Amtrak Atlantic City the old Train Route

[Amtrak Railfan]

When was the last run for the Amtrak Trains between Phila's 30th Street and Atlantic City NJ?

 

[AMTRAK-P42]

Here we go again guys

 

[Save Our Trains Michigan]

Here we go again guys

:lol:

 

[tp49]

Oy vey

 

[Amfleet]

Your feeding into the situation, if you don't have an answer simply don't post. We all know that he has an abundance of questions.

I think the service ended sometime during the mid-'90's.

 

[P40Power]

It was definatly 1995, Im not quite sure the date, possibly April something.

 

[Amtrak Railfan]

What stops was Amtrak making Stops along the Route?

 

[Viewliner]

What stops was Amtrak making Stops along the Route?

Oops, thought you were asking about RTL-II's.

 

[AlanB]

What stops was Amtrak making Stops along the Route?

Empire Corridor stops, check the Amtrak Website. (New York-Albany)

Trains to Atlantic City could never have made stops along the Empire Corridor.

At that time the Empire Corridor terminated at Grand Central. There is no link between GCT and Philly where the AC corridor cuts off from the NEC.

 

[Viewliner]

What stops was Amtrak making Stops along the Route?

I think it was the same basic route as NJT uses today. NJT's Atlantic City Line previously terminated at Lindenwold and Passengers transferred to PATCO.

 

[AlanB]

Amtrak reopened the route to AC, when they started train service to AC. When Amtrak gave up the run, NJT then took it over. I'm not 100% sure, but I think that Amtrak just ran express. NJT certainly added stops, even if Amtrak did have one or two.

 

[P40Power]

Actually Alan, the Empire Corridor trains terminated at GCT for only the first 21/2 years or of Atlantic City service (1989-1991). The rest of the years of the service until 1995 all Amtrak trains served Penn Station, like present day (which Im sure you are aware of this since arent you a resident of the New York area?).

 

[PRR 60]

Amtrak rebuilt and reopened the former PRSL (PRR) route to Atlantic City in May of 1989. The old PRSL service, operated in it’s final years by Conrail under state contract, ended in 1983. The Amtrak trains originated in Philadelphia, Washington, and New York and made one stop between PHL and ACY at Lindenwold. The single intermediate stop for Amtrak was changed to Cherry Hill when that station opened following protracted negotiations with the Garden State Race Track (which owned the land at the station site). The project was jointly funded with New Jersey.

New Jersey Transit began local service between Lindenwold and ACY in September, 1989 after completion of local stations at Atco, Hammonton, Egg Harbor, and Absecon. The NJT service was soon extended into Philadelphia once misgivings by the Delaware River Port Authority (owners of the PATCO line) could be placated. The DRPA owned the old PRSL track from Lindenwold to just west of Haddonfield and feared loss of ridership to the NJT trains.

Sadly, Amtrak’s service was a colossal bust. Predicting 2 million riders a year, they never even hit 200,000. Several efforts were made to find a market, including extending a Washington train to Richmond, extending a New York train to Springfield, MA. They even tried running directly to Philadelphia International Airport via the SEPTA Airport line and introduced a code share with Midway Airlines, but all for naught. There was simply no Philadelphia market for a $25 train to the outskirts of Atlantic City when bus riders could go from their own neighborhoods to the door of the casino for free or less. The longer length trips were better patronized, but they needed hundreds of riders per day and those numbers were simply not there. The service died a quiet death in 1995.

The last remnant of the Amtrak Atlantic City service is the joint ticketing arrangement with NJT. You can still buy a through Amtrak / NJT ticket to Atlantic City with the NJT train given an Amtrak train number like a Thruway bus. That is, to my knowledge, the only joint ticket arrangement between NJT and Amtrak.

 

[railman]

The morning Atlantic City Express service trains originated daily in: Richmond, VA; Harrisburg, PA and Springfield, CT. There was also one mid-day turn that originated in and returned to Philadelphia, PA. This mid-day turn was intended to connect off of and on to the Broadway Limited at Philadelphia. All return trips to Harrisburg, Richmond and Springfield departed ACY in the evening hours. There was one additional round trip from Washington, DC on weekends only.

The Richmond, Washington and Springfield trains were all well-patronized. The Harrisburg train carried mostly passriders and deadheads. Passenger loads on the mid-day turn from/to Philly were "fair".

The Springfield trains were operated with diesel power SPG-NHV; electric power NHV-Frankford Jct. (PHL) and diesel from Frankford Jct. to ACY. This train also carried mail from SPG which was forwarded to 30th Street Station by the cut off electric motor. A special siding was built at Frankford Jct. for this power-swapping maneuver.

I believe these ACY Expresses were the first users of ex-Metroliner MU cars as cab control cars.

 

[battalion51]

The morning Atlantic City Express service trains originated daily in: Richmond, VA; Harrisburg, PA and Springfield, CT.

You mean Springfield, Mass right?

 

[Amtrak Railfan]

Was this Route had a Cafe Car?

 

[railman]

Yes - I apologize - I meant Springfield, MA. The trains had a cafe car and, in the earliest days of the Atlantic City Expresses, there was also Club Service.

 

[Amtrak Railfan]

Was the Atlantic City line had how many cars?

And also please do not close or lock this topic please.

 

[Viewliner]

It varied, try doing a photo search at railpictures.net. Now I think we can hit the spike.