CHICAGO — Amtrak has cancelled Empire Builder departures for a third straight day, the company announced early today (Monday, Feb. 17).
Also cancelled: both directions of the Borealis, westbound between Chicago and St. Paul and eastbound between St. Paul and Milwaukee, as well as both directions of the Adirondack between Montreal and Albany Rensselaer, N.Y. “Impending severe weather conditions” are cited for all three trains, according to the Amtrak Alerts feed on social media.
Also, “ongoing engine issues” led to the cancellation of Hiawatha No. 332, the 8:05 a.m. departure from Milwaukee, between Sturtevant, Wis., and Chicago.
Buses will be substituted for the cancelled portions of the Borealis in both directions.
The Minneapolis-St. Paul area is under a cold weather advisory for wind chills as low as minus-38, with an extreme cold warning for wind chills as low as minus-42 tonight, according to the National Weather Service. As of 7:30 a.m. today, the actual temperature was minus-13 with a forecast high of minus-2, according to AccuWeather.
Montreal is dealing with the final stages of a storm that has brought 15 inches of snow, CTV News reports. It led to Sunday evening cancellations of VIA Rail Canada trains between Montreal and Quebec City trains, as well as “significant delays elsewhere.” Delays will continue today, VIA says, with CTV reporting early trains in the Toronto-Quebec corridor were operating up to 2 hours late. Environment Canada has issued a blowing snow advisory that says visibility could be reduced to near zero in places, with winds up to 70 kilometers an hour (43 mph).
— Updated at 9:10 a.m. CT with information on VIA corridor service; updated at 12 p.m. to correct that eastbound Borealis is cancelled between St. Paul and Milwaukee, and note Hiawatha cancellation.
