City of New Orleans - first time rider

[sallie]

My son and I will be traveling on the Cityof New Orleans train to Brookhaven, Miss where my son will meet up with relatives for a visit. I plan to turn right aournd and take Train 58 north back home. My concern is that even with the nearly 4 hour layover that Train 59 may be more than 4 hours late and I won't be in Brookhave in order to get on Train 58 going north. I checked out the link listing delays and see that the City of New Orleans has been late, but then also read a blog where the train is known for being on-time.

Also, when the train stops, do people get off and sightsee? How do you learn how much time you have?

Also, any tips for teenagers on the train?

Thanks, we are really looking forward to our trip.

 

[BobWeaver]

My son and I will be traveling on the Cityof New Orleans train to Brookhaven, Miss where my son will meet up with relatives for a visit. I plan to turn right aournd and take Train 58 north back home. My concern is that even with the nearly 4 hour layover that Train 59 may be more than 4 hours late and I won't be in Brookhave in order to get on Train 58 going north. I checked out the link listing delays and see that the City of New Orleans has been late, but then also read a blog where the train is known for being on-time.
Also, when the train stops, do people get off and sightsee? How do you learn how much time you have?

Also, any tips for teenagers on the train?

Thanks, we are really looking forward to our trip.

I'll let those who know more about 58/59 than I do respond to the on-time performance issues, but I can tell you that the City of New Orleans is one of the better performers when it comes to on-time performance.

As far as stops along the way, you cannot get off the train unless it is a longer station stop (like Memphis or perhaps Jackson, MS). Otherwise, the train only stops for as long as it takes to let off and load passengers, which usually takes no more than 4-5 minutes at the smaller stations. The onboard crew will let you know which stations you may step off the train. When/If you do, stay close to the train. If you wander off, even inside the station, the train will leave you.

If your son is a train fan, you may want to pick up a radio scanner so he can listen in on the radio chatter. Radio Shack has a clearance on one of its scanners right now, the PRO-84, and at under $30, it's a rather rare deal.

 

[the_traveler]

At the present time (but I can't say for how long), trains have to detour around the Memphis station - due to a sinkhole in the parking lot and within a foot of where the tracks used to be! They are bussing passengers who are boarding or departing at Memphis to/from temporary stations both north and south of Memphis.

Because the buses do not depart the station until the scheduled time, this may be part of the reason why #58/59 is late.

 

[MStrain]

The Traveler is right on. They should have the problem fixed in a few weeks (SHOULD) but we'll see. The only stop that the 59 makes for any period of time South of Memphis is Jackson. You can get off and stretch or have a smoke, but I think its only a 10 minute stop or so. Everytime I have ridden the 59 to Hammond, I am always there in time to catch the Northbound 58. 58 leaves New Orleans generally right on time at 1:45PM.

To date, I don't believe train 59 has been over 2.5 hours late, even with the trouble in Memphis. Happy riding!

Try out the Cross Country Cafe and let us know what you think.

 

[Rail Freak]

My son and I will be traveling on the Cityof New Orleans train to Brookhaven, Miss where my son will meet up with relatives for a visit. I plan to turn right aournd and take Train 58 north back home. My concern is that even with the nearly 4 hour layover that Train 59 may be more than 4 hours late and I won't be in Brookhave in order to get on Train 58 going north. I checked out the link listing delays and see that the City of New Orleans has been late, but then also read a blog where the train is known for being on-time.
Also, when the train stops, do people get off and sightsee? How do you learn how much time you have?

Also, any tips for teenagers on the train?

Thanks, we are really looking forward to our trip.

I'll let those who know more about 58/59 than I do respond to the on-time performance issues, but I can tell you that the City of New Orleans is one of the better performers when it comes to on-time performance.

As far as stops along the way, you cannot get off the train unless it is a longer station stop (like Memphis or perhaps Jackson, MS). Otherwise, the train only stops for as long as it takes to let off and load passengers, which usually takes no more than 4-5 minutes at the smaller stations. The onboard crew will let you know which stations you may step off the train. When/If you do, stay close to the train. If you wander off, even inside the station, the train will leave you.

If your son is a train fan, you may want to pick up a radio scanner so he can listen in on the radio chatter. Radio Shack has a clearance on one of its scanners right now, the PRO-84, and at under $30, it's a rather rare deal.

Just Checked, the PRO-84 is nowhere to be found in Fla.

 

[Guest]

The Traveler is right on. They should have the problem fixed in a few weeks (SHOULD) but we'll see. The only stop that the 59 makes for any period of time South of Memphis is Jackson. You can get off and stretch or have a smoke, but I think its only a 10 minute stop or so. Everytime I have ridden the 59 to Hammond, I am always there in time to catch the Northbound 58. 58 leaves New Orleans generally right on time at 1:45PM.
To date, I don't believe train 59 has been over 2.5 hours late, even with the trouble in Memphis. Happy riding!

Try out the Cross Country Cafe and let us know what you think.

58/59 will be detouring until at LEAST July 24 or 27th (can't remember what the memo said)

so far the detour is getting better and quicker. Unfortunately, part of the detour involves about 2.2 miles of CSX track...which can delay the detour pretty quickly. On a good night with a good detour, 58 has been about an hour late into Newbern and Fulton......but it's been kind of a crap shoot

 

[BobWeaver]

My son and I will be traveling on the Cityof New Orleans train to Brookhaven, Miss where my son will meet up with relatives for a visit. I plan to turn right aournd and take Train 58 north back home. My concern is that even with the nearly 4 hour layover that Train 59 may be more than 4 hours late and I won't be in Brookhave in order to get on Train 58 going north. I checked out the link listing delays and see that the City of New Orleans has been late, but then also read a blog where the train is known for being on-time.
Also, when the train stops, do people get off and sightsee? How do you learn how much time you have?

Also, any tips for teenagers on the train?

Thanks, we are really looking forward to our trip.

I'll let those who know more about 58/59 than I do respond to the on-time performance issues, but I can tell you that the City of New Orleans is one of the better performers when it comes to on-time performance.

As far as stops along the way, you cannot get off the train unless it is a longer station stop (like Memphis or perhaps Jackson, MS). Otherwise, the train only stops for as long as it takes to let off and load passengers, which usually takes no more than 4-5 minutes at the smaller stations. The onboard crew will let you know which stations you may step off the train. When/If you do, stay close to the train. If you wander off, even inside the station, the train will leave you.

If your son is a train fan, you may want to pick up a radio scanner so he can listen in on the radio chatter. Radio Shack has a clearance on one of its scanners right now, the PRO-84, and at under $30, it's a rather rare deal.

Just Checked, the PRO-84 is nowhere to be found in Fla.

They have it at a few places here in SC. Does anybody know if the PRO-84 is any better than the PRO-82?

 

[Kaki]

The Traveler is right on. They should have the problem fixed in a few weeks (SHOULD) but we'll see. The only stop that the 59 makes for any period of time South of Memphis is Jackson. You can get off and stretch or have a smoke, but I think its only a 10 minute stop or so. Everytime I have ridden the 59 to Hammond, I am always there in time to catch the Northbound 58. 58 leaves New Orleans generally right on time at 1:45PM.
To date, I don't believe train 59 has been over 2.5 hours late, even with the trouble in Memphis. Happy riding!

Try out the Cross Country Cafe and let us know what you think.

58/59 will be detouring until at LEAST July 24 or 27th (can't remember what the memo said)

so far the detour is getting better and quicker. Unfortunately, part of the detour involves about 2.2 miles of CSX track...which can delay the detour pretty quickly. On a good night with a good detour, 58 has been about an hour late into Newbern and Fulton......but it's been kind of a crap shoot

[size="4"]Where did you find the information about 58/59 and the Memphis station? We are supposed to board at Memphis on June 1st, I am not concerned about the detour or the bus ride. I was counting on the free parking at the station and we are now looking at parking 18 days at $12.50 per day. I was hoping that the sinkhole would be fixed by then . If anyone knows of a more economical place to park in Memphis, please let me know![/size]

 

[AlanB]

Sallie,

The best advice that I can give you is to make sure that you have a copy of the timetable for the City of New Orleans. Then monitor things as you go along, if you find that the train is running more than two hour late at Greenwood, then find a conductor and seek out his/her assistance on what to do. Don't tell your car attendant, as there will be little that they can do. But the conductor will know much better what is expected and can advise you on what to do. That may well include having you get off one stop early at Hazelhurst if the train is running really late, so that you can still catch the northbound train home.

 

[George Harris]

[size="4"]Where did you find the information about 58/59 and the Memphis station? We are supposed to board at Memphis on June 1st, I am not concerned about the detour or the bus ride. I was counting on the free parking at the station and we are now looking at parking 18 days at $12.50 per day. I was hoping that the sinkhole would be fixed by then . If anyone knows of a more economical place to park in Memphis, please let me know![/size]

Where are you in relation to the Memphis station? You can take a pair of really long taxi rides for 18 x $12.50 = $225.00.

 

[Kaki]

[size="4"]Where did you find the information about 58/59 and the Memphis station? We are supposed to board at Memphis on June 1st, I am not concerned about the detour or the bus ride. I was counting on the free parking at the station and we are now looking at parking 18 days at $12.50 per day. I was hoping that the sinkhole would be fixed by then . If anyone knows of a more economical place to park in Memphis, please let me know![/size]

Where are you in relation to the Memphis station? You can take a pair of really long taxi rides for 18 x $12.50 = $225.00.

We are in Russellville, Arkansas. We would have taken the train out of Little Rock but, it would not "connect" with the EB in Chicago without a 24 hr. layover - at $200 per night for a hotel in Chicago I figured we could drive 3 hours to Memphis, park free and be on our way.

At this point we have reached this decision about parking: I have a sister-in-law who has a friend with a buisness in Memphis who will let us park our car there for the 18 days (no charge), the taxi to Amtrak will be $22.50.

The same sister-in-law (and her two grandchildren) mentioned above WERE traveling with us as far as Chicago (we heading west, they heading east from Chicago). She decided that the whole parking/bus problem was too much and changed her departure station to Little Rock since her outbound train from Chicago does not leave until evening and therefore they will have no problem making the connection. Amtrak was very helpful and changed her reservation at the same price she had paid.

Anyway, we are still looking foreward to this trip despite this little glitch and the knowledge that we will have to bus for a short distance to catch the train.

Kaki

 

[Green Maned Lion]

That makes very little sense to me.

 

[sallie]

At the present time (but I can't say for how long), trains have to detour around the Memphis station - due to a sinkhole in the parking lot and within a foot of where the tracks used to be! They are bussing passengers who are boarding or departing at Memphis to/from temporary stations both north and south of Memphis.
Because the buses do not depart the station until the scheduled time, this may be part of the reason why #58/59 is late.

Thanks to everyone who replied. Very helpful.

 

[ravi]

Very useful Forum..

I am having a trip this Friday and I made a visit to the Train Station today to check out the station and if they have the parking areas.

Was shocked to learn about this sinking hole issue and now I can't park here and have to come early to go through this bus

journey to catch Amtrak. I have a 6 month old baby and so its gonna be a total frustration for me.

Have anyone used PEABODY parking garage??.

How safe is that area??

Is it possible to park in that area and get a taxi?

TAXI for me from home would be 100$ in total and so now I have to plan the best and safest way to catch Amtrak considering

I am travelling with a baby.

Why Life is so tough??(Disregard this question

 

[George Harris]

Have anyone used PEABODY parking garage??.
How safe is that area??

Is it possible to park in that area and get a taxi?

TAXI for me from home would be 100$ in total and so now I have to plan the best and safest way to catch Amtrak considering

I am travelling with a baby.

If you can park in the Peabody garage, you should be fine. Better call them to find out whether it is for guests only. I would not be surprised if it was that way. Taxi from the Peabody to Central Station should be no problem at all. If you can find taxis waitintg around anywhere in Memphis other than the airport, it would be at the Peabody.

 

[George Harris]

That makes very little sense to me.

What doesn't? Russellville Arkansas to Memphis driving? Russellville is approximately 200 miles west of Memphis and about 75 miles west of Little Rock. Therefore, to go out of Little Rock would be much closer. However, the TE does not connect with the westbound trains out of Chicago. The City of New Orleans, which gets into Chicago fairly early in the morning does make the connections. Hence, go to Memphis.

Kaki: At one time there were dedicated buses to the Little Rock airport from Memphis thanks to Southwest cheap flights. Don't know if that is still true or if it would do you any good if it was.

Off topic to Kaki: How is I-40 between Memphis and Little Rock these days? The last time I drove it, a couple years ago, traffic and the road were both so bad that I went up to Bald Knob and came across on US 64 on my way back.

 

[Kaki]

That makes very little sense to me.

What doesn't? Russellville Arkansas to Memphis driving? Russellville is approximately 200 miles west of Memphis and about 75 miles west of Little Rock. Therefore, to go out of Little Rock would be much closer. However, the TE does not connect with the westbound trains out of Chicago. The City of New Orleans, which gets into Chicago fairly early in the morning does make the connections. Hence, go to Memphis.

Kaki: At one time there were dedicated buses to the Little Rock airport from Memphis thanks to Southwest cheap flights. Don't know if that is still true or if it would do you any good if it was.

Off topic to Kaki: How is I-40 between Memphis and Little Rock these days? The last time I drove it, a couple years ago, traffic and the road were both so bad that I went up to Bald Knob and came across on US 64 on my way back.

The traffic is heavy and the road is just ok. When we drive that stretch we drive very, very carefully.

And thank you for clearing up the confusion about my post, I should have been more specific in my details.

 

[Kaki]

Very useful Forum..
I am having a trip this Friday and I made a visit to the Train Station today to check out the station and if they have the parking areas.

Was shocked to learn about this sinking hole issue and now I can't park here and have to come early to go through this bus

journey to catch Amtrak. I have a 6 month old baby and so its gonna be a total frustration for me.

Have anyone used PEABODY parking garage??.

How safe is that area??

Is it possible to park in that area and get a taxi?

TAXI for me from home would be 100$ in total and so now I have to plan the best and safest way to catch Amtrak considering

I am travelling with a baby.

Why Life is so tough??(Disregard this question

This is the information posted on the AMTRAK website, you probably already knew this since you mentioned the Peabody Garage. I would suggest calling the garages to get information or go to: http://maps.google.com/ and search "memphis parking" for several other parking locations.

We are lucky enough to have a relative with a friend who will let us park at his business for the 18 days we will be on our trip. Amtrak called us on Sunday and told us we need to be at the station at about 8:15 p.m., the bus will leave for a 15 minute trip to meet the train.

Until the track is restored, the parking lot at the station will be closed. Limited street parking is available near the station.

Long-term parking is available at two 24-hour attended public parking garages located approximately one mile from the station at a cost of approximately $12 for 24 hours. To arrange taxi service to the station, speak with a parking lot attendant or contact the taxi companies directly.

250 Peabody Place Garage

(on the east end of the Peabody Place Mall)

Tower Garage at 110 Peabody Place

(on the west end of the Peabody Place Mall)

Yellow Cab

Citywide Cab

We appreciate your patronage and apologize for any inconvenience you may experience.

 

[harl222000]

The City of New Orleans: On the track to Chicago

Posted by Millie Ball, Travel editor, The Times-Picayune June 22, 2008 5:00AM

Categories: Amtrak, Travel, Travel, trains

Interesting article, great pictures!

http://blog.nola.com/millieball/2008/06/th...ans_on_the.html

My son and I will be traveling on the Cityof New Orleans train to Brookhaven, Miss where my son will meet up with relatives for a visit. I plan to turn right aournd and take Train 58 north back home. My concern is that even with the nearly 4 hour layover that Train 59 may be more than 4 hours late and I won't be in Brookhave in order to get on Train 58 going north. I checked out the link listing delays and see that the City of New Orleans has been late, but then also read a blog where the train is known for being on-time.
Also, when the train stops, do people get off and sightsee? How do you learn how much time you have?

Also, any tips for teenagers on the train?

Thanks, we are really looking forward to our trip.