Amtrak accepting reservation NYP PHL (soon)

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jis

jis

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Amtrak has just opened reservations for Friday the 15th for most trains between NYP and PHL starting with the 4:40am departure from NYP. So it seems very likely that service will resume through the accident site on Friday morning.

Some trains are showing sold out, which could either mean they are genuinely sold out or they are not running.

However, they don't appear to have announced anything specific about service on Friday yet, and probably such will happen later in the day.
 
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jis said:
Some trains are showing sold out, which could either mean they are genuinely sold out or they are not running.
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Could it be that passengers are making duplicate reservations on every possible train, with the hopes that at least one will run?
 
OK now they have blocked Friday and Saturday and also Monday, but a few trains are open on Sunday. On Tuesday there is full availability except for 67 out of NYP.

Meanwhile there is an announcement from Amtrak via Associated Press (at 1:15pm on Thrusday 5/14/15) that there will be limited service on Monday with full service restored on Tuesday.

See: http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_AMTRAK_CRASH_THE_LATEST?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT

Mods please change title of the thread accordingly.
 
Wonder if the LD's will make it to NYP on Sunday. Guess I'll find out soon enough. I only need to get as far as WIL, but I know they'll have to get the train to a point where they can turn it. I'll be on 50.
 
I would be very surprised to see LD trains operating when Regionals are not.

However, Amtrak is so incredibly secretive about what is or is not running that it is quite hard to tell anyway. Frankly they could get some training on how to communicate IRROPs from the likes of Indian Railways, which in no time has an alternate timetable up and about in announcement with details of what is happening to each train, released througn all major press channels.
 
That is helpful, but figuring out what trains are running on what schedules between Washington DC and Philadelphia is another matter. Basically you have to try to get a reservation to see what is running. No separate timetable information anywhere. I guess that is the price one pays for computerization. Even things that are easy to produce out of a computer are not produced anymore.
 
Well, I can book the Cardinal from CIN to WIL or NYP on Sunday, so, so far, it looks like it will go all the way. There is an option to transfer to 66 in WAS which shows sold out.
 
It is also possible that they have forgotten to block the Cardinal beyond Philly. It allows you to book several trains between Philly and NYP on Sunday, but the announcement does not mention any service on Sunday and just talks of limited service on Monday, and yet everything was blocked off on Monday the last time I looked. So they may still be fiddling with the reservation system.
 
jis said:
It is also possible that they have forgotten to block the Cardinal beyond Philly. It allows you to book several trains between Philly and NYP on Sunday, but the announcement does not mention any service on Sunday and just talks of limited service on Monday, and yet everything was blocked off on Monday the last time I looked. So they may still be fiddling with the reservation system.
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True. And that other post you made about Amtrak telling pax their own their own to get from DC up is not making me feel good. I do hope the Card can go as far as Philly on Sunday. As it is I'm due to get in at 8:05 pm and have a new job to report to at 9:00 am the next morning. And the train ride was supposed to be a relaxing way to get home. :D I'll play it by ear for now.

Edit: The trains are running between WAS and PHL (baring train strikes), right? So, if they do term Card in WAS, they'll probably put me on a regional to WIL. At least I'm hoping that's what they'll do.
 
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Is there any additional news on the WAS-PHL portion for this weekend? I'm booked on NER 131 from PHL-WAS.

If I attempt to make a new reservation, #121 and #131 appear to be sold out. But the Carolinian is bookable to WAS.

Does that mean the NER's are truly sold out or does that mean they are cancelled?
 
I have noticed that Cancelled trains are being marked as cancelled on the Amtrak reservation page. So Sold Out marked trains are most likely truly Sold Out and are not cancelled. But to be doubly sure you can call Amtrak (1-800-USA-RAIL) and ask them to verify that the train you are concerned about is actually running. It may involve quite a bit of wait on hold though.
 
Well, unfortunately I just got this email:

Our records indicate that you are scheduled to depart on Amtrak train number 131 from Philadelphia-30th-St-Pennsylvania at 8:13AM on Saturday May 16 and arriving in Washington-District-of-Columbia.

That schedule has been cancelled due to a-service-disruption. There is no alternate service available.To speak to a customer service representative about travel options such as selecting another date or destination call us at 8772319448 at your earliest convenience. We apologize for any inconvenience and thank you for being a valued Amtrak customer.
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we were scheduled on the Meteor on Sunday to NYP to transfer to the LSL. We were just told that the Meteor is terminating in DC on Sunday with no bus service to NY. Rebooked a roomette on the Cardinal out of DC instead.
 
jis said:
Go to http://www.amtrak.com. It shows that there are other trains operating on that day between Philly and Washington DC. Just book one of those trains using the voucher or refund that you get from Amtrak.
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I will give them a call soon, because I don't know how the prices will work out. The tickets available now for the other trains are in higher buckets than when I initially purchased.

If there is a historical example to go by...am I expected to pay the difference, or does Amtrak call it even since it's not my fault?

Just wondering so I know what to expect/ask the CSR if they say the opposite.
 
Not providing bus bridges is just insane incompetence by Amtrak and I don't understand it at all. Amtrak CA can throw together 400+ mile bus bridges without much of a problem at all, the inability to do so, despite repeated problems on the NEC in the past year, is just nuts.
 
The issue is volume of buses Amtrak would require in the NEC since ridership on most trains is a multitude of times more than Amtrak CAs ridership.
 
SubwayNut said:
The issue is volume of buses Amtrak would require in the NEC since ridership on most trains is a multitude of times more than Amtrak CAs ridership.
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So what? There's a lot of buses in the Northeast. An official policy of "Sucks to be you" just pisses off customers.
 
I'm a little surprised that SEPTA/NJT have not set up timed shuttle buses between SEPTA West Trenton and NJT Trenton TC.
 
I was thinking that all NJT had to do is just run their bus route 608 all day instead of just during rush hours, and they'd address the issue. They could run the non-rush hour extension express between the two stations thus solving that problem.
 
Slayer Essence said:
jis said:
Go to http://www.amtrak.com. It shows that there are other trains operating on that day between Philly and Washington DC. Just book one of those trains using the voucher or refund that you get from Amtrak.
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I will give them a call soon, because I don't know how the prices will work out. The tickets available now for the other trains are in higher buckets than when I initially purchased.

If there is a historical example to go by...am I expected to pay the difference, or does Amtrak call it even since it's not my fault?

Just wondering so I know what to expect/ask the CSR if they say the opposite.
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Amtrak is one of the more unpredictable outfits in my experience when it comes to handling customers, so I have no idea what they'll say. But you should point out to them that it is they that canceled the train between Philly and Washington and they have other trains running so they should accommodate you on one of those trains for the same original fare. If necessary escalate to a supervisor.

Under similar circumstance I tend to get more predictable good or bad behavior from almost any airline that I ever have to deal with.
 
Obviously this service disruption directly affects the economy as lots of people in USA use Amtrak on this route. I bet airlines from NYC to PHL are booked solid and people will get bumped off the flights to connections.

Will hit Amtrak profits unfortunately. When I thought Amtrak was getting better, obviously this derailment had happened. There was delays in Boston region due to the signal fire at Forest Hills station. That still is being repaired and now Amtrak has to rebuild the Philadelphia section and some of those cars at a minimum will have to be disposed of so they will have lower service levels for the time being.
 
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