You're Rail Czar!

[The Metropolitan]

Sure this is pure fantasy, but we railfans need something to feed on in this era of Amtrak starvation.

So the scenario is this: You are given the rights to add up to six r/t trains to the Amtrak National schedule. You can use this to extend or combine existing trains, add service to existing corridors, or create new routes between city pairs. Unfortunately, this is not quite Carte Blanche (as neat as that Seattle-Miami train through Denver sounds) so do keep in mind reasonable financial restraint.

Feel free to list departure and arrival times, a train name if you like, and even a train number if you feel compelled. You can feel free to mention the equipment for this train, though here again you may want to acquiesce to reality.

With that in mind, here is my six pack...

My Own Criteria: I generally kept all trains within a 16 hour end to end limit, all of which would be "daylighters" - Amfleets with Food Service. Some of these are additional connections between large city pairs served at inconvenient times by current Amtrak LD schedules. As such, I aimed to differ the departures of these trains from the current LD trains by at least 6 hours in either direction.

Number 1 - Extension of existing service along existing corridor.

Extend one trip each way of the Hiawatha to Minneapolis St. Paul under the name "Twin Cities Zephyr"

Leave Minneapolis at 150pm, arriving at Chicago at 955pm

Leave Chicago at 645am, arriving at Minneapolis at 430pm

Number 2 - Combination of Hiawatha and Wolverine schedules for a single trip in each direction through Chicago.

Modify schedule so that first Hiawatha leaving Milwaukee at 615am runs through to Pontiac, arriving there at 320pm.

Modify Westbound to accomodate a 640am from Pontiac arriving at Milwaukee at 135pm.

Number 3 - Additonal train on existing corridor. Add additional daily train on Cardinal corridor between Cincinatti and Chicago,

Leave Cincinatti at 700am arriving at Chicago at 440pm

Leave Chicago at 745am arriving at Cincinatti at 505pm

Number 4 - Additional train on existing corridor. Add an additional daily train on Capitol Limited corridor between Chicago and Pittsburgh, serving Cleveland at a reasonable hour.

Leave Chicago at 735am, pass Cleveland at 245 pm, arrive in Pittsburgh at 600pm

Leave Pittsburgh at 1145am, pass Cleveland at 220pm, arriving in Chicago at 830pm

Number 5 - Restoration of defunct service.

Restore Desert Wind from Los Angeles to Las Vegas.

Leave Los Angeles at 1030am, Arrive in Las Vegas at 630pm

Leave Los Vegas at 1130am, arrive in Los Angeles at 730pm

Number 6 - New Service Corridor.

Long Daylight train between Charlotte NC and Jacksonville, via Atlanta

Leave Charlotte at 745am, arrive at Atlanta at 315pm, arrive at Jax at 1100pm.

Leave Jacksonville at 715am, through Atlanta at 340pm, arrive in Charlotte at 1115pm.

Feel free to add your own, or praise or bash my own...

 

[AmtrakFan]

1. Chicago to Minniapolis

Lv. Chicago 8:15AM Ar. MSP 6:45PM

Lv. MSP 1:15PM Ar. CHI 9:20PM

2. Add Chicago to Indianpolis Train Food Service and all

Lv. CHI 8:00AM Ar. IND 1:00PM

Lv. IND 5:00PM Ar. CHI 9:00PM

3. Add 1 Chicago-Detroit Round Trip

Lv. CHI 12:00PM Ar. DET 5:45PM

Lv. DET 12:30PM Ar. CHI 6:10PM

4. Add LA-Vegas Service

LV. LA 11:45AM Ar. LV 6:45PM

Lv. Vegas 12:45PM Ar. LAX 7:45PM

5. Add 1 Chicago to Pitssburg Train Via CLV

Lv. CHI 8:00AM Ar. PIT 6:45PM

LV. PIT 12:00PM Ar. CHI 9:00PM

6. Los Anageles to SFO Service

Lv. LA 7:30AM Ar. SFO 5:45PM

Lv. SFO 2:00PM Ar. LAX 11:15PM

Yea I know this will never happen but it is fun to think about.

 

[Sam Damon]

You did say fantasy, right? Costs be d@#&ed, right? Okay.

#1: The Santa Fe Super Chief. 39 hours in pure passenger railroad luxury between Chicago and Los Angeles. I'd spend all the Monopoly money I could to outfit this as the showcase North American passenger train run by Amtrak. Limited stops; all-sleeper.

#2: Revive the South Wind (or Floridian if you like), routed somehow between Chicago and Florida. IMO, that part of the USA could use some Amtrak.

#3: Skyline Connection: overnight service between PGH-NYP. Depart say, 12:00m PGH, arrive, say 7:30a NYP. Depart NYP around 11:30p, arrive PGH about 7:00a. Oh, yes, for this one I'd convert Amfleet cars into single-level sleepers, at least until the new ones are built.

#4: Make the Cardinal seven days a week. Tri-weekly doesn't cut it, if I can help it. Sure it's in the east, but since I'm Rail Czar, CSX will offer deals at the Greenbrier to passengers, or else.

#5: Make the Sunset Limited seven days a week, and run it the way it was before Katrina. Oh, yes, since I'm Rail Czar, I'll fine UP by the minute if they don't keep this train within 15 minutes of schedule at any station stop. Unless, of course, there's an Amtrak mechanical problem. Then I'll be a nice guy.

#6: Revive the Olympian Hiawatha since as Rail Czar, by golly, I've got piles of green stuff to spend to build another railroad. Barring that, I'd settle for reviving the North Coast Limited across the ex-NP line, so I'd have two trains across the northwest USA while covering my back in the midwest with the Southwest Chief and my new Santa Fe Super Chief.

 

[RailFanLNK]

Hence the name railROOKIE, but I can definately give you one train. I would love to see a route from southern Texas through Oklahoma angleling toward eastern Kansas/Missouri. Have a stopping point in KCY (Kansas City) and then proceed northward through Nebraska with a stopover in Omaha, have it timed to where you could take the Zephyr to Omaha from Lincoln and catch the "Good Life" train to go northward up I-29 and somewhat follow the Missouri (for scenic beauty) with stops in Sioux City, Sioux Falls and then proceed to Fargo where you could catch the Empire Builder. Then have it be a RT. I would love to take a train to KCY and catch a Chiefs game and then be able to go back home on it and then detrain in Omaha to catch the Zephyr back to Lincoln. Thats my two cents anyway.

 

[whc6]

Wow! A fun topic!

1. I would like to restore the current Amtrak Crescent to the glory of the Southern Crescent. Mind, I think the Crescent is still one of Amtrak's better long-distance trains. However, imagine the superb dining on the Southen Crescent, spotless and attentive porters, on-time performance, Vista View cars, convivial bar car, and all the other amenities. What a great train!

2. A long-distance train from Chicago to somewhere in Florida and return. I would route it via Nashville, Chattanooga, and Atlanta. Middle Tennessee deserves train service.

3. Charlotte-Atlanta: A train kind of like the Piedmont, with an emphasis towards business travel. It should be a daylight run both ways not to exceed five hours, preferably four or so. It should stop only in Spartanburg, Greenville, and Gainesville. People would fight to get on this train rather than face the unpredictable drive.

4. Dallas - Mexico City. This one would be profitable.

5. Salisbury NC - Asheville NC - this one is on the table as a state supported train. The depots are finished, all we need is money and rolling stock. I would change the starting point to Charlotte.

 

[jamesontheroad]

Unfortunately, this is not quite Carte Blanche ... so do keep in mind reasonable financial restraint.

Spoil sport...

As you'll have noticed in other threads, despite my posh British accent I am a proud adopted Canadian, so here are six wildcard suggestions to promote a little international harmony... with two sets of politicians not interested in taking any responsibility for them, I think they could do with some help. With sky high air fares across the border, they all have a chance of making financial sense.

1) The Montrealer Re-instate a daily limited stop night service along the route of the Vermonter between Montréal, New York and Washington DC. Someone's already mentioned rebuilding sleepers out of those mothballed Amfleets, so I'll borrow a couple of those for this one. Keep the Adirondack pitched low as a low-cost day time service that maintains it's valuable upstate New York service, and then push the Montrealer hard as a business class service during the week and a romantic weekend getaway from Friday to Monday.

(southbound d. MTR 2000, a. SAB 2200, a. NYP 0800, a. WAS 1130)

(northbound d. WAS 1800, a. NYP 2130, a. SAB 0730, a. MTR 0930)

2) The Beantown Limited a daily Amfleet service in the style of the Adirondack from Montréal to Boston via Montpelier and White River Junction. No idea if the tracks exist, but if they don't I'm sure we can knock some up...

(and with the both 1, 2 and the Adirondack: ditch the stop at St. Lambert, QC and get all customs cleared in Montréal rather than on the train)

3) The Blue Jay I'll have a few more of those Amfleet sleepers to make up a new nightly service from Toronto to New York and Washington, DC. As with the Adirondack / Montrealer, this one can cream off some business passengers while students, tourists and railfans can continue on the cheaper day time Maple Leaf.

(southbound d. TOR 1800, a. BUF 2200, a. NYP 0700, a. WAS 1030)

(northbound d. WAS 1600, a. NYP 1930, a. BUF 0400, a. TOR 0800)

4) The New International Join the dots again with a daily Superliner service in each direction Chicago, Detroit and Toronto.

(westbound d. TOR 0800, a. CHI 1900)

(eastbound d. CHI 0800, a. TOR 1900)

5) Cascades An extra daily roundtrip from Vancouver, BC to Seattle, with at least one extending to Portland, OR and one unit always nightstopping in Vancouver, BC to provide an early morning departure. Oh, and while we're at, extend the Coast Starlight north from SEA to Vancouver, BC. The northbound train is always late, so rather than end up in Seattle at 02h00, keep it running and give the crew some Canadian bacon for breakfast...

consist 1:

(southbound d. VAC 0600, a. SEA 1000 a. PDX 1330)

(northbound d. PDX 1500, a. SEA 1830 a. VAC 2230)

consist 2:

(northbound d. SEA 0700, a. SEA 1100)

(southbound d. VAC 1800, a. SEA 2200)

and one to show I'm not too heavily biased towards the north...

6) Dallas - San Antonio - Mexico City WHC got in with that one before me. Sounds like a winner. Make it luxurious and charge a premium...

*j* :blink:

 

[frj1983]

Two short midwest runs:

1) A daylight Chicago to Minneapolis/St. Paul Train.

2) A Chicago to DesMoines train via the Quad Cities.

oh yes and:

3) A Chicago to Denver run(separate from the CZ).

 

[George Harris]

1. Minneapolis - DesMoins - Kansas City - Ft. Worth - split to Housont and San Antonio sections. Connect with and swap cars with the Southwest Chief at KC so that you get bott Minneapolis to LA and Chicago to Texas out of this. Use the MKT south of KC to Ft. Worth for faster time, skipping Oklahoma City in the middle of the night. Maybe peel some Oklahoma City cars off the Southwest Chief at Newton KS.

2. Do a 12 hours more or less offset from these.

3. Add a couple of trains on the old NYC route from New York to Chicago. I tend to feel that this route deserves four daily trains each way, so that you have long overnight end to end, long over day end to end, late evening and mid day depatures from ench end.

4. Someone has already said a Chicago to Florida train via Nashville and Atlanta. We are spending some serious money on imporved track and alignment here, but that we have to consider possible. While at it, we should have a new overnight Georgian, and the Dixie Flyer does Chicago to Atlanta as a fast day train. Both should continue to Florida.

5. These Florida trains could hook up at Atlanta with a Kansas City - Florida Special that would connect with the alternate train to the Southwest Chief at KC, filling in another hole in the map. This train should continue past KC to Omaha, also.

Since I am doing multiples on these lines, I have already cheated on the limit, so I will quit here.