Would like to see a night-time Maple Leaf

[VentureForth]

I wish someone would consider that to spend the night near NYP and in Toronto ain't cheap. That being said, if they run a night time Maple Leaf that departed NYP at 8 PM and arrived in TOR at 8 AM, you could save a full day and two nights of travel.

 

[the_traveler]

And the same with the Adirondack! I chose not to take the Adirondack from my home in upstate NY (although it was only ~5 miles to FED) because it would have required an overnight in NYC to connect to other trains. Instead I drove 50 miles to ALB where there were MANY other choices!

And the same to MTR. The Adirondack arrives too late for most same-day connections!

 

[eliyahu]

And the same with the Adirondack! I chose not to take the Adirondack from my home in upstate NY (although it was only ~5 miles to FED) because it would have required an overnight in NYC to connect to other trains. Instead I drove 50 miles to ALB where there were MANY other choices!
And the same to MTR. The Adirondack arrives too late for most same-day connections!

i couldn't agree more. i can certainly understand why the state of vermont would want daytime schedules on the 'vermonter' for commerce reasons, and for additional utility for local residents, but for people actually wanting to travel through from the tri-state area (or indeed further down around baltimore-DC) to montreal, overnight service on the 'montrealer' was a huge boon. the adirondack offers great scenery. and that's about it. the NEC carryover coaches have a far too tight seat pitch for a journey of that time length and a lack of a business class hurts as well. the carding is simply too slow to compete with auto travel. an overnight run would be much more useful for through travelers, whether on the vermonter route, a la the ex-montrealer, or on its current routing. but with a state picking up the costs, they aren't going to want their monies used for through travelers. on state-supported routes, the name of the game is benefit to local communities; after all, it is local dollars, not federal, offsetting the operating losses.

-- eliyahu

waterbury, ct

 

[Joel N. Weber II]

Have y'all written to your Congresspeople?

A successful train probably has a mix of local and through passengers. When looking at whether more than one train a day makes sense, I think a major concern tends to be how many people are on the train, period, and if the train can draw both the local and the not-so-local crowd, filling it up enough to justify another daily run probably becomes easier.

Another thing that might be nice to have is a train that followed the MBTA's Fitchburg Line from North Station (or from Route 128 after the North-South Rail Link gets built) to Fitchburg, and then a bit further west, and then turned north to follow the route that the Vermonter follows; that would provide a more direct route from Boston to Vermont. Alternatively, maybe the MBTA's Fitchburg Line train could be extended to somewhere to allow Vermonter transfers, though I suspect that a train that didn't make more than two or three or four stops between Vermont and North Station would provide faster service (and Massachusetts does seem to be planning to pay for cab signaling on the Fitchburg Line).

(Or, an even more ambitious routing in a world that had a North-South Rail Link might be a train that went from Vermont to Boston to Cape Cod via Middleboro, in which case it wouldn't stop at Route 128.)

 

[transit54]

Only reason I wouldn't want to see a night-only Adirondack is the fantastic scenery. That being said, I'd love to see the day version preserved, and a night train added. I think moving the Maple Leaf to night would be a fantastic idea, and personally, I'd love a night Vermonter (I'm in Burlington, and the idea of boarding a train at 10 PM or so for an early morning arrival in the New York area sounds absolutely fantastic). Of course, even if the congressional will was there, Amtrak probably just doesn't have the spare equipment.

 

[Steve4031]

We may never see a night time train on this route, but one can mitigate costs by staying outside of NYC and connecting at Penn. For example, I had a good rate at the trenton marriott and rode to NYP to connect with the Maple Leaf. This works if you can get a good weekend rate.

 

[George Harris]

This gets back to the basic issue that any route worth having passenger service should have AT LEAST two trains per day, more or less 12 hours apart.

 

[transit54]

This gets back to the basic issue that any route worth having passenger service should have AT LEAST two trains per day, more or less 12 hours apart.

That, or upgrades for speeds above 79 MPH (preferably 90-110+). But I suppose if you're going to make such upgrades, you're going to have more than one train in the first place. But I think higher speed service negates the case for a night route in many places.

 

[VentureForth]

That, or upgrades for speeds above 79 MPH (preferably 90-110+). But I suppose if you're going to make such upgrades, you're going to have more than one train in the first place. But I think higher speed service negates the case for a night route in many places.

You can make the Maple Leaf as fast as you want, but it will never keep you from having to stay overnight in NYC and Toronto...

 

[the_traveler]

This gets back to the basic issue that any route worth having passenger service should have AT LEAST two trains per day, more or less 12 hours apart.

That, or upgrades for speeds above 79 MPH (preferably 90-110+). But I suppose if you're going to make such upgrades, you're going to have more than one train in the first place. But I think higher speed service negates the case for a night route in many places.

I would not want to go from Whitehall to Plattsburgh at 110 MPH, being the track curves along the Lake Champlain shoreline on a ledge!

 

[NS VIA FAN]

Amtrak and VIA ran a weekend overnight train between New York and Toronto in 1994:

 

[VentureForth]

Amtrak and VIA ran a weekend overnight train between New York and Toronto in 1994:

I'll betcha if the Niagra Rainbow went all the way to Toronto (without having to transfer) and arrived before the Canadian left at 9 AM, it would still be around...

Cool timetable!

 

[the_traveler]

I noticed that 62/65 only ran 2 days a week - on the weekend! And it had sleepers!

I wonder which will come first - the return of 62/65 OR the return of sleepers to 66/67? :huh: (I'd say neither! )

 

[Green Maned Lion]

I agree we should start this service overnight to Toronto. I'll call my congressman and suggest we get Amtrak to release its massive glut of under utilized Viewliners for this service.

 

[frj1983]

Heck,

I'd love to see a RE-CONNECTION of Chicago with Toronto. The way it is now, the only way to get to Canada by train is to go all the way from Chicago to New York and thence northward. I know Amtrak faced a number of problems with the Midwest connection to Canada, but oh how I'd love to see it come back! B)

 

[Sam Damon]

*/sarc mode ON

This all sounds great! Now, who out there just hit the MegaMillions or Powerball jackpots to fund the new rolling stock needed to make this happen?

*/sarc mode OFF

 

[GG-1]

*/sarc mode ON
This all sounds great! Now, who out there just hit the MegaMillions or Powerball jackpots to fund the new rolling stock needed to make this happen?

*/sarc mode OFF

*/sarc mode ON

Remember Amtrak is run by the Government. "We are here to help you out, which way did you come in"

*/sarc mode Off

Aloha

 

[jis]

I'd love to see a RE-CONNECTION of Chicago with Toronto. The way it is now, the only way to get to Canada by train is to go all the way from Chicago to New York and thence northward. I know Amtrak faced a number of problems with the Midwest connection to Canada, but oh how I'd love to see it come back! B)

Huh? Can't you change from LSL to the Maple Leaf at Buffalo Depew? Inconvenient hours agreed, but doable nonetheless. Or did you mean New York as in New York State rather than as in New York City?

 

[frj1983]

I'd love to see a RE-CONNECTION of Chicago with Toronto. The way it is now, the only way to get to Canada by train is to go all the way from Chicago to New York and thence northward. I know Amtrak faced a number of problems with the Midwest connection to Canada, but oh how I'd love to see it come back! B)

Huh? Can't you change from LSL to the Maple Leaf at Buffalo Depew? Inconvenient hours agreed, but doable nonetheless. Or did you mean New York as in New York State rather than as in New York City?

I did mean state, forgot to type it in.

Fingers on, brain off. :blink:

 

[the_traveler]

I'd love to see a RE-CONNECTION of Chicago with Toronto. The way it is now, the only way to get to Canada by train is to go all the way from Chicago to New York and thence northward. I know Amtrak faced a number of problems with the Midwest connection to Canada, but oh how I'd love to see it come back! B)

Huh? Can't you change from LSL to the Maple Leaf at Buffalo Depew? Inconvenient hours agreed, but doable nonetheless. Or did you mean New York as in New York State rather than as in New York City?

In this case, New York is meant to say New York State!

I got it all the time when I lived in New York State! Most people (including many people from New York City) think New York State ends at the Bronx border! I lived in New York State for 34 years, and where I lived was much closer to Montreal than it was to New York City! I went to Montreal often, but very seldom to New York City (except to change trains )! In fact, I've never been to the Statute of Liberty, Ellis Island or (before it was destroyed) the World Trade Center!

Years ago, the International ran directly from Chicago to Toronto, via Port Huron, MI.

 

[AlanB]

I lived in New York State for 34 years, and where I lived was much closer to Montreal than it was to New York City! I went to Montreal often, but very seldom to New York City (except to change trains )! In fact, I've never been to the Statute of Liberty, Ellis Island or (before it was destroyed) the World Trade Center!

Well I've lived in or within sight of NYC my entire life and I've never been to Ellis Island either. I've been out to the Statue of Liberty, but never inside it, and that was only because I took a visitor out to the Statue. Sadly the line was like 3 hours to get inside, so we decided not to wait.