Sunset Back on Track

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NativeSon5859

Conductor
Joined
Aug 6, 2003
Messages
1,057
Location
NOLA
An article written in our local newspaper this morning mentioned that the Sunset is now back to full LAX-ORL service following the lengthy service disruption from the hurricanes. The only bad part of the article? They misspelled Amtrak: Amtrack. Typical. :angry:
 
What are you complaining about? Given the congestion on the Sunset's route, a misspelling is nothing. What should be worth complaints is the lack of capacity and crews, and the lack of long-term replacements for the Superliners. The s-1s are all nearing 25 years old, and there are no replacements in sight. Also, many Class One RR's are failing to make their "cost of capital," which means that they aren't making enough money to adequatly fund upgrades in their infrastructure. All the while, they are having to deal with all-time record freight traffic levels.

We should count ourselves lucky if we get to complain about any misspellings, considering that Amtrak (as well as the RR industry as a whole) have worse challenges to deal with.
 
To celebrate, the Sunset Limited announced she plan on arriving in Florida 30 hours late.
 
WICT106, calm down man, I was just pointing out how at this time, some 33 years after Amtrak started service, its name still gets misspelled. And that is sad. I realize Amtrak has issues to take care of, but that was not the point of this thread.
 
I think this picture says it all guys:

MadisonFLsign.jpg
 
I don't care how they spell it. I am leaving on the SL Friday, heading to California. It's my first train trip and I am excited! I want to thank all of you for all the tips I've received just reading these threads. :D
 
Well, guest_smoker, I should caution you in advance that the Sunset travels over tracks that are privately owned. The private RR's also handle all of the maintenance, and all of the traffic control (it's called "dispatching" in RR parlance). In your case, the Union Pacific RR is the landlord from LA to CA. It should also be noted that the entire route from New Orleans to Los Angeles is heavily congested with freight, to the point where some in the RR industry have labelled it as severe congestion. its to the point where I have advised others in Real Life to consider taking other routes. Be prepared to be delayed frequently, with little to no explanation from the train crew. Bring something to read, or a camera to take pictures, or something else to bide the time.
 
WICT106 said:
Well, guest_smoker, I should caution you in advance that the Sunset travels over tracks that are privately owned. The private RR's also handle all of the maintenance, and all of the traffic control (it's called "dispatching" in RR parlance). In your case, the Union Pacific RR is the landlord from LA to CA. It should also be noted that the entire route from New Orleans to Los Angeles is heavily congested with freight, to the point where some in the RR industry have labelled it as severe congestion. its to the point where I have advised others in Real Life to consider taking other routes. Be prepared to be delayed frequently, with little to no explanation from the train crew. Bring something to read, or a camera to take pictures, or something else to bide the time.
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You will do good from NOL to IOWA JCT which is 12 miles east of Lake Charles La since this is BNSF track and we get Amtrak over the road but after that point it can go right to hell real quick the real mess is between Beumont TX and El Passo TX.
 
Guest_smoker said:
I am leaving on the SL Friday, heading to California.
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Hey, have a great trip, sounds like fun! Hopefully your train won't be too many hours late... :rolleyes:

Be warned, though, that there is absolutely NO smoking anywhere onboard Amtrak's Sunset Limited. Judging by your username I thought you might want to know that. You can only smoke when the crew announces special longer stops for the train when you can step off and at least 20 feet away from the train.
 
Wow!!! It came all the way to ORL last trip!!! I wonder how long this is gonna last. :lol: :D
 
You guessed right by my name. I knew you could not smoke on the Sunset Limited. I'm just hoping we have at least 2 stops a day. :unsure:
 
Almost definitely 2 stops per day. Just about all crew change points are smoking stops, since it usually takes about 5 minutes for the crews to hand over the train to the next crew.
 
Guest_smoker said:
You guessed right by my name. I knew you could not smoke on the Sunset Limited. I'm just hoping we have at least 2 stops a day. :unsure:
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In reality, you'll probably have a chance to step off at most (if not all) of the staffed stations that handle checked baggage, with the exception of Maricopa, Arizona. Maricopa is a nightmare because of the short platform, multiple spots/stops required, baggage and the crew will not let anyone off there unless it is their final destination.
 
OK. I think I'm ready! I am getting more excited as the trip gets closer. Maybe I'll get enough stories to do a trip report when I get back. I'm expecting the SL to be on time this week, no matter what it has done in the past! :p
 
smoker said:
OK. I think I'm ready! I am getting more excited as the trip gets closer. Maybe I'll get enough stories to do a trip report when I get back. I'm expecting the SL to be on time this week, no matter what it has done in the past! :p
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Aloha

Good luck, enjoy the trip. When I rode the SL she was on time within an hour, tied with the Southwest Chief. Please do the trip report.
 
Hello everyone!

What is the ground transportation situation in Maricopa? I will be travelling from Houston to Phoenix.

If a $60+ cab ride into Phoenix is my only option, I think what I may do is get off in Tucson and Greyhound it to Phoenix ($18). Yahoo Maps seems to indicate that the Tucson bus station is right across the street from the train station. Anybody done this?

Also, I know that the Sunset usually runs late. Where are the usual slowdowns?

Thanks!
 
White's Shuttle Service (19984 N John Wayne Pkwy. Maricopa AZ. 520-568-4404) connects from Phoenix to the Maricopa Amtrak Station and meets every train. This is the ONLY ground transportation serving the Maricopa Amtrak Station, but is quite expensive at $55/person one way between the Phoenix Airport and Maricopa train station. There is NO other transit available in Maricopa whatsoever.

Getting off at Tucson and taking a Greyhound bus into Phoenix is an excellent way to avoid this problem of being stuck out in the middle of the desert. Greyhound headways are between 2 to 4 hours (all day and night), so you might have a short wait but you will be able to wait at their 24 hour station in Tucson across from Amtrak. Amtrak used to have a thruway contract with Greyhound to offer this service to train passengers (after they stopped going directly into Phoenix but before Maricopa opened - a few years) but that ended with the opening of Maricopa.

The usual slowdowns are due to freight and it is hard to pinpoint exactly where most of them occur. Most often it seems like El Paso to Maricopa is a area that gets hit hard with delays. You should be safe, though, if you are connecting to Greyhound at Tucson since the buses run frequently enough around the clock. Good luck and have a great trip!
 

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