Posted on 08/03/2007 7:05:44 AM PDT by Bean Counter
Amtrak has announced a major disruption of train service in the Pacific Northwest.
Only train no. 510 and 517, which run between Seattle and Vancouver, B.C., will operate. All other Cascade trains between Eugene and Vancouver are cancelled due to safety concerns. An Amtrak representative this morning said the disruption is undefinite.
Rail authorities said a recent mechanical inspection of some Cascades trains led to the decision to suspend service so all Cascade trains can be inspected.
Amtrak officials say they are contacting passengers to alert them of the cancellations. No alternate transportation is being provided. An Amtrak representative said passengers holding unused tickets will receive refunds.
The Coast Starlight, which runs between Seattle and Los Angeles, will operate on its normal schedule.
Passengers may call 800-USA-RAIL or visit Amtrak.com for additional information and train status updates.
Do you think he gets it yet? Nice tag line.
"Undefinite"????
The exact date the repairs will be completed is incertain.
Of course, Seattle - or very near - does have the submarine base.
You never know, maybe they have a grudge against Microsoft in Redmond, WA, (right next to Seattle).
unalienable....
an oops
According to the stats I’ve seen, Vancouver is the second most populous city on the west coast.
It truly is a beautiful place.
And them Canadians love their bakeries! Yum!
I do recall that, though I didn't realize the effect on scheduling was the reason. The Zephyr was my favorite of the transcontinental trains. The last time I rode the Zephyr was on my way back East to college in 1966 - first time I had a Pullman bedroom to myself. It was a glorious trip, and once the crew found out I was a rail buff, they went out of their way for me - bringing me up to the engines, serving me wine with my meals, making sure I had my dining car seating (with window seat) at the best sight-seeing times (there is NOTHING like having fresh trout (loaded at Rifle, caught that morning) with a 1959 Johannisburger Doktor Kabinett while descending down into Denver at Sunset - or fresh Dungeness Crab heading through the Feather River Canyon). 'Twas a memorable trip. At Chicago, I changed to an NY Central train to Cincinnati. They had sold me a Pullman ticket all the way through, but the train (the James Whitcomb Riley) was all coach -- until they put the Pullman observation car on for me.
The only SP trains I ever like were the Daylights (Coast and Shasta) which we used to take to LA and to see relatives in Oregon.
On weekdays the trains run from 1/3 to 1/2 of a full load. This is because -- thanks to the timing of the slots available on the BNSF main between the cities served -- there is little train service geared to the business traveler.
But on weekends the trains sell out, sometimes weeks in advance. Amtrak has taken to selling overflow space in the bistro car to handle the load. This weekend should see full trains booked, and now there aren't any cars to run them. This what is called "bad for business".
I always thought it was a little odd that they were relying on Spanish technology.
Seattle has let their station get very run down. Also other construction has encroached on the right-of-way and taken away land formerly owned by the station so that the system can never be expanded. This is also happening to some extent in Portland although they did fix up their station and take some pride in its appearance. At one time there were 250 trains a day coming into Seattle at three stations.
Agreed! The only real competition in the US was a Pullman room on the Great Northern Empire Builder - a wonderful train through Glacier National Park! I'd have loved to do that one as a grown-up. I knew people who swore that at their height, the 20th Century Limited and the Broadway Limited were more luxurious, but those were really just transportation to Chicago/New York. I was not impressed by the 20th Century Limited in 1967.
King Street Station in Seattle is scheduled for complete restoration once the station is officially transferred from BNSF’s books to the city of Seattle’s books. The plans call for it to look the way it did in 1906 when it was first opened by the Great Northern.
You can choose from Canadian, Swedish, French, German or Spanish technology. (America doesn't manufacture passenger railcars anymore.) Spanish technology was chosen because the Renfre-Talgo cars tilt on curves, thus permitting higher speeds on a rather curvy line.
BEGIN
At this time, there is no Amtrak Cascades service between Seattle and Eugene. The Coast Starlight (Trains 11/14) continues to operate normally with Superliner equipment, as do the Seattle-to-Vancouver (BC) Cascades runs (Trains 510/517), which have been operating with a 3-car Superliner set for some months now, due to a Talgo set being refurbished at CEECO in Tacoma.
Talgo technicians found cracks during a routine overnight inspection of one trainset (meant for Train 501). Five cars in one trainset had the cracks. Immediately another set was inspected, and the result was the same.
The entire Talgo fleet is now pulled from service.
These are new cracks, not the same as the ones they found a year ago. They may be the result of stress near pre-existing welds. How bad is it, potentially? Talgo immediately sent specialists by air from Spain. (That means it's real bad.)
The Talgos will probably be out of service for a while; right now they still have to figure out what to do. For now, all the Cascades trains except Vancouver (BC) service, which is operating with Superliners, are cancelled with no alternate transportation (there are no spare buses from charter bus companies available this weekend due to Seafair festivities).
The WSDOT Rail Office confirms that replacement Amtrak trainsets are being brought in from both Chicago and California. It is not certain though how soon Cascades service between Seattle and Portland will be restored with replacement trains.
END
> Nice, but again, it’s far removed from anywhere else in Canada. The vast majority of population in Canada is on the east side.
I take it you know little about Vancouver, true?
The population of Greater Vancouver is about 2,000,000 which would make it the second-or-third largest metropolis in Canada, after Toronto and perhaps Montreal. It is rapidly growing with know signs of slowing down.
It is about 100 miles North of Seattle, and trade and travel tends to go north-south rather than east-west. Alot of interaction with Washington State and Oregon and California.
It is about a day’s drive from Calgary and Edmonton, two large cities in Alberta.
A very sophisticated and extensive transit system, a very large and important port, and a large and important International Airport complex: airplanes that were in the air during 9/11 were diverted from some American cities to Vancouver, escorted by American fighter planes.
It’s a major city by anybody’s fair standard.
That Talgo set is non compliant with regards to crash specs anyway. It was grandfathered in.
Apt analogy.
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