a Chicago to Florida train-could it ever happen again?

[Amtrak Alan]

Do you thing we will see a Chicago to Florida train where you could stay in the same car the whole way?

 

[birdy]

I'd say its unlikely. The demand is huge. Look at Expedia. But its 1100 miles, which is too far for HSR. Right now I think you are going to see resources used to build HSR in either its mild form of diesels rolling through at-grade crossings at 110 mph, or full-on electric HSR pairing cities about 350 miles apart. There will also be resources spent on existing Long Distance trains. But new LD routes? I doubt it.

If rail gets going in a big way, I can see someone closing the gaps and offering the service some time in the future.

 

[jphjaxfl]

The most likely scenario would be if they extend the City of New Orleans across the CSX line on the Gulf Coast/Florida Panhandle Route formerly used by the Sunset Limited east of New Orleans. As has been discussed on this forum in other threads, the former direct Chicago to Florida routes need serious track upgrades or some of the routes has heavy freight usage. The reason the Floridian was discontinued in 1979 was low ridership caused by late trains which was the result of slow track through Indiana and other places. The upgrade of tracks to make train speeds and schedules competitive would be expensive and you would need to get several states to help fund, most of which are not currently funding any Amtrak trains.

 

[wayman]

Do you thing we will see a Chicago to Florida train where you could stay in the same car the whole way?

It looks like such an obvious useful train on a map, with lots of potential ridership... but while it's very easy to draw a straight line on a piece of paper or a computer screen, in reality the tracks are in such terrible shape that the costs of creating a useful (read: reliably on-time, better than 40mph speed limit the whole way) passenger service on a relatively direct line between Chicago and Florida (as in, not going CHI-New Orleans-Florida or CHI-Washington-Florida) would be astronomical. It seems ridiculous that that's the situation, but it is.

I guess it's just not a useful major freight corridor, so the railroads which own the tracks don't put a lot of money into them. The freight railroads don't care that the route might be useful for passengers--they'd probably be happy if Amtrak or the states ponied up the big bucks to improve the tracks, but the freight railroads will never bother to put a lot of money into it themselves because they don't stand to benefit that much. And Amtrak and the states have other priorities for their limited funds.

 

[Cho Cho Charlie]

I think that one of the things the Silvers have with their LD run from NY to FL, is that they have been doing it consistently for years. Basically, the Silvers have momentum. And that momentum tends to keep those trains with a supply of passengers over the ups and downs in train travel.

A new LD run from Chicago to FL would be starting from scratch. There will be no customer base to provide the minimum revenue.

 

[MrFSS]

I've mentioned this in other threads on this topic.

The tracks from Cincinnati to Knoxville are in very good condition. Many places double tracks. There is lots of freight, but it would seem logical to me to get from Cincinnati to Knoxville would be easy. From Knoxville to Atlanta I don't know about. Maybe someone else does. But, I understand the big trick is Atlanta to Florida, then. How are those freight lines?

 

[TVRM610]

I've mentioned this in other threads on this topic.
The tracks from Cincinnati to Knoxville are in very good condition. Many places double tracks. There is lots of freight, but it would seem logical to me to get from Cincinnati to Knoxville would be easy. From Knoxville to Atlanta I don't know about. Maybe someone else does. But, I understand the big trick is Atlanta to Florida, then. How are those freight lines?

The tracks from Knoxville to Atlanta run through Chattanooga on the NS Main Line. Double Track the whole way, in great shape. The tracks that I work next to everyday in Chattanooga see freights running by at 55.

I've thought for many years that it would be a very sensible route to travel ATL-CHI via Cincinatti.

 

[Bill Haithcoat]

I've mentioned this in other threads on this topic.
The tracks from Cincinnati to Knoxville are in very good condition. Many places double tracks. There is lots of freight, but it would seem logical to me to get from Cincinnati to Knoxville would be easy. From Knoxville to Atlanta I don't know about. Maybe someone else does. But, I understand the big trick is Atlanta to Florida, then. How are those freight lines?

The tracks from Knoxville to Atlanta run through Chattanooga on the NS Main Line. Double Track the whole way, in great shape. The tracks that I work next to everyday in Chattanooga see freights running by at 55.

I've thought for many years that it would be a very sensible route to travel ATL-CHI via Cincinatti.

Ok, yes, you could go from Knoxville to ATL via Chattanooga.(and maybe freights do today)

But when passenger trains were running the more direct route from Knoxville to Atlanta was the L&N, now CSX, and went via Etowah, avoiding Chattanooga. These trains were going from Cincinnati to Florida.

The trains which went from Knox to CHA were Southern RR trains, now NS, ultimately from NYC, WAS to Birmingham and NOL. (not Atlanta and FLA)

The trains from Chattanooga to Atlanta were competitors, both L&N, or CSX (from Chicago,Nashville) and Southern or NS.(from Cincinnati to Atlanta and FLA)

By the way, do you mind PM me and let me know where in CHA you work, I grew up there and just returned from a brief visit.