I was reading a thread when I spied this:
Two, Amtrak's nationwide network runs mostly on tracks owned by freight rail companies like Union Pacific, BNSF, and CSX. While BNSF does a pretty good job of expediting Amtrak passenger trains, Union Pacific, in particular, seems to do it's utmost to delay and interfere with Amtrak trains, hence some of the nicknames like Unlimited Parking and Utterly Pathetic.
This is pretty funny and goes along with a discussion that occurred in the ACS thread.
Capitol Punishment has been around for quite some time but it is also known as the Crapitol Limited.
Years ago, the Palmetto was unfortunately known as the "Chicken Bone Express." I never liked that nickname but it did live up to its reputation when a group, obviously fed up with the cafe car food and prices, brought a dorm room refrigerator loaded with uncooked but seasoned chicken, macaroni salad, cole slaw, potato salad as well as a deep fat fryer loaded with canola oil to fry the aforementioned uncooked but seasoned chicken and proceeded to have a cook off in the handicap area of an Amfleet II. There are also a firsthand few tales of passengers attempting to fry chicken in the rest room. In one case, the passenger had trouble with the outlet so he summoned the conductor.
He did offer the conductor and I quote "a leg" for his troubles. Such episodes are far and few between these days. I hope.
The Silver Slug is now the Silver Starvation, which is sticking. I love it! I can't remember the Meteor's nickname so perhaps the Meteor can take the Slug.
No one mentioned "The Auto Pain," since it is a pain to get it out of its late arrival/late turn cycle.
The Cardinal was known as the Pigeon for years.
When the Broadway Limited operated, it was known as the Broad-Delay. (Someone should probably slip a mickey into PhillyAmtrakFan's drink so he doesn't see this :giggle: .)
The Crescent was known as the Southern Gentleman. It was one of the hottest trains on the property in the 90s. It was even know to delay Metroliners. That was President Claytor's baby. Once the mail contract ended in the 2000s, it became just another train.
Then there was of course, the defunct Montrea-"hauler," because someone would eventually get "hauled" from the train at some point in the trip....usually in handcuffs. This usually resulted in a delay because these incidents rarely occurred at a major station.
My memories of the Texas Eagle dealt with the 90s era when it was routinely destroyed by the UP. It was nicknamed the Texas "Beagle," (or The Beagle for short) because it was such a "dog" of a train.
However, nothing lived up to its nickname like the Late for Sure Limited. It's nowhere near as bad these days but it will never get out from that nickname.
There was a nickname for the Sunset but I can't remember it.
