Springfield Shuttle M-F cancellations from August 3 thru July 2016

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afigg

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Major service disruptions are coming to the New Haven to Springfield mid-day shuttle trains from Monday through Fridays to accommodate track work. Six Springfield shuttle trains will be canceled with bus substitutions. The disruptions will last until July 2016, so this is going to last for at least close to a year.

Amtrak Springfield shuttle service alert.

Equivalent NHV-Hartford-SPG project website announcement with track work info.

Gist of the service alert:

Northeast Regional Springfield Shuttle: Track Work Affects Mid-Day Shuttle Service
Effective Monday through Friday Only, August 3, 2015 through July 2016


To accommodate a long-term track work project, Springfield Shuttle Trains 470, 476, 479, 490, 493 and 495 will be canceled on Monday through Friday from August 3, 2015 through July 2016. Passengers will be provided bus service to and from the following stations:

New Haven
Wallingford
Meriden
Berlin
Hartford
Windsor
Windsor Locks
Springfield

Local Southbound Buses Depart Earlier
Buses 2479, 2493 and 2495 destined for New Haven will depart Berlin, Meriden and Wallingford 20 minutes earlier than the respective train schedules. Contact Amtrak for bus schedules. All other buses will operate according to the respective train schedules.
2015 and 2016 - the prime years of extended service disruptions for the HSIPR track projects (funded in 2010!).
 
I believe they are adding a second track but not sure..
Yes, the second track is being restored from New Haven to Windsor, along with a slew of improvements: track realignment for curve reduction, 15' track spacing, underbridge replacements, new interlockings, grade crossing gate upgrades, some grade crossing closures, fencing along parts of the route to keep people from walking across the tracks, new signal system. station rebuilds with high level platforms at Berlin, Meriden, Wallingford and Hartford. Substantial project.

However, Amtrak's cost estimates for the project have jumped and the construction schedule is slipping into 2017, which has gotten CT officials unhappy. A month or 2 back, Gov. Malloy openly talked about the state taking control and ownership of the NHV-SPG corridor away from Amtrak because of the delays and cost overruns. A lot more money will need to be found to complete the track and station upgrades from Windsor to SPG.
 
A month or 2 back, Gov. Malloy openly talked about the state taking control and ownership of the NHV-SPG corridor away from Amtrak because of the delays and cost overruns.
Won't happen, because the state would have to *pay Amtrak for* the corridor. It would be a nice shot in the arm for Amtrak's budget -- several hundred million dollars, probably -- and I think Amtrak would absolutely go for that deal -- but given the state's worries about costs, I just don't see it happening.
 
This is my first trip on the Northeast Regional fromNPN to Boston. Does this mean that I will have to get off the train and take a bus during this trip? Thanks for the help everyone.
 
No. The trains to Boston do not travel on the line through Hartford to Springfield; they follow the coast via Providence..
 
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I don't see any mention of the Vermonter (55/56) which uses that line during the afternoon between 1:25 and 4:25 PM both directions.

So they have 495, 490, 493 and 470 bustituted during 7:10 AM through 11:55 AM.

Then 476 and 479 are on the road between 5:20 and 8:50 PM, however 475 is on the rail between 4:05 and 5:35 PM as well as 494 from 7:30 and 8:55 PM.

Why would they even turn on a shuttle trainset for one round trip a day? If they kept their schedule after 4:05 PM they would need two sets for the overlapping need to be in New Haven for connections.

It looks like the bottom line is that the track work day ends by 1:25 PM for the Vermonter. Pretty sweet job.

As far as taking private property; Connecticut has no problem with that. (Kelo vs. New London)
 
I don't see any mention of the Vermonter (55/56) which uses that line during the afternoon between 1:25 and 4:25 PM both directions.

So they have 495, 490, 493 and 470 bustituted during 7:10 AM through 11:55 AM.

Then 476 and 479 are on the road between 5:20 and 8:50 PM, however 475 is on the rail between 4:05 and 5:35 PM as well as 494 from 7:30 and 8:55 PM.

Why would they even turn on a shuttle trainset for one round trip a day? If they kept their schedule after 4:05 PM they would need two sets for the overlapping need to be in New Haven for connections.

It looks like the bottom line is that the track work day ends by 1:25 PM for the Vermonter. Pretty sweet job.

As far as taking private property; Connecticut has no problem with that. (Kelo vs. New London)
I believe that 476/479 are being bused not because the track is OOS, but because freight has no other slots in which to move.
 
I wonder when Amtrak knew of these changes to the mode of travel (from train shuttle to bus shuttle).

I purchased a ticket on July 21, 2015 for travel from Hartford to Harrisburg on a Friday in mid-August (starting with train 493). How could Amtrak not know there would be a bustitution by the day I bought the ticket -- 13 days before the bustitution started?

While I imagine that there will be no delays in my journey due to the bus shuttle, I'd be put out if I had been banking on traveling by train on that route (say, to introduce a kid to travel).

At the time of this writing, Amtrak still has not contacted me to inform me of the bustitution. Good customer service should mean informing customers about changes of modes of travel, in my opinion.
 
WLNE-TV is reporting that the bustitution schedule has been revised to (according to ConnDOT) provide better 'connectivity' and "improve customer service."

Two morning bushuttles and one evening bushuttle NHV to SPG, and two morning and one evening bushuttles SPG to NHV, are impacted.

It should go without saying :rolleyes: , but intermediate stops are also impacted.

Be sure to verify your departure time - as I know that at least some bushuttles are leaving earlier than the trains they are replacing departed.

People showing up and finding their ride has already departed will certainly improve customer service! :eek:hboy: :huh:

:p
 
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The extension of this work through September 2016 has officially been announced online. However, there is an official (on paper) announcement of its being extended to sometime in 2017 has been posted in the Cary, NC, station. That hasn't been confirmed online yet.

jb
 
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