Raton Pass Closed

[printman2000]

They can always use a NPCU/Cabbage Car, allowing the train to be in push-pull mode between Belen and ABQ.

Assuming you are talking about the SWC, that would not work. Most Superliners do not have the control pass through cabling to allow push/pull service. A few have been fitted with it(used on the Heartland Flyer and California trains), but most have not.

 

[RPE]

What is the full routing of the detour. Does it stay on the other route until Ellinor or Newton on the East End?

 

[AlanB]

I read where they lost several bridges due to the fire on the Raton route. So until or if those are ever replaced the detour may turn out to be permanent. Wichita and Amarillo may have just received transcontinental rail service like it or not.

Can you post a link? I have not been able to find any info on actual rail damage.

I am currently staked out waiting for #3 to pass me just NE of Amarillo.

Here is a link to the ABQ Journal. http://www.abqjournal.com/main/2011/06/14/abqnewsseeker/i-25-remains-closed-due-to-fire.html. A post on Train Orders said the siding east of the tunnel burned and possibly the signals. The fire is called the 'track fire' because it is burning along the track row between Trinidad and the summit tunnel. Doesn't sound good, but details on the status of the rail infrastructure are hard to find right now as the fire is still burning there.

jf

That link (for me) did not work. Went to a page not found. I searched their site and found an article. I still have not seen anything "official" that says there is track damage.

Link fixed; it had an extra period on the end.

 

[pennyk]

Well, just got up & still half asleep. I have a flight out of Tampa this morning to ABQ to catch the #3. Should I go or not? If yesterday's #3 did'nt go that means no #3 out of ABQ today, correct? Thanx!

Got hold of Amtrak & they said I should have no problems catching the #3 to LAX this afternoon. So, I'm writting this from the Tampa Airport! I came very close to canceling everything.

I hope everything works out for you.

 

[henryj]

Just got back from chasing #3. She went through downtown Amarillo about 10:30am.

Thanks printman. I am going to Colorado this weekend and plan to overnight in Vaughn, NM so I was wondering what time the SWC might pass by. Looking at the old timetables for #1 & #2 I am guessing that #3 will pass through between 2-2:30PM and #4 between 3-4PM. They should pass each other between Abo and Vaughn. I will try and catch them Saturday afternoon or Sunday. Depending on just how much damage the Raton line suffered this detour could be going on for some time, I hope at least through the weekend anyway. If it's still happenning I will be returning the next Friday.

To answer one of the questions above, my understanding from reading the news releases is that points between ABQ and Santa Fe will be served by the Railrunner commuter trains. Lamy not included. The rest of the route will either get no service or see a charter bus as in the case of Las Vegas, Raton and Trinidad. It said the Lamy shuttle will not run but it did not say that Lamy itself will have bus service.

 

[printman2000]

To answer one of the questions above, my understanding from reading the news releases is that points between ABQ and Santa Fe will be served by the Railrunner commuter trains. Lamy not included. The rest of the route will either get no service or see a charter bus as in the case of Las Vegas, Raton and Trinidad. It said the Lamy shuttle will not run but it did not say that Lamy itself will have bus service.

There are no Amtrak stops between Albuquerque and Santa Fe so I am still unsure as to what commuter trains they are talking about.

 

[henryj]

To answer one of the questions above, my understanding from reading the news releases is that points between ABQ and Santa Fe will be served by the Railrunner commuter trains. Lamy not included. The rest of the route will either get no service or see a charter bus as in the case of Las Vegas, Raton and Trinidad. It said the Lamy shuttle will not run but it did not say that Lamy itself will have bus service.

There are no Amtrak stops between Albuquerque and Santa Fe so I am still unsure as to what commuter trains they are talking about.

The commuter train reference is only for the Railrunner as it is the only commuter train in NM and the stop they are referring to is Santa Fe since they also mention that the Lamy shuttle will not run. The Lamy shuttle was the access to Santa Fe.

 

[Train2104]

According to Amtrak's site, there's still service EMY-DEN, CHI-MSP, and SEA/PDX-East Glacier Park.

Where are those trains on the status map?

 

[bretton88]

It probably means this. You can take the RailRunner to Santa Fe or the Shuttle to Las Vegas/Raton. The shuttle bus probably bypasses Lamy.

 

[Ispolkom]

According to Amtrak's site, there's still service EMY-DEN, CHI-MSP, and SEA/PDX-East Glacier Park.

Where are those trains on the status map?

I'll bet the status map program can't find that information. I'm sure it wasn't programmed for such irregular operations.

 

[RPE]

According to Amtrak's site, there's still service EMY-DEN, CHI-MSP, and SEA/PDX-East Glacier Park.

Where are those trains on the status map?

I'll bet the status map program can't find that information. I'm sure it wasn't programmed for such irregular operations.

I believe that is because the maps run off the Amtrak information extract, and as soon as you get a reroute, Amtrak just presents the entire train as a Service Disruption. (This is how it appears if you look up the Status on the Amtrak site)

 

[PaulM]

UPDATE: the fire has reached Colorado and I-25 is still closed on both directions, so are the railroad tracks. Burned approx. 6,000 acres (1 sq mile equals 640 acres) and it's still at 0% containment.

You never know what timely scoop you get from AU members. I was planning to drive from Denver to Santa Fe tomorrow via Raton Pass (where is the Chief Connection when you need it?). Looks like I'll have to take the more scenic US 285.

 

[printman2000]

Just watched #4 come through Amarillo at 8:45pm.

 

[henryj]

Just watched #4 come through Amarillo at 8:45pm.

Does it even slow down? Isn't the Santa Fe station still there. I think it housed a resturant last time I was there.

 

[printman2000]

Just watched #4 come through Amarillo at 8:45pm.

Does it even slow down? Isn't the Santa Fe station still there. I think it housed a resturant last time I was there.

Yes. They all stop to do a crew change. Usually at the BNSF depot.

The passenger station is still there. Nothing but storage for an auction house now.

 

[gswager]

If Amtrak decide to use transcon route permanently, is that Amarillo passenger station ready to be used for passengers or need some work such as platform, restrooms, etc?

Clovis has a station which is used for train museum, mostly model railroads. I think the platform is ready but may not be long enough. It may be the last stop before the next stop- ABQ station.

Any other potential stations along that line?

 

[bretton88]

Wichita, which has a nice station, that doesn't need much work to be ready for passengers. It would immediately become one of the nicer stations in the system.

 

[cirdan]

Gosh, you're a pessimist... I wouldn't be surprised if the House would zero out Amtrak's budget, but I'd want to say that Amtrak has more of a following today than they did back in the 1990s and such.

I have watched passenger rail in America contract and then stagnate for nearly four decades. It's true that Amtrak has more customers today than several years ago but they also have fewer political allies and they're even further in the red now than before. In my view that means bad things for Amtrak. Maybe in your view that means good things for Amtrak. Either way I think we can agree that time will tell. Most of the AU forum seems to be convinced that nothing can ever take Amtrak down completely. I happen to disagree with that view and I've given Amtrak a maximum life expectancy of fifteen years. I'd be happy to be proven wrong, but my gut says this ship is in trouble and will have sunk long before I draw my last breath.

Amtrak is going to stay running as long as there is a will to keep it running and the willingness to stump up the necessary cash to cover the deficit.

The more people ride Amtrak and value Amtrak, the more that is going to reflect in political support.

Remember it's not just DC that supports Amtrak but many states also support it. I'd call that a broad front of support. And they're not all doing it out of pure altruism but (especially the states) are seeing some benefit come out of that support.

Maybe the overall defecit is rising, but is not the deficit per passenger falling, And maybe that's not something that Amtrak can put on their balance sheet but in the overall bigger picture of the economy and society that benefit is flowing back and delivering value.

 

[printman2000]

If Amtrak decide to use transcon route permanently, is that Amarillo passenger station ready to be used for passengers or need some work such as platform, restrooms, etc?

Clovis has a station which is used for train museum, mostly model railroads. I think the platform is ready but may not be long enough. It may be the last stop before the next stop- ABQ station.

Any other potential stations along that line?

The Amarillo depot has been out of service for 40 years (since Amtrak started). It is now privately owned by a guy who runs an auction house. Right now he is just storing stuff in it. The owner was open to the idea of using for Amtrak service back when they were trying to get the Caprock Express going so he may still be. The station sits on a curved section of track right near a BNSF yard. Here is an image...

http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Amarillo,+Potter,+Texas&ll=35.208359,-101.826128&spn=0.001602,0.003484&t=h&z=19

As long as BNSF can get them on the track closest to the station, should not be a problem with a little more paving.

As far as other stops, I know Panhandle has an old Santa Fe station. It is currently being used half by BNSF and half as the city town hall. Not sure it would be a good stop though. Pampa would be a decent stop. They do have an old depot. Not sure what it is used for.

If I were Amtrak and were doing the reroute, I would simply say if you want us to stop, provide us a station at the towns cost. Otherwise, no stop.

 

[henryj]

Santa Fe retained many of it's stations along the line unlike most other railroads. The stations at Vaughn and Mountainair NM are both still being used. I don't know about Ft Sumner. However, I would think Clovis and Belen are the only viable stops on that portion. Looking at old timetables, the SF Chief, #'s 1&2, stopped at Wichita, Wellington, Waynoka, Pampa, Amarillo, Clovis and Belen with conditional flag stops at Alva, Woodward,Canadian, Hereford, Fort Sumner and Vaughn.

 

[printman2000]

Saw #3 pass through Amarillo about 10:30am. Had three PV's on the rear. Also, only had three coaches instead of the four. I guess with the CZ getting ready to start back they took the extra one away.

 

[printman2000]

Quick check on Google maps shows Canyon and Hereford also still have ATSF depots.

 

[gswager]

Quick check on Google maps shows Canyon and Hereford also still have ATSF depots.

I've seen ATSF depot in Hereford and is being used by BNSF crews. Imagine that the city riders would get a good whiff of Hereford air- feedlots, esp. after the rains. It's a very busy industrial areas- ethanol plants and grain elevators.

I don't think Belen station would be a good one because Belen yard is a very busy yard for fueling and maintenance checkpoints.

I haven't look at Ft. Sumner station closely and I believe it is still there. I think it's one track instead of double tracks due to single track crossing over Pecos River. There is more in Vaughn which is used by maintenance crews and Melrose for communications. However, the population is very sparse.

I'll look for eastbound Amtrak tonight in Clovis. Also, I'll look up old SF Chief timetables for comparison.

 

[printman2000]

Looking at Amtrak posted times, it is taking 3 & 4 between 14-14.5 hours to go from Newton to Albuquerque via the transcon.

Normal routing schedule time...

#3 - 13:10

#4 - 14:49

I know there is quite a bit of track work north of Amarillo that slows it down. However, it does not seem that the transcon is saving any time especially since it only making one stop and that is for a crew change. Course, it may have something to do with BNSF working them in to the schedule as opposed to it being a regularly scheduled time slot.

 

[bretton88]

I think time-wise, its no different than now. Its all a matter of what might increase the passenger counts, Is BNSF willing to take Amtrak on a favorable regular schedule on the transcon, and is the infrastructure ready for Amtrak? My guess is that right now, BNSF isn't allowing maximum passenger speed for Amtrak to allow for easier dispatching. More likely they're running at 60-70mph, instead of 79.