Empire Builder 8 of 12/4 down 18 hrs
- Thread starter JNaismith
- Start date
Help Support Amtrak Unlimited Discussion Forum:
- Status
EB_OBS
Conductor
Initially, it left SEA 3:38 late. Did OK across Montana & ND and left Minot 5:32 late.
Was delayed almost 4 hours near Fargo due to a freight in emergency. I'm not sure I heard something about a grade-crossing incident.
I don't know what happened at St Cloud. It went from 9:59 late to 17:13 late.
Was delayed almost 4 hours near Fargo due to a freight in emergency. I'm not sure I heard something about a grade-crossing incident.
I don't know what happened at St Cloud. It went from 9:59 late to 17:13 late.
This is the reason for the St. Cloud delay.
This is the trainset that's supposed to be turning again in PDX/SEA on Monday. It's already predicted to leave CHI this evening at 7:04pm (3 hours and 9 minutes late). Other westbound trainsets are also running quite late. Does anyone think there's a chance they'll be running an AmBus to Spokane, and turning the trainsets there, for the next few days?
I see "Amtrack" in articles way too often. If a journalist can't take the time to verify the spelling of a major passenger corporation, then they have no business being a journalist.
It's possible, but Monday's weather forecast calls for cold, snow, and ice, so I wouldn't want to be traveling between Seattle and Spokane in a bus then. Snoqualmie Pass (I-90) has already been closed a couple of times in the past few days. Columbia Gorge might be better, but who knows?
montana mike
Conductor
Today's low temps are indeed curtailing Ops on the Hi-Line. Most stops are showing temperatures colder than minus 25 degrees F. With a few below minus 30---burrrrrr. In ND temps are around minus 20 degrees F. This will continue for a couple of days, then everything moderates considerably after that to slightly above normal next week.
I agree, that the Empire Builders are approaching a situation where they will have to turn in SPK if they want to have ANY chance of not totally losing the schedule completely. All are very late this AM. With #7 having arrived in SPK about 7 hours late I don't think they have any choice but to bus people. #8 in WA heading east this AM is already 4 hours behind and will hit the cold restrictions the ENTIRE way thru MT and ND, which should add around 4 hours to the current delay, putting this train into CHI perhaps 10-12 hours behind assuming they also lose the usual 2-3 hours thru the congestion in eastern MT and ND. #7 heading west will almost surely suffer the same fate as today's #7 now in SPK--it is already over 4 hours behind and will lose an additional 3-4 hours as it makes its way thru ND/MT in the bitter cold.
We can chalk this mess up mostly to Mother Nature--not much we can do about it I am afraid. Just wait for temps to warm.
I agree, that the Empire Builders are approaching a situation where they will have to turn in SPK if they want to have ANY chance of not totally losing the schedule completely. All are very late this AM. With #7 having arrived in SPK about 7 hours late I don't think they have any choice but to bus people. #8 in WA heading east this AM is already 4 hours behind and will hit the cold restrictions the ENTIRE way thru MT and ND, which should add around 4 hours to the current delay, putting this train into CHI perhaps 10-12 hours behind assuming they also lose the usual 2-3 hours thru the congestion in eastern MT and ND. #7 heading west will almost surely suffer the same fate as today's #7 now in SPK--it is already over 4 hours behind and will lose an additional 3-4 hours as it makes its way thru ND/MT in the bitter cold.
We can chalk this mess up mostly to Mother Nature--not much we can do about it I am afraid. Just wait for temps to warm.
Well, I wouldn't want to hang around till the weather arrives Monday evening, but at this time the forecasts call for the dry weather to last till the trains are *scheduled* to leave. And the WSDOT and ODOT road cams show bare and dry surgfaces in the Gorge and over Snoqualmie Pass. When they bustitute from Seattle, do the thru buses to Spokane just go the most direct way (Snoqualmie)? I'd be quite interested to know if the PDX bus would stay on the Oregon side, in order to take the freeway, or if it would have to follow the train route. Seems if they had more than one bus, only one would have to make all the station stops!
Devil's Advocate
⠀⠀⠀
You're worried about the reporters who can't spell. I'm worried about the truck drivers who can't drive. Someone needs to start worrying about the train route that can't keep a schedule.
Sounds like the EB could use a winter/mudslide/trucker/tanker schedule modification. Otherwise it'll become (remain?) a schedule that's forever late.
tim49424
Engineer
This annoys me as well, even when non-journalists spell it that way. Let's get with the game people and learn how to use proper spelling.
- Joined
- Feb 18, 2003
- Messages
- 8,508
A couple of years ago Amtrak sent me a set of engineering plans for review. The title block said "Amtrack."
Devil's Advocate
⠀⠀⠀
Proper spelling would never have led to "Amtrak" in the first place. In order to even get to Amtrak you have to misspell something else intentionally.
J
JayPea
Guest
I'd guess that Seattle-Spokane bustitutions follow Highway 2 over Stevens Pass in order to accomodate passengers in Everett, Leavenworth, and Wenatchee. For bustitutions from Portland, I can tell you my experience: From Vancouver, our bus ran on the Washington side to Bingen-White Salmon, then crossed the river there and followed I-84 all the way to to its intersection with I-82, near Hermiston, before heading into Washington. In that case, there were no passengers getting on or off at Wishram, so that stop was skipped.
That's just one instance, but that at least shows what can happen.
Whoops!!! Didn't see the part about through buses from Seattle. Surely if no passengers were involved they'd use I-90.
Thanks, JayPea!
In my experience, there would be one or more direct buses Seattle-Spokane via I-90, and a separate bus to serve passengers from/to Everett, Wenatchee, etc.
Thanks! Probably too much to hope for enough pax to do the same from PDX. Ah well, the trainset coming from CHI today is doing better than I thought possible (so far, ha, ha!).
EB_OBS
Conductor
IDK, #7(7) is already almost 3 hours late and it's not even to MSP yet.
Train 7/27(6) is terminating in SPK so at least #8(8) should depart SPK on-time tomorrow.
If 7(7) continues to lose time like the last two days trains have then it will indeed need to be turned in SPK, the question is though whether buses will be available to do it. Don't know at this point.
As to the reason for these delays the last few days, while winter weather is a factor, the most significant delays have been as a result of BNSF breakdowns, crews expiring on HoS and increased freight congestion. Right now the eastbound consumer goods freights are at peak all the while the westbound traffic has not let up due to the ND energy shipments.
montana mike
Conductor
A perfect storm of chaos!
Devil's Advocate
⠀⠀⠀
That explains one or two trains, but how about the other 300 odd delays? Is every day of the year a perfect storm?
Devil's Advocate
⠀⠀⠀
Here we are spending all this time and money to prevent terrorists from attacking our infrastructure while our very own truck drivers are free to cause as much damage and harm as they please. I seriously doubt that the first time the truck actually gets hit by a train was the first incredibly risky thing that driver has ever done while on the job. Maybe we could benefit from a national points system where commercial truck drivers who don't take safety seriously are forcibly removed from their positions before they're able to harm others through their carelessness and stupidity?
Last edited by a moderator:
M
Marianne
Guest
How long is it likely to take on the bus from Spokane to Seattle? We are on the Empire Builder #7 now about 3 hours before Minot. I feel pretty sure we won't make up enough time to avoid the bus as we were 5 hours late already T a previous stop and we keep ending up in sidings.... Pity, as we love the train and take it from Cville, Va to Seattle each year. Would hate to have to start flying again.
montana mike
Conductor
I would think just about everyone in this forum would agree that Amtrak has "lost control" of the process concerning the Empire Builder this year, with things getting worse as winter unfolds. Yes, the weather has been cold, very cold in MT and ND, but as some have already pointed out, if you have lived in MT or ND these temps, while being below normals for this time of year, are what these areas experience at times during a good part of the winter months on many occasions. Trying to look at things from the 30,000 foot view it would appear that there are a number of factors that have come into play that were contributing to the utter mess now being seen on the Hi-Line (I look at the EB situation today and just shake my head). Perhaps with better planning and management of their assets Amtrak could have minimized the impacts. Hard to say how much is out of their control and how much should have been anticipated and acted upon. Hopefully there are people now at Amtrak working on trying to solve what is clearly a completely broken route.
tim49424
Engineer
Colder temperatures or not, winter has been a total mess for the Empire Builder in your neck of the woods for years. I can remember as far back as the first Christmas season I took Amtrak from TOH to CHI, logistics due to weather were not good. There was a raging blizzard from TOH to the west and the roads were impassible and the train was experiencing delays of many hours. Of course, my own situation came into play as I was bedded down with the flu and subsequently changed my plans from Dec. 23 to Dec. 26 and celebrated late with family once I got to Michigan. The following year, I don't remember how late we were into CHI but late enough for busses not to be dispatched and I was put up in a hotel overnight in Chicago. I learned my lesson to put my own padding in my plans and in '09 started to leave on the 22nd, which I've done every year since. As far as I recall, even with my own change in plans, there have been bustitutions on each of my trips during this time period, either from TOH or out of CHI. When you add in the higher rate of BNSF/CP traffic, which causes numerous delays, each year becomes more and more of a mess.
Yes, something does need to be reworked on the Empire Builder, but my question is, what can be done? The logical solution would be a southern reroute, but as has been said on this forum before, the cities along the current route have long term service contracts with the federal government, so that is likely out. BNSF is not concerned. Amtrak has exceedingly late arrival, pay the fine and move on. Mother Nature is not in our control. It just seems that the logistical problems become more and more of a nightmare that Amtrak, it's employees and it's customers cannot wake up from.
Yes, something does need to be reworked on the Empire Builder, but my question is, what can be done? The logical solution would be a southern reroute, but as has been said on this forum before, the cities along the current route have long term service contracts with the federal government, so that is likely out. BNSF is not concerned. Amtrak has exceedingly late arrival, pay the fine and move on. Mother Nature is not in our control. It just seems that the logistical problems become more and more of a nightmare that Amtrak, it's employees and it's customers cannot wake up from.
Last edited by a moderator:
- Status
Latest posts
-
-
-
-
Eric & Pat’s May 2024 Trip Report: San Diego - Toledo - San Diego- Latest: Eric in East County
-
