I wish in these cases Amtrak was better at communicating the cause. Simply saying “trains are canceled due to temperatures” leaves so much open to interpretation that it invites people to leap to whatever conclusion they want, often directing their ire at parties who don’t necessarily deserve it.
“CSX Transportation, over whose tracks the Lake Shore Limited operates, has informed Amtrak that as a result of extreme weather they plan to limit capacity on their network and reduce the number of personnel available to respond to en route events. As a result, in order to ensure the safety of our passengers and crew and to maintain acceptable timekeeping, the Lake Shore Limited trains departing Chicago on January 30 and 31 have been canceled. We regret the inconvenience etc etc etc.”
There, I don’t think that’s too esoteric for most passengers to follow, gives them a better explanation, and perhaps most importantly punts blame away from Amtrak directly. If someone in DC is reading this, I can be hired as a freelance writer...
Most conductor crews I’ve had recently take great care to drop the name of the host railroad as often as possibly when train/trackage/signal/whatever problems delay us; it’d be nice if the corporate communications staff would follow their lead.
) cares about the "who, or what?" Do you think they really care that it may be part Host/part Amtrak?
