Checking Train Status

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Amtrak Watcher

Lead Service Attendant
Joined
Oct 1, 2002
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482
Location
Texas
I take the Texas Eagle twice a month and the Sunset Limited once a month (on average) for business travel. I always check the “Check Train Status” function on the Amtrak web site to judge the on-time situation, and have finally noticed that, for the east-bound Sunset Limited arriving in New Orleans and especially for the south-bound Texas Eagle arriving in San Antonio, Amtrak may show a 2-hour delay during any train’s trip, but still predicts an on-time arrival or even an early arrival. What’s going on here? How can a train be 2-hours late and still be expected to arrive on time or even early?
 
If the crew really "tried" they could make up time, but that would mean no extended stops or further delays. That is unlikely. I bet Amtrak just says that to keep it's passengers at ease.
 
Amtrak Watcher,

The reason is that Amtrak builds makeup time into all their schedules. For example the distance from New Orleans to Bay St Louis, MS is 57 miles. The eastbound Sunset's schedule allows 2 hours to cover that distance. However the westbound Sunset is given almost 3 hours to cover that same distance.

This type of padding allows the westbound Sunset to be 1 hour late at Bay St Louis, yet still arrive into New Orleans on time. Plus with a three hour layover in New Orleans, they have extra time there too. Amtrak probably only really needs about 2 hours to clean up the train, restock, refuel and such. So that gives them another extra hour.

Different trains have different amounts of padding, but all trains except for the NEC, pretty much have some padding built in along the way.
 
As Alan just said, it is all about padding. It is deliberately built into many schedules, just to help trains arrive at the larger stations on time or close to it.

But there is also this...neither "Julie" nor anybody else really know what is going to happen. So they predict the best possible performance. Why? To be unethical and false? No, not at all....just to cover their bases and keep from leaving people behind.

IF a schedule has half hour built into it and the train is half nour late they should by all means predict an all on time arrival, even if winds up not happening, after all. For, if they predicted the train to remain a half hour late but it DID succeed in making up that time, it would leave peope behind..

Planes and trains would much rather predict too quick of an arrival, and have people grumbling if it arrived later than that. than predict a too conservative schedule performance and people arrive after the train or plane had already left.
 
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