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- Jul 7, 2020
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The northeast to Florida market has tons of non-stop flights and cheap airfares. And yet the Silvers are in high demand. Apparently not everyone prefers to fly.Yeah. No. Those people would rather fly.
The northeast to Florida market has tons of non-stop flights and cheap airfares. And yet the Silvers are in high demand. Apparently not everyone prefers to fly.Yeah. No. Those people would rather fly.
I bet they would be more interested, if they could get Vermont to pay for it, the way Maine pays for their Downeaster trains.New Hampshire is semi-serious about establishing commuter rail between Manchester and Boston.
Did this ever become reality? (See footnote 68)Agreed - I wouldn't be surprised if the Hiawatha basically becomes a "trunk line" service with most frequencies extending beyond Chicago, whether it's to Green Bay, MSP via three(?) different routes, and/or a frequency or two stopping at Madison. The current proposed second daily train to Chicago is basically suggested as an extension of a Hiawatha train, so unless track layouts dictate otherwise I'd expect the other routes to be essentially extensions of the Hiawatha Line.
Everyone keeps talking about Chicago to Atlanta and Florida, but lets be honest here. Who would actually use that route?
This was certainly the portion that raised my skepticism. I'm certainly in favor of everything proposed, but the hoops that need to be jumped through will likely preclude most of them in my lifetime.Another interesting observation from this map is the Canadian services. There was speculation on this forum of the Maple Leaf not coming back after the pandemic (it is also the only route I can find that is not in the booking system for the entirety of the next 11 months). Not only is that still on this map, but it indicates increased service and the addition of Toronto to Chicago service. Adirondack and Cascades service would be increased, with a new route also being added to Montreal along the Vermonter route that appears to be separate from the existing Vermonter.
If Nashville to Louisville is a problem, are there tracks that could hook Nashville up to the CONO route somewhere south of Carbondale? That would also open up a route for Atlanta to Chicago train.
New Hampshire is semi-serious about establishing commuter rail between Manchester and Boston. I am not sure if Amtrak would be interested in the same route if the commuter train gets up and running. On the other hand, Amtrak money could bring about the improvements that are needed to the corridor.
Why would Florida give Amtrak money when Brightline will have the endpoints of the route covered when their line is done.That light blue line in Florida has been on Amtrak's wish list since the late 1970s. A train called the Silver Palm (v1) ran on that route for a couple of years subsidized by FDOT, and then when it did not manage to get to 40% farebox recovery (as was the contract terms) in a few years FDOT pulled the subsidy ending it.
Unless the Florida State government changes in more spectacular ways than one can imagine at present, that Florida part ain't happening soon, unless the feds are willing to underwrite the difference between the balance between cost of operation minus farebox recovery minus 40% of the cost of operation, for the life of the operation, if that.
Thats what I don't understand, is Amtrak going to compete with Brightline between LA or Victorvilee and LAS? Running 8 hours between DAL-HOU when Texas Central will be up and running in a couple of years? Strange map.
I still wish that there would be a Boston - Montreal train rather than two trains from New York to Montreal.
Does Acela compete with the Northeast Regional and New Jersey Transit and Path Trains?
No, by Acela pricing structure Amtrak lets you know they are concerned about that traffic. Having Brightline heading up I-15 median, and Amtrak on the parallel UP (that in itself is funny as if UP will allow it) between Socal and LAS do not seem feesible.
They might very well do so since eventually CAHSR and Brightline are planning for joint existence on the approach to LAX from Palmdale. We don't know for sure what will happen yet, but is quite possible that they would actually serve Union Station from what I have been hearing.Well I don’t think brightline will be serving union station will they?
Another interesting observation from this map is the Canadian services. There was speculation on this forum of the Maple Leaf not coming back after the pandemic (it is also the only route I can find that is not in the booking system for the entirety of the next 11 months). Not only is that still on this map, but it indicates increased service and the addition of Toronto to Chicago service.......
With GO planning increased service Niagara Falls ON once this thing is over.....it would make sense to terminate the Maple Leaf at the Border.
Passengers arriving on the Empire Service would clear Canadian CBSA in a joint facility in the new Amtrak Station on the US side then board a GO Train for Toronto. In the opposite direction....a couple of GO Trains a day could be extended to NF NY where passengers clear US CBP then continue on the Empire Service.
And a joint pre-clearance facility seems to have the backing of Sen Schumer (article from last year):
Schumer to Canada: Implement pre-clearance for Amtrak trains
With a little schedule coordination there could be a couple of services a day each way between Toronto and New York.
I still wish that there would be a Boston - Montreal train rather than two trains from New York to Montreal.
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