I am sure that many of you are well aware that Phoenix Az has not had direct passenger train service since June of 1996 and even before the Sunset Limited was rerouted out of Phoenix the service was inadequate just as it is today with Tri Weekly Service from Los Angeles to New Orleans with connections to Chicago at San Antonio via the Texas Eagle. The Union Pacific Railroad which acquired the Southern Pacific has since taken a portion of the route through Phoenix out of service east of Yuma Az and Amtrak apparently isn't willing to pay to cost asked from Union Pacific to restore the line.
There is another way to restore daily service to Phoenix Az and that in the BNSF "branch line" better known at the "Peavine" line which goes south from the ex Santa Fe mainline at WIlliams Junction Arizona and goes to Phoenix via Wickenburg Az.
Until June of 1969 there was a daily overnight train that connected with various Chicago to California Santa Fe Trains on the mainline. The Train was number 47 southbound and 42 northbound. As a rule there was through sleeping car service to and from Chicago on that train from December 1st through April 25th and the rest of year the both the sleeping car and coach passengers would have to change trains at Williams Junction. Before 1960 the connecting point was in Ash Fork Arizona but due to a major main line relocation the connecting point was changed to Williams Junction.
The seasonal through sleeper service lasted until 1967 and the train itself was discontinued in June of 1969. The train or trains that carried the through sleepers to and from Chicago varied but in the later years the through sleeper would go one way on the San Franciso Chief and the other way on the Chief or the Grand Canyon. Before the mid 50s the through sleeper would usually come and go on the Chief but it sometimes depended on the year that it was.
The train would usually leave Willams Junction at about 1 am and arrive Phoenix around 7 am and going northbound it would usually leave Phoenix around 4 pm and arrive Williams Junction around 9;30 pm. While the Super Chief didn't run through sleepers to Phoenix and they were usually carried on the Chief or the San Francisco Chief it would make perfect sense Amtrak would run a through coach and perhaps a seasonal through sleeper on the Southwest Chief to Phoenix.
In the early days of Amtrak around 1971/72 when the Private Auto Train Corporation also began there was even some talk of Amtrak running an Auto Train to Arizona from the Midwest. Of course it was never seriously pursued.
My main point is that if Amtrak ran either through or connecting service to Phoenix on a daily basis they could probably do it on a faster schedule than the current tri weekly Eagle/Sunset Limited connection.
There is another way to restore daily service to Phoenix Az and that in the BNSF "branch line" better known at the "Peavine" line which goes south from the ex Santa Fe mainline at WIlliams Junction Arizona and goes to Phoenix via Wickenburg Az.
Until June of 1969 there was a daily overnight train that connected with various Chicago to California Santa Fe Trains on the mainline. The Train was number 47 southbound and 42 northbound. As a rule there was through sleeping car service to and from Chicago on that train from December 1st through April 25th and the rest of year the both the sleeping car and coach passengers would have to change trains at Williams Junction. Before 1960 the connecting point was in Ash Fork Arizona but due to a major main line relocation the connecting point was changed to Williams Junction.
The seasonal through sleeper service lasted until 1967 and the train itself was discontinued in June of 1969. The train or trains that carried the through sleepers to and from Chicago varied but in the later years the through sleeper would go one way on the San Franciso Chief and the other way on the Chief or the Grand Canyon. Before the mid 50s the through sleeper would usually come and go on the Chief but it sometimes depended on the year that it was.
The train would usually leave Willams Junction at about 1 am and arrive Phoenix around 7 am and going northbound it would usually leave Phoenix around 4 pm and arrive Williams Junction around 9;30 pm. While the Super Chief didn't run through sleepers to Phoenix and they were usually carried on the Chief or the San Francisco Chief it would make perfect sense Amtrak would run a through coach and perhaps a seasonal through sleeper on the Southwest Chief to Phoenix.
In the early days of Amtrak around 1971/72 when the Private Auto Train Corporation also began there was even some talk of Amtrak running an Auto Train to Arizona from the Midwest. Of course it was never seriously pursued.
My main point is that if Amtrak ran either through or connecting service to Phoenix on a daily basis they could probably do it on a faster schedule than the current tri weekly Eagle/Sunset Limited connection.
