UPDATE: ‘Eclipse Express’ coverage from southern Illinois NEWSWIRE

FULL SCREEN Steve Smedley A humid breeze wisps through the wheels of a rusted baggage cart in Champaign, Ill., at 5:28 a.m. Monday. Amtrak’s product line agent Ed Kim stands on the platform of the Illinois Terminal Intermodal Transportation Center in Champaign as the engineer of the Eclipse Express special dims the headlight for a […]

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Coast-to-coast passenger train

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Amtrak’s westbound ‘Sunset Limited’ pauses for a station stop in Atmore, Ala., at sunrise in January 1995. It was the nation’s first and only transcontinental passenger train. Bob Johnston Q There were numerous named passenger trains that spanned distances beyond the reach of a single railroad, such as the California Zephyr between Chicago and Oakland, […]

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Amtrak ‘Capitol Limited’ schedule modified after Sand Patch grade derailment NEWSWIRE

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A CSX Transportation freight train derailed at least 32 cars near Hyndman, Pa. on Wednesday morning impacting both freight and passenger railroads. MP208 HYNDMAN, Pa. — Amtrak’s Capitol Limited between Washington and Chicago will be running on a modified schedule for the next four days after a CSX Transportation freight train derailed more than 30 […]

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Amtrak trains to Grand Central Terminal NEWSWIRE

NEW YORK CITY — Inbound Amtrak Albany-to-Grand Central Terminal Train No. 242 is passing through Marble Hill in the Bronx at 4:55 p.m. on July 26, 2017, as one of three Monday through Friday round trips from Albany, due to track work reconstruction at New York Penn Station. Led by non-dual power mode P42DC No. […]

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Amtrak inspection train travels ‘Montrealer’ route NEWSWIRE

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ST. ALBANS, Vt. — An Amtrak inspection trip ran today from St. Albans to Montreal over the normally freight only Swanton Subdivision of both New England Central and Canadian National. Montrealer service ended in 1995 and more than two dozen rail and government officials were aboard the consist of Amtrak P42 101, Amcafe 43371 and […]

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Appeals court rejects on-time performance standards NEWSWIRE

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Amtrak’s southbound ‘Saluki’ rolls past the Canadian National yard into Champaign, Ill., in Feb., 2015. Bob Johnston ST. LOUIS, Mo. – The Eighth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has struck down a U.S. Surface Transportation Board attempt to provide metrics which measure host railroad on-time performance. The action follows a U.S. Supreme Court finding that […]

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USDOT: Amtrak’s proposed 2018 budget includes all available funding NEWSWIRE

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WASHINGTON – Senators used words like “concerned,” and “dismayed” as they considered the Trump administration’s proposed budget for the U.S. Department of Transportation during a hearing July 13. Members of the Senate Appropriations subcommittee on transportation were looking at an overall budget that’s been cut $2.4 billion from the 2017 DOT budget. If they were […]

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Who is Richard Anderson, Amtrak’s CEO pick? NEWSWIRE

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Incoming Amtrak CEO Richard Anderson Delta Air Lines WASHINGTON — Although incoming Amtrak CEO Richard Anderson made a name for himself in the airline industry, he comes from a railroad family. His father, Hale, was an office worker for the Santa Fe in his native Texas. The family followed railroad work from Galveston to Dallas […]

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Amtrak test train draws crowds in the heartland NEWSWIRE

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The test train stops at Wichita to allow dignitaries off and on. About 200 people gathered to greet the train, including local newspaper and TV media. Mike Martin WICHITA, Kan. – Amtrak’s Heartland Flyer extension test train brought crowds trackside along the Oklahoma City to Kansas City route on Friday. The train ran from the […]

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Getting the most from the ‘Texas Eagle’ detour NEWSWIRE

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Amtrak passengers enjoy a leisurely afternoon in the Sightseer Lounge while rolling through Hearne and Palestine once home to the Texas & Pacific’s ‘Texas Eagle’ Longview-Laredo section. Three photos, Bob Johnston LONGVIEW, Texas – “Rare mileage” aficionados have been flocking to Texas since the last week in May to find out if that magic “tingle” […]

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Amtrak begins new Thruway shuttle service to Phoenix NEWSWIRE

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PHOENIX — Beginning May 1, Amtrak began operating a Thruway bus connecting service in Maricopa, Ariz., for passengers traveling on the tri-weekly Sunset Limited-Texas Eagle service wanting to travel to the Tempe and Phoenix areas. Stagecoach Express is operating the shuttle service on the days the Sunset Limited operates through Maricopa. Thruway stops include: • […]

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Penn Station derailments expose Northeast Corridor’s big weakness NEWSWIRE

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Passenger frustration and confusion reigned in early April after emergency track repairs at Penn Station snarled commuter train schedules for five days. Joseph M. Calisi New York Penn Station track diagram Trains Magazine: Rick Johnson NEW YORK — Amtrak CEO Wick Moorman’s April 6 mea culpa laid bare what went wrong in two relatively minor […]

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