Amtrak to end food service on ‘Hiawatha’ route NEWSWIRE

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A southbound ‘Hiawatha’ at Maple Street departing Milwaukee. Brian Schmidt MILWAUKEE – Amtrak will discontinue food service on the Hiawatha route effective July 1. The Hiawatha trains are not equipped with a cafe car; an employee provides snack service on a cart throughout the train on select trains, weekdays only. Peg Schmitt, with the Wisconsin Department […]

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MR Insider: Chicago to Washington, DC aboard the Quad Graphics Silver Zephyr

David Popp inside Union Station in Chicago

Having trouble viewing this video?   Please visit our Video FAQ page Quad Graphics, Kalmbach Publishing Company’s main printer, owns a set of private rail cars that it moves around the country for special events. MR’s David Popp and Classic Trains’ Rob McGonigal were guests on the train and share the fun with you in […]

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Amtrak, Siemens unveil first ACS-64 electric locomotives NEWSWIRE

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Amtrak ACS-46 No. 600 at the Siemens plant in Sacramento. David Lustig Local and railroad officials speak before a crowd gathered at the Siemens plant. At the podium is Siemens Rail Systems Michael Cahill. To the right are: U.S. Rep. John Garamendi, Deputy Federal Railroad Administrator Karen Hedlund, and Amtrak President Joe Boardman. David Lustig […]

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Amtrak to detour Coast Starlight over Tehachapi Loop NEWSWIRE

LOS ANGELES – Amtrak is planning to detour its southbound Coast Starlight between Oakland and Los Angeles in March and April due to track work. Instead of its normal route along the California Coast, train No. 11 will travel Union Pacific’s ex-Southern Pacific route via the San Joaquin Valley and Tehachapi Loop. The detours are planned for March 13-15, March 24-30, […]

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Give my regards to the Broadway

A Conrail executive locomotive, E8 No. 4022, leads the eastbound Broadway Limited, train No. 40, into Chicago Union Station on April 11, 1977. Amtrak is in the midst of a motive power shortage, caused by problems with its EMD SDP40F fleet, and is leasing extra locomotives wherever it can. Photo by Gary Dolzall […]

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Amtrak long-distance trains by night and day

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This Map of the Month was featured in the November 2003 issue of Trains magazine. Amtrak advertisements showcase images of passengers looking out windows at breathtaking scenery, and gleaming trains winding through spectacular canyons or along scenic river- banks. But that’s only half the story. Long-distance trains (those on routes of 750 miles or more) […]

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From Sweden to Rhode Island

As a prelude to today’s high speed Acela Express service, Amtrak tested two types of European high speed trains, a German ICE trainset and this tilting X2000 train from Sweden. The demonstration equipment made revenue runs on the Northeast Corridor and toured other parts of the country. Pushed by two Amtrak Tubroliner power cars, the […]

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Roger Williams new employer

Amtrak inherited from Penn Central these self-propelled Rail Diesel Cars with distinctive front ends built for the New Haven Railroad’s Roger Williams. Budd Co. delivered six RDCs in an A-B-B-B-B-A formation to the New Haven in 1956. The slapped-on Amtrak logo from this February 1975 view would be replaced four years later with the company’s […]

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