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Ranke

Train Attendant
AU Supporting Member
Joined
Nov 14, 2009
Messages
26
Location
Bangor, Maine
Does anyone know what happened to yesterday's Lake Shore Limited #448 - why it arrived into Boston ten hours(!) late?

I ask because this is apparently why today's #449, with my wife aboard, departed Boston four hours late; and has her arriving Syracuse, and being fetched from 45 minutes away by son-in-law (and new father) at 1:30 in the morning (instead of 9:45 pm).

Whatever the reason for the delay, Amtrak's handling of it was, as all too often, inexcusably incompetent. If yesterday's late arrival dictated today's late departure (because "the staff need their rest," wife was told), this was already evident early this morning, well before wife left home by bus. And yet, we received no such notice; and so wife got to spend six hours in South Station's food court amidst periodic reassurances, inaccurate if not mendacious, that it would be another half-hour.

And then, when she presented the business class ticket purchased three days ago, she was informed that there is no business class on this train! What gives?

I enjoy train travel enough to put up (barely) with Amtrak's pervasive incompetence, but I worry that I won't be able to get wife to join me much longer; and that Amtrak is competing with our political leadership to create the greater national embarrassment. And to think that when Franz Kafka noted that "there's always hope,....but not for us," Amtrak didn't yet exist.

[Yes, of course, after venting here, I'll take this up with Amtrak Customer Relations.]
 
Does anyone know what happened to yesterday's Lake Shore Limited #448 - why it arrived into Boston ten hours(!) late?

...
The Lake Shore was already about two hours late when it stuck and killed a trespasser in Pittsfield MA at about 6pm. With a fatality there is always a lengthy investigation. I suspect the crew had to be relieved either directly because of the incident or because they timed out due to the delay. Regardless, finding a new Amtrak crew qualified on the B&A and getting them to Pittsfield is likely not the easiest thing to do, Then, if the same crew has to take the train west, they are required to get a specified rest period before they can go back on the clock.
 
All well and good — actually, sad for the treapasser fatality — but that doesn’t address the question of why the passenger was not notified (via phone, text, or email) that their train would be several hours late departing the origination point. Many (most? all?) airlines have a system where you can register to receive updates when you book your ticket in the first place. Does Amtrak not have a similar service?
 
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All well and good — actually, sad for the treapasser fatality — but that doesn’t address the question of why the passenger was not notified (via phone, text, or email) that their train would be several hours late departing the origination point. Many (most? all?) airlines have a system where you can register to receive updates when you book your ticket in the first place. Does Amtrak not have a similar service?
Yes they do, but you have to sign up when you buy a ticket online. Came in handy this past week for the infamously late eastbound Empire Builder!
 
All well and good — actually, sad for the treapasser fatality — but that doesn’t address the question of why the passenger was not notified (via phone, text, or email) that their train would be several hours late departing the origination point. Many (most? all?) airlines have a system where you can register to receive updates when you book your ticket in the first place. Does Amtrak not have a similar service?
I think I signed up for text alerts when I booked my ticket online.
 
Was she able to get into business class? No business class on #449 seems a lot stranger than a late train. I doubt they would have left the split cafe car out of the consist.
 
Was she able to get into business class? No business class on #449 seems a lot stranger than a late train. I doubt they would have left the split cafe car out of the consist.
Yeah, I was wondering the same thing. I guess it's possible that they substituted a bad-ordered split car with a regular all booth cafe car, but that seems highly unlikely.

To the OP, did they say if the person who said there's "no business on this train" give any explanation. And how would they not be notified before departure that that entire accommodation was dropped from the train that day? Amtrak can be unprofessional at times, but being notified at boarding that business class isn't available that day, without any explanation whatsoever makes absolutely no sense.
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The car was probably shopped and bad ordered in Boston. And I think anyone would rather that themselves and loved ones not be on board a bad ordered car and instead be in coach. Might be mildly inconvenienced but being safe is far more important.

Back in the old days they were able to substitute things better because all railroads had large coach yards with plenty of equipment. Sometimes the parlor cars would be sleeper as parlor on the New York Central. Where they would sub a 22 roomette sleeper in for the parlor.
 
If a car was bad ordered late and no substitute available it isn't unreasonable to send a full food service car. The number of BC seats is relatively small.
I get that. I'm just wondering why they would have only found out when their tickets were being checked, and why it would be explained to them in that manner.
 
Thanks for commenting; and to the questions raised:

I provided both cell-phone number and email address when buying tickets, but no notice of delay, or subsequent explanation, has been received.

No explanation was offered for the missing business class car; instead, there was a regular cafe car. Subsequently, I received an email stating that (but not explaining why) the business class surcharge had been restored to my credit card.

Wife arrived Syracuse 2:04 am, 4 hours, 21 minutes late; but at least she made it, and is now busy helping to care for newest grandchild (#11).
 
If a car was bad ordered late and no substitute available it isn't unreasonable to send a full food service car. The number of BC seats is relatively small.
I get that. I'm just wondering why they would have only found out when their tickets were being checked, and why it would be explained to them in that manner.
They may have been trying to fix whatever the issue was and decided to shop the car at the last moment. It happens quite a bit.
 
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This car shortage goes back to three Amtrak decisions partially due to some congressional imperatives.

1. The scrapping of the Heritage coaches and sleepers when loads tanked in the 1990s. Granted the dump type restroom toilets were a problem.

2. The decision to not order the additional V-1 sleepers (50 ? )

3. No follow on order for additional AM-2s of various configurations
 
This car shortage goes back to three Amtrak decisions partially due to some congressional imperatives.

1. The scrapping of the Heritage coaches and sleepers when loads tanked in the 1990s. Granted the dump type restroom toilets were a problem.

2. The decision to not order the additional V-1 sleepers (50 ? )

3. No follow on order for additional AM-2s of various configurations
Well #3 is the only one that has any connection whatsoever to this instance of not having business class one day because of a bad ordered business/cafe. And even if they did have plenty more cars, there's still no real guarantee that they could get it onto the train in time, since it seems like it was very short notice.
 
This car shortage goes back to three Amtrak decisions partially due to some congressional imperatives.

1. The scrapping of the Heritage coaches and sleepers when loads tanked in the 1990s. Granted the dump type restroom toilets were a problem.

2. The decision to not order the additional V-1 sleepers (50 ? )

3. No follow on order for additional AM-2s of various configurations
No. 1 is not really an issue when you have a decent shop force. It's not a super hard installation. Our shop probably could outshop 1 car a week. But we're three men. If you have a shop like Beech Grove there is no reason you couldn't have outfitted the fleet. It's a money issue. All of it is a money issue.
 
This car shortage goes back to three Amtrak decisions partially due to some congressional imperatives.

1. The scrapping of the Heritage coaches and sleepers when loads tanked in the 1990s. Granted the dump type restroom toilets were a problem.

2. The decision to not order the additional V-1 sleepers (50 ? )

3. No follow on order for additional AM-2s of various configurations
Well #3 is the only one that has any connection whatsoever to this instance of not having business class one day because of a bad ordered business/cafe. And even if they did have plenty more cars, there's still no real guarantee that they could get it onto the train in time, since it seems like it was very short notice.
Not even. Unless I'm mistaken, isn't this particular type of lounge an Amfleet I, just like those typically seen on 67/66 or the Vermonter?
 
This car shortage goes back to three Amtrak decisions partially due to some congressional imperatives.

1. The scrapping of the Heritage coaches and sleepers when loads tanked in the 1990s. Granted the dump type restroom toilets were a problem.

2. The decision to not order the additional V-1 sleepers (50 ? )

3. No follow on order for additional AM-2s of various configurations
Well #3 is the only one that has any connection whatsoever to this instance of not having business class one day because of a bad ordered business/cafe. And even if they did have plenty more cars, there's still no real guarantee that they could get it onto the train in time, since it seems like it was very short notice.
Not even. Unless I'm mistaken, isn't this particular type of lounge an Amfleet I, just like those typically seen on 67/66 or the Vermonter?
I understand that this is an Amfleet I. I'm being generous to west point here, but if they had ordered "additional AM-2s of various configurations", and there were some Amfleet II business/cafes or something like that, they could have more spares on hand. That is theoretically the point he could have been making.
 
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Even if they had spare on hand, which incidentally they do even for Am1 Cafe-BC, that does not mean it will be at the right location when needed in an irregular ops situation.
Exactly. On short notice, even sufficient equipment still won't necessarily make any difference. Time is often the most prohibitive factor.
 
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