Will California Zephyr delays get better soon?

[Brian]

Hi everyone,

First time poster, long time reader.

I booked an AGR from EMY->CHI->WAS->ATL (Roomette) for me and my girlfriend departing EMY on Aug. 27. I've been looking at the dismal on-time performance of the Zephyr lately, and I noticed that the Zephyr has been so late that it's been missing the connection with the Capitol Limited most days over the last two weeks.

Does anyone know when track conditions will improve and if on-time performance will be better by the end of this month? Or am I looking at a possible overnight in Chicago? Thanks!

 

[AlecL]

Probably not going to get better anytime soon. Freight congestion, speed restrictions, late arrivals and turn arounds have been severely delaying the Zephyr. Detour around Omaha could continue until sometime this fall and trackwork in CO is scheduled on select days through Aug 27.

 

[Linda T]

Hi everyone,

First time poster, long time reader.

I booked an AGR from EMY->CHI->WAS->ATL (Roomette) for me and my girlfriend departing EMY on Aug. 27. I've been looking at the dismal on-time performance of the Zephyr lately, and I noticed that the Zephyr has been so late that it's been missing the connection with the Capitol Limited most days over the last two weeks.

Does anyone know when track conditions will improve and if on-time performance will be better by the end of this month? Or am I looking at a possible overnight in Chicago? Thanks!

According to what we heard from our SCA on the Zephyr, the main problem is STILL the Missouri River. There is a water treatment plant in or near Omaha that sits very close to the river. To protect themselves they have built a barricade across the rails (thus no service to Omaha). The Zephyr is now re-routed onto a northern route where there is only one track for a considerable distance, and it is at the mercy of the freights that go through each day. The Missouri is still out of her banks and some houses still remain under water, or sit as islands totally surrounded by water. We went through that region on Tuesday, IIRC. Until the water treatment plant takes down the blockade the Zephyr will have difficulties keeping it's schedule.

We also experienced very hot temperatures which required the Zephyr to go at the reduced speed of only 40 mph. And on at least one occasion we got behind a slow freight and had to slow down ourselves till it could pull over and let us past. The good news is that the conductors are all very experienced with the late arrival and keep us up to date via the PA system. They announced why we were slowing down, and then they came around to each room of those missing their connection to tell them what they could expect. My only negative experience was stopping the conductor in the aisleway to ask if he thought we could make it to Galesburg in time to catch the bus to IND to catch the CARD, I asked if he could add announcements for Galesburg as well as CHI. He was a bit abrupt and snapped that they've been running late for weeks, and that we were just first timers... ah well yeah... :help: But I realized that he was tired and we probably weren't the only people who've been asking him about Galesburg. I just smiled and told him that I appreciated the updates and the fact that it was out of their control. He seemed to brighten up, so maybe I helped him feel a bit better. Yeah the Zephyr runs late and they know it. hboy:

CHI is an old hand at handling the Zephyr's late arrival now-a-days. If I were you, I'd prepare for an overnight in CHI, and if you catch your train you'll be pleasantly surprised. :lol:

BTW, the trackwork in Colorado was a non-issue for us. Don't know if we were just lucky and they weren't working on that day, or just what, but... we were only about 30 maybe 60 minutes behind when we reached Lincoln, it was all downhill from there.

 

[imdbutkus2]

On July 27, 2011, my family of 4 left Naperville, IL on the California Zephyr Amtrak on route to Denver Our experience has been horrific. To recap my tale, the train was freezing, the train attendant placed us in seats that faced eachothr so at night it was like 4 of us were sleeping in a queen sized bed, we ran out of food and toilet paper and arrived 5 hours late (and I won't mention the extra long stop by the police to frisk someone and then let him back). Oh yeah and then the return home on August 4th was cancelled, which cost us MORE than a thousand dollars in airfare in hotel. Also, they have THE worse customer service ever - after being on hold for 42 minutes to discuss my options on getting back home for a wedding, I received a recording that said everyone left for the day! So after all of this misery and extra expense what am I offered? I was told that they would return my money (and they made it sound like they were doing me a favor) and they said they would send a voucher. I thought perhaps a voucher for the same trip, or at least a majority of cost of the same trip. The voucher was for $200 toward another train travel that expires in less than a year from when our trip was cancelled! We can't even give it away because our name is on it. By the way, we were told 3 different stories about the delay including heat (which is a new phenomenon) flooding and track work. There was no track work scheduled for return week prior to our leaving for CO. Our 4 round trip tickets cost$ 900. What the heck am I suppose to do with this. I know what Amtrak can do with it. In other words, I would do ANYTHING possible to avoid taking Amtrak, especially if you have connecting issues. They will do NOTHING to make up for any of their deficiencies. Cancel while you still have the chance!

 

[Ripper3785]

Hi everyone,

First time poster, long time reader.

I booked an AGR from EMY->CHI->WAS->ATL (Roomette) for me and my girlfriend departing EMY on Aug. 27. I've been looking at the dismal on-time performance of the Zephyr lately, and I noticed that the Zephyr has been so late that it's been missing the connection with the Capitol Limited most days over the last two weeks.

Does anyone know when track conditions will improve and if on-time performance will be better by the end of this month? Or am I looking at a possible overnight in Chicago? Thanks!

If your CZ trip was a day later we'd have been on the same train. Drat.

 

[AlanB]

On July 27, 2011, my family of 4 left Naperville, IL on the California Zephyr Amtrak on route to Denver Our experience has been horrific. To recap my tale, the train was freezing, the train attendant placed us in seats that faced eachothr so at night it was like 4 of us were sleeping in a queen sized bed, we ran out of food and toilet paper and arrived 5 hours late (and I won't mention the extra long stop by the police to frisk someone and then let him back). Oh yeah and then the return home on August 4th was cancelled, which cost us MORE than a thousand dollars in airfare in hotel. Also, they have THE worse customer service ever - after being on hold for 42 minutes to discuss my options on getting back home for a wedding, I received a recording that said everyone left for the day! So after all of this misery and extra expense what am I offered? I was told that they would return my money (and they made it sound like they were doing me a favor) and they said they would send a voucher. I thought perhaps a voucher for the same trip, or at least a majority of cost of the same trip. The voucher was for $200 toward another train travel that expires in less than a year from when our trip was cancelled! We can't even give it away because our name is on it. By the way, we were told 3 different stories about the delay including heat (which is a new phenomenon) flooding and track work. There was no track work scheduled for return week prior to our leaving for CO. Our 4 round trip tickets cost$ 900. What the heck am I suppose to do with this. I know what Amtrak can do with it. In other words, I would do ANYTHING possible to avoid taking Amtrak, especially if you have connecting issues. They will do NOTHING to make up for any of their deficiencies. Cancel while you still have the chance!

While I'm sorry that things didn't go as well as hoped for, there are a few issues that I'd like to point out/talk about.

First, while it does happen that Amtrak trains do sometimes run out of food as they're nearing the end of their run, this train still had almost 2 more days before it reached the end of the line. I can't imagine that they were running out of food. Is it possible that they were out of a specific item? Sure. But if they were generally running out of food by Denver, then there would have been a riot on board by the time the train reached California.

Second, if memory serves the train on the 4th was indeed cancelled by Amtrak. It's unfortunate that happened, but thanks to the ongoing flooding of the Missouri River causing delays, it was the only way that Amtrak could get things back on schedule. It's kind of like having a snow storm that prevents your plane from flying. It can take days for them to get back on schedule.

Third, heat restrictions are not a "new phenomenon". They've been around for several years now and frequently in the news here on the east coast.

 

[Ben_G]

It seems they are getting behind in Nevada and Utah more than before for some reason any idea's why. I thought the major disruption was at Omaha and some track work near Glenwood springs.

 

[Michael061282]

some trains are starting to run out of food in the diner's much too soon lately. When you ask (politely) about it, you're "its the new commissary and computer system in Chicago. Or on the VA NE Regionals, its Boston or DC.

 

[anir dendroica]

Here's an excerpt from a BNSF "Letter to Customers" dated August 11:

BNSF expects to spend over $300 million to restore and harden our network. On the St. Joseph Subdivision, we are expanding our network of bridges while the area is still flooded and expect the bridge work to be completed by September 8.
BNSF values our relationship with you and your company. The feedback you provide us through our surveys and your BNSF representative helps us identify areas for improvement. During our most recent surveys, one of the key areas you've indicated we can make improvements in is service.

We are committed to meeting your expectations and we are working hard to restore our network and your service to best in class as soon as possible. We expect you will begin to see significant network performance improvement upon the reopening of the St. Joseph Subdivision in September. We anticipate having all trains returned to their normal routes by October.

http://www.bnsf.com/customers/weather-interruptions/update-rr-conditions-and-service.html

Once the St. Joseph subdivision is reopened, it should at least be possible for the CZ to run on time.

Mark

 

[Amtrak George]

On July 27, 2011, my family of 4 left Naperville, IL on the California Zephyr Amtrak on route to Denver Our experience has been horrific. To recap my tale, the train was freezing, the train attendant placed us in seats that faced eachothr so at night it was like 4 of us were sleeping in a queen sized bed, we ran out of food and toilet paper and arrived 5 hours late (and I won't mention the extra long stop by the police to frisk someone and then let him back). Oh yeah and then the return home on August 4th was cancelled, which cost us MORE than a thousand dollars in airfare in hotel. Also, they have THE worse customer service ever - after being on hold for 42 minutes to discuss my options on getting back home for a wedding, I received a recording that said everyone left for the day! So after all of this misery and extra expense what am I offered? I was told that they would return my money (and they made it sound like they were doing me a favor) and they said they would send a voucher. I thought perhaps a voucher for the same trip, or at least a majority of cost of the same trip. The voucher was for $200 toward another train travel that expires in less than a year from when our trip was cancelled! We can't even give it away because our name is on it. By the way, we were told 3 different stories about the delay including heat (which is a new phenomenon) flooding and track work. There was no track work scheduled for return week prior to our leaving for CO. Our 4 round trip tickets cost$ 900. What the heck am I suppose to do with this. I know what Amtrak can do with it. In other words, I would do ANYTHING possible to avoid taking Amtrak, especially if you have connecting issues. They will do NOTHING to make up for any of their deficiencies. Cancel while you still have the chance!

While I'm sorry that things didn't go as well as hoped for, there are a few issues that I'd like to point out/talk about.

First, while it does happen that Amtrak trains do sometimes run out of food as they're nearing the end of their run, this train still had almost 2 more days before it reached the end of the line. I can't imagine that they were running out of food. Is it possible that they were out of a specific item? Sure. But if they were generally running out of food by Denver, then there would have been a riot on board by the time the train reached California.

Second, if memory serves the train on the 4th was indeed cancelled by Amtrak. It's unfortunate that happened, but thanks to the ongoing flooding of the Missouri River causing delays, it was the only way that Amtrak could get things back on schedule. It's kind of like having a snow storm that prevents your plane from flying. It can take days for them to get back on schedule.

Third, heat restrictions are not a "new phenomenon". They've been around for several years now and frequently in the news here on the east coast.

A question for clarification here: Did Amtrak refund your money AND give you a voucher for $200 future travel? If so, they are being very gracious and generous and going beyond the call of duty to make things right. If on the other hand all you got was a $200 voucher then perhaps you need to call customer service again. I am sorry you had a problem, but there are many factors beyond their control right now.