ has not consistently had as awful OTP as the EB, but has often had significant delays over the past few months. Others on this forum can tell you the multiple reasons why (I remember one where a grain elevator or silo fell across the tracks).

My experience in watching for several months is that Amtrak may only report the changes you received for a few weeks in advance. I am only a little surprised if it doesn't show on their website, but you apparently have a good way to get that information, and I'd try to get an update closer to your departure date.
 
I think that if you search for a schedule for a specific date from A to B, (say Sept 26), it will show the schedule in effect as they know it today. If you search for Oct 24, they may not know today if there will be construction on that date. (BTW: The construction at the tunnel was only to be until Sept 1.)
 
For: PRae-train - Many times I fly either to or from a rail departure or arrival for long distance trips. Mine is more of a time constraint on being away than anything else . . .

The CZ has been my fay-vor-iyte Amtrak run for years; taking it at least annually from Chicago to Sacramento in a SuperLiner bedroom just for the fun of it.

This particular trip to Reno was planned for a visit to the Donner Park in the High Sierras and has been really fraught with all kinds of uncertainty, as documented in my initial post.

With what I thought to be a comfortable margin to do the things I planned on doing in Reno/Truckee then catch my flight home the next afternoon - seemed all should have gone well.

It did not because of the schedule change (now posted on Amtrak's web site by the way!) which put in doubt any available time for me to do the things I wanted to do.

Once the CZ schedule was explained to me and it seemed my early October trip was not in jeopardy - guess what? My train from St. Louis to Chicago was changed to a bus

leaving an hour earlier than scheduled from St. Louis. No way - no how. No bus travel - ever! I canceled the trip and will reschedule in the spring.

Anyway, I wholeheartedly agree - flexibility is the key to it all.

For: the_traveler - My point had nothing to do with the "printed" schedule so much as the on-time-arrival/departures when checking for train #5. A moot point now since it all

has been rectified. Unfortunately, the whole-damned-itinerary has been scrapped thanx to the seemingly never-ending construction work for the highER speed rail between

St. Louis and Chicago. No buses for me.
 
Siberianmo

[SIZE=11.5pt]My replies were mostly in response to your wondering if it is worth it.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=11.5pt]In the past 4 years I took annual Amtrak trips, all cross-country (SWC, CS, CZ). In all the previous years, I really enjoyed it. I always wanted to take the Empire Builder and planned it eastbound in 2011. I was rerouted due to the floods to the CZ. I lost my roomette on the LSL due to the extra day.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=11.5pt]In the trip this year, it was just by chance that I had an airline credit which is why I flew one-way to Seattle to visit my cousin and his family. Otherwise I would have planned Amtrak both ways.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=11.5pt]Since I booked over six months in advance, I was kind of frantic as the trip approached and I saw how often the trains have been so very late for so many reasons. It would have been worse for me if I’d had to bring my cousin into the uncertainty, but since Amtrak was on my way home only and I didn’t have any appointments soon after, only half the worry.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=11.5pt]As it turned out, I spent so much mental energy aboard the EB wondering how late we would be into Chicago and would I miss my connection to the LSL, that I really didn’t enjoy it as much as I would have. I can remember that going through the Cascades was beautiful, but didn’t really appreciate the rest of it.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=11.5pt]Though I suggested that you relax and enjoy, I’m afraid that’s not what I did. The big triumph for me was that we barely made it to CHI in time and I did not miss my connection (and therefore my roomette).[/SIZE]

[SIZE=11.5pt]Still, I really appreciate all the help I received on this forum. [/SIZE]
 
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Well, my last post was rather morose, and I'm sorry about that. I'm still an Amtrak fan, but may hold off on LD for a while.

I hope your trip brings you to a better place.
 
I would strongly advise that anyone planning to take Amtrak

(1) familiarize yourself with http://www.amtrakdelays.onlineschedulingsoftware.com/

(2) if the train you're considering is showing a habit of getting in very late, schedule an overnight at the end of that leg (rather than a same-day connection), and if that doesn't work for you, take a different route or method of travel.

Which trains run later and which run more on-time seems to vary from year to year and season to season (probably due to the vagaries of the freight railroads). I always check a few months in advance.
 
For: PRae_Train - Sometimes when looking forward to a trip there appears an obstacle or two . . . Now that my Reno/Donner adventure will be postponed, I have rescheduled that time slot for a trip to The Big Easy and the WWII museum. As a veteran (32 years active duty) it is a place I always wanted to visit - now I will! Trains? Of course - City of New Orleans for the return to Chicago and the Texas Eagle to St. Louis (both in roomettes).

For: neroden - Seems you repeated pretty much what I offered in the opening post of this thread. Nevertheless, never hurts to plan ahead and check the schedules.
 
I have seen Donner Pass from the CZ with fourteen foot of snow,,,,

I have visited the park, and seen the trees lopped off ten foot above ground level

where the snow pack was during the disaster .

enjoy, well worth the time,,,

and makes you appreciate Monty Python sketches

one heck of a lot more
 
I'm really glad I read this thread.

My EMY--> CHI trip aboard the CZ is Wednesday. I just checked that Amtrak Delays link and BOY is the arrival time late, EVERY single day. We didn't plan to do much of anything special the day of our arrival in Chicago, and it's a good thing, because it appears there's not much of a chance we'll have much daylight left by the time we arrive.

Boo.
 
So, I wonder if under the revised timetable what the chances are of getting dinner heading into EMY. Obviously dinner

is not normally served on the last day, with a scheduled 4:10 p.m. arrival.

But a 6:05 p.m. arrival is different, especially if the train arrives into EMY an hour or more late. I'm sure they wouldn't

offer a complete meal service, but I wonder if during this time period whether they'll offer the Dinty Moore version of

dinner, and if so, how late the train would have to be to set that in motion?
 
I was on CZ #5 about 5 hours late into Emeryville early August and we were served the Dinty Moore beef stew over rice for dinner. I guess I'm weird but I like the beef stew as one of my best meals on a circle the USA trip in July/August on the SL,CONO,CZ, CS, and Pacific Surfliners.
 
No dinner will ever be served on the CZ if arrival time is estiimated for 6 PM. But if arrival time is estimated for 9 pm or later, then yes, Dinty Moore beef stew for all psgrs.

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No dinner will ever be served on the CZ if arrival time is estiimated for 6 PM. But if arrival time is estimated for 9 pm or later, then yes, Dinty Moore beef stew for all psgrs.
Gonna be cutting it close tonight. #5 is estimated to arrive in EMY at 8:30 p.m. Even pax bound for SAC (ETA 6:45 p.m.) will probably

have rumbly tummies. One could easily do a dinner service starting at 5 that would take care of the bulk of your sleeping car passengers.

I'm guessing that depends a lot on the crew on board.
 
In all of my 20+ years of riding the CZ to EMY or Oakland, I have never observed the OBS staff start a dinner service west of Roseville. So, if #5 reaches RSV by 6 PM, there will be no free stew offered in the diner.

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