I was trying to get to New England for a family event and was reminded how extremely frustrating the current Lakeshore Limited schedule is for Cleveland, and probably every other city between Chicago and New York.  I had to be there at a certain time and needed to get back home ASAP.

 

I wish someone would find the money to temporarily run another train 12 hours off the current schedule to see what the ridership would be.  I can't be the only one frustrated with airlines and eager for a competitive alternative. 

 

:whip:

I was trying to get to New England for a family event and was reminded how extremely frustrating the current Lakeshore Limited schedule is for Cleveland, and probably every other city between Chicago and New York.  I had to be there at a certain time and needed to get back home ASAP.

 

I wish someone would find the money to temporarily run another train 12 hours off the current schedule to see what the ridership would be.  I can't be the only one frustrated with airlines and eager for a competitive alternative. 

 

:whip:

 

When the Lake Shore Limited started in 1975 (after a three-year hiatus of passenger rail service linking Chicago, Cleveland and new York City), the ridership was so good on this new train that Amtrak wanted to run a second train. They had the funding for it, but President Ford recommended a cut to Amtrak's budget which Congress accepted. And that was the end of that.

 

Every so often, there's an idea of expanding service on this route. It is the most heavily used daily round trip Amtrak offers anywhere east of the Mississippi River. It carries about 400,000 passengers per year, or 1,100 passengers per day. That's enough to fill every seat in eight Boeing 737 jets. And only 10 percent of those travelers are riding all the way between East Coast and Chicago. There is a lot of passenger turnover throughout each trip of the Lake Shore Limited.

 

The most recent foray into seeking an expansion is to take one of the NYSDOT-sponsored Empire Service trains that runs between New York City and the Buffalo/Niagara Falls area and instead run it west to Chicago. I pushed that idea on behalf of All Aboard Ohio but it ran into several issues, not the least of which was that another $8 million per year in operating subsidy would be needed. No state west of New York would likely fund that. And the federal government didn't have a funding program for Amtrak expansion at that time. It has one now but Congress hasn't funded it yet. Even so, the new federal program to fund the operating costs of expanded Amtrak service is authorized at only $20 million per year, and there are several other expansions that already organized constituencies (Gulf Coast mayors want New Orleans-Florida service; West Virginia and others want daily Cardinal service, etc) are seeking. Those expansions will likely cost more per year, in total, to support than if Congress actually fully funded the expansion program at its maximum authorized amount.

 

Lots more to describe here but family life intrudes....

I was trying to get to New England for a family event and was reminded how extremely frustrating the current Lakeshore Limited schedule is for Cleveland, and probably every other city between Chicago and New York.  I had to be there at a certain time and needed to get back home ASAP.

 

The most recent foray into seeking an expansion is to take one of the NYSDOT-sponsored Empire Service trains that runs between New York City and the Buffalo/Niagara Falls area and instead run it west to Chicago.

 

Too late for this trip -- but looking into it I could have driven to Buffalo and taken the train to Albany (Maple Leaf, noon - 7pm) (Empire BuilderService, 7am - noon) and rented a car for the last leg east.  Thanks NY, I'll have to keep that in mind!

 

Too late for this trip -- but looking into it I could have driven to Buffalo and taken the train to Albany (Maple Leaf, noon - 7pm) (Empire Builder, 7am - noon) and rented a car for the last leg east.  Thanks NY, I'll have to keep that in mind!

 

Actually, I don't consider the eastbound Lake Shore out of Cleveland to be awful timing. It leaves Cleveland just before 6 a.m., Buffalo at 9 a.m., gets to Albany at about 3 p.m. and Boston at 8 p.m. It's the trip coming back, arriving in Cleveland at 3 a.m. that stinks.

 

BTW, it's the Empire Service, not the Empire Builder. The Empire Builder runs from Chicago to Seattle and Portland by way of Minneapolis and Melted Glacier National Park.

 

Too late for this trip -- but looking into it I could have driven to Buffalo and taken the train to Albany (Maple Leaf, noon - 7pm) (Empire Builder, 7am - noon) and rented a car for the last leg east.  Thanks NY, I'll have to keep that in mind!

 

Actually, I don't consider the eastbound Lake Shore out of Cleveland to be awful timing. It leaves Cleveland just before 6 a.m., Buffalo at 9 a.m., gets to Albany at about 3 p.m. and Boston at 8 p.m.

 

Not awful if you have a dinner meeting or you're just traveling for leisure, perhaps, but if you're trying to get to somewhere north of Boston for an afternoon meeting, the Lake Shore won't work unless you travel a day early.  That is significant.

^I am confused as to why you would even consider travelling over 600 miles by rail with the intent of making an afternoon business meeting.  I don't think I would even take that risk in Europe let alone the US.

For immediate release

Contact: Ken Prendergast, All Aboard Ohio Executive Director, 216-288-4883

 

Summary of Ohio Rally4Trains events:

 

COLUMBUS – 11 am Friday June 23rd – Corner of High Street and Nationwide Blvd, downtown

CLEVELAND – 12 noon Friday June 23rd – Amtrak station, 200 Cleveland Memorial Shoreway, downtown

TOLEDO – 3 pm Saturday June 24th – MLK Plaza/Amtrak station, 300 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Drive, south of downtown

 

UPDATES, please check: http://allaboardohio.org/2017/06/17/ohio-rally4trains-events-june-23-24/

 

With these rallies, All Aboard Ohio proudly and actively supports the National Association of Railroad Passengers’ (NARP) campaign to respond loudly to the Trump Administration’s proposed budget that would eliminate all funding for passenger trains and public transportation. Our active support will be expressed on June 23rd and 24th at three rallies in Cleveland, Columbus and Toledo. Other rallies will be held across the country: https://townswithouttrains.com/

 

Towns without trains have fewer jobs, less tourism, lower economic activity, lower real estate values, less healthy people, more traffic congestion, less mobility and fewer travel options. Eliminating funding for Amtrak would have a profound negative impact on every intercity, rapid transit and commuter rail passenger in the country. More than 220 communities across the country and over 40 million riders will lose their service.

 

COLUMBUS is our cautionary tale of what happens when a major city loses passenger train service. It is extremely hard to get trains back. When Columbus lost Amtrak’s New York-Kansas City National Limited due to federal budget cuts on Sept. 30, 1979, it has since gone more than 13,750 days without passenger rail service. Columbus is the largest city in the western hemisphere and possibly the world without any regularly scheduled passenger trains (urban light-rail, regional commuter, intercity Amtrak etc). Columbus would be an even more vibrant, sustainable city with passenger rail.

 

Please join the Columbus Rally4Trains at 11 a.m. Friday June 23rd at the corner of High Street and Nationwide Blvd in downtown Columbus — across the street from where Columbus Union Station stood.

 

CLEVELAND will not only lose its Amtrak trains immediately but also its rapid transit trains in 5-10 years under the administration’s proposed cuts. Cleveland’s rail transit system is already facing a half-billion dollar backlog of unfunded state-of-good-repair needs. Its loss as well as many bus routes will mean that tens of thousands of people each day won’t be able to get to work, school, health care or shopping. On Amtrak, more than 650,000 passengers a year use the four daily trains through Cleveland, including nearly 50,000 boardings at Cleveland in 2016. Any hope for service improvements and expansion will disappear along with them.

 

Please join the Cleveland Rally4Trains at 12 noon Friday June 23rd at the Cleveland Amtrak station, 200 Cleveland Memorial Shoreway in downtown Cleveland — where the city’s planned Lakefront Multi-modal Transportation Center is planned. Keynote speaker is Grace Gallucci, Executive Director of the Northeast Ohio Areawide Coordinating Agency.

 

TOLEDO is Ohio’s busiest train station where not only Amtrak trains but Amtrak buses, Greyhound buses and Toledo Area RTA buses all converge in a single transportation center. The MLK Plaza station has offices in the building above and a Subway restaurant in the station below. That station stays busy ’round the clock with rail and bus passengers traveling to places near and fare. This multi-modal station is an example for the rest of Ohio to follow. That example will fade away without federal Amtrak and public transportation funds, making it more difficult for Toledoans to travel within their city and to other cities.

 

Please join the Toledo Rally4Trains at 3 p.m. Saturday June 24th at MLK Plaza/Amtrak station, 300 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Drive, south of downtown. It is also the site of a major community redevelopment effort that will not succeed without federal funds. Special guest speaker is Bruce Becker, Vice President of the National Association of Railroad Passengers.

 

Here are some other impacts of these destructive federal funding cuts:

 

+ The Federal Railroad Administration (see https://www.midwestrailplan.org/) and states surrounding Ohio (Pennsylvania may soon plan expansion west to Cleveland, Toledo and Chicago) are seeking passenger rail improvements that serve Ohio. West Virginia’s legislature and governor passed a law to create a Cardinal Compact to increase Amtrak Cardinal service to daily. If we lose our existing train services, we cannot improve them.

 

+ Restoring lost trains is extremely difficult. Columbus and Dayton lost their Amtrak train services in 1979 as a result of federal budget cuts. Akron and Youngstown lost their trains in 2005. None have returned due to the difficulty of restoring lost trains or instituting new services.

 

+ The existing Amtrak trains that travel through Cleveland and Toledo each night are used by 650,000 people per year, enough to fill every seat on more than a dozen Boeing 737 jets per day. There are nearly 50,000 people who boarded Amtrak trains last year in Cleveland, an increase of nearly 40 percent over the past decade. More than 55,000 people boarded Amtrak trains in Toledo in 2016.

 

+ Despite having only five trains a day serving Ohio, Amtrak in 2016 spent $30 million into Ohio’s economy buying goods and services from Ohio companies. That includes Ohio Amtrak employees buying $6.45 million worth of goods and services (multiplier of 1.5 on base wages of $4.3 million).

 

+ All Ohio Amtrak trains (part of the National Network) would end as a result of the proposed budget cuts, and force increased costs and the loss of connecting revenues to state-supported trains in two dozen states, many of which may not be able to afford them anymore.

 

Please join us at these important events to raise public awareness of this critical issue!

 

###

^I am confused as to why you would even consider travelling over 600 miles by rail with the intent of making an afternoon business meeting.  I don't think I would even take that risk in Europe let alone the US.

 

I've traveled successfully over 600 miles in multiple countries, both in Europe and in Asia, so I know it can be done -- although 600 miles might be pushing it in some situations, I agree.

 

And because flying is becoming a more and more miserable experience, and I can eat/sleep/work on the train, I can get far more accomplished, more comfortably, than if I drove. 

 

 

CBS NEWS June 19, 2017, 8:26 AM

"Decades behind": Amtrak plans urgently needed upgrades

 

President Trump's pledge to invest a trillion dollars in infrastructure made no mention of our country's outdated rail system.

 

Decades of lack of funding and infrastructure investment have caused Amtrak, the nation's passenger rail network, to lag behind most of the developed world.

 

For over a century, railroads were the backbone of America. Trains moved people between cities and provided freight transport for industry. But by the mid-twentieth century, competition from interstate highways and airlines forced many railroads out of business.

 

In 1971, Amtrak was established as America's passenger rail service. But it has struggled since Day One, plagued with problems it still hasn't solved: most routes never made a profit, and in many cases, Amtrak doesn't even own the tracks.

 

MORE:

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/amtrak-plans-urgently-needed-upgrades/

ocal Media Contact:

Ken Prendergast, Executive Director, All Aboard Ohio

216-288-4883

[email protected]

 

**MEDIA ALERT**

 

Passengers rally at Cleveland Amtrak station to protest elimination of RTA & Amtrak trains

 

#Rally4Trains on June 23, at 12 Noon at 200 Memorial Shoreway

 

What: “Rally For Trains” is a series of rallies being held across the country to save passenger rail in America. Rail & transit passengers are standing up for trains in the face of looming, draconian, proposed federal budget cuts that will effectively cause Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority Rapid trains to stop running from declining track, signal and train equipment conditions and stranding 30,000+ passengers per weekday, and Amtrak trains will stop too, ending service through Cleveland used by 650,000+ passengers per year.

 

Why: Rail Passengers are raising their voices so Congress will understand the importance of train service to millions of Americans. The federal budget needs to be held at or above the levels of the bi-partisan FAST (Fixing America's Surface Transportation) Act, which passed in 2015. Proposed cuts will reduce RTA train and some bus services, as well as stop passenger rail service to seven Ohio stations, including Cleveland and Elyria.

 

Where: The local rally is being held at: Cleveland Amtrak Station, 200 Memorial Shoreway, downtown.

 

Other rallies are being held in cities and towns nationwide. More information is available at www.townswithouttrains.com or www.allaboardohio.org

 

Who: More than 8 million people ride RTA trains per year in Greater Cleveland and 40 million people ride Amtrak trains per year in America. The rally in Cleveland will feature special guests and speakers including:

+ Grace Gallucci, Executive Director, Northeast Ohio Areawide Coordinating Agency (NOACA)

+ Ken Prendergast, Executive Director, All Aboard Ohio

+ Local elected officials or their representatives

 

When: 12 noon to 12:30 p.m. Friday, June 23

 

**PHOTO/ VIDEO OPPORTUNITY***

**INTERVIEWS AVAILABLE**

Central Ohioans! Be there on Friday!

 

Media advisory Contact: Jack Shaner (614) 309-1169 [email protected]

  Elissa Schneider (614) 580-5109 [email protected]

  Ron Pilatowski (614) 634-0158 [email protected]

 

Columbus’ cautionary tale: When trains leave, it can take generations to get them back

 

Nearly 40 years after the last Amtrak train left Columbus, passenger train advocates plan #Rally4Trains event, 11 am Friday, downtown

 

(June 21, 2017 - Columbus, OH) -- Top-ranked nationally as “THE” place for young professionals, entrepreneurs, artists, musicians and sports and more, why is Columbus also ranked the #1 largest American city and state capital with no travel connections by rail?

 

The last passenger train left 38 years ago and despite numerous attempts to bring them back, politics always got in the way.  Columbus could be a truly world-class city, but for that.

 

But there’s hope. A proposed, new rail link with 110-MPH trains that can cuts the travel time from Columbus to Chicago to under 4 hours with multiple train frequencies, on-board Internet connections and no driving or flying hassles.

 

Join  local passenger rail advocates as we gather over downtown train tracks on Friday to:

1. Exhort Congress to reject President Trump’s budget proposal to eliminate funding for America’s long-distance passenger train service. If Congress approves the Trump proposal, Ohio will lose all existing Amtrak service, boarding up stations in Alliance, Bryan, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Elyria, Sandusky and Toledo.

2. Spotlight the benefits of a proposed new 110 MPH passenger rail line connecting Columbus to Chicago (in 3 hrs and 45 minutes), including stops in downtown Columbus, John Glenn International Airport and 8 other cities in Ohio and Indiana.

3. Drive home the point that if Congress pulls the plug on Amtrak, it may be goodbye Columbus--forever--for any serious effort to restore passenger rail service to Columbus.

 

WHO: Passenger rail advocates, including:

Elissa Schneider, Chair, Transit Columbus

Ron Pilatowski, Member, National Association of Railroad Passengers

Jack Shaner, Chair, All Aboard Ohio

WHAT: Columbus “Whistle Stop” for national #Rally4Trains Day

WHEN: 11am - 1 pm, Friday, June 23, 2017

WHERE: NW corner of North High Street and Nationwide Blvd

WHY: President Trump’s budget could smother in the crib the momentum beginning to build to restore passenger train service to America’s largest city with no existing service - Columbus.

VISUALS: People collecting petition signatures, handing out flyers and holding signs supporting passenger trains. Man wearing sandwich board reading, “Columbus: A City Without Trains.” Walking distance to prospective new train station site, arch from closed train station, and several vantage points of existing train tracks.

SIGNIFICANCE: Columbus is the largest Town Without Trains participating in this weekend’s nationwide #Rally4Trains Day set for dozens of cities across America.

 

###

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/dr-gridlock/wp/2017/06/26/amtrak-names-new-chief-executive/

 

Richard Anderson, former head of Delta and Northwest Airlines, to become CEO of Amtrak.  Now there's an interesting pick. Can he really know how political the job is?

And will all Amtrak riders now have to connect through Atlanta??

He knows what he's in for. I know the man personally. He feels it's his civic duty to hep Amtrak.

This will also benefit the Lake Shore Ltd that serves Cleveland, Elyria, Sandusky, Toledo and Bryan.

 

2nd railroad track opens between Schenectady, Albany

Announcement comes as new design details released on train station

https://dailygazette.com/article/2017/07/12/2nd-railroad-track-open-between-schenectady-albany

halfway thru the 'summer of hell' repairs, but more to come:

 

 

http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/manhattan/amtrak-mulls-fixes-penn-station-repairs-remain-track-article-1.3385561

 

halfway thru the 'summer of hell' repairs, but more to come:

 

 

http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/manhattan/amtrak-mulls-fixes-penn-station-repairs-remain-track-article-1.3385561

 

 

We went up on NJT's NE Corridor line in mid July... There was some delay and slow trains in/out of the tunnel, but it really wasn't that bad. All traffic was squeezed to the outer tracks and platforms... Thankfully we went on a weekend... I wouldn't want to experience a Penn Station rush hour these days; it's bad enough when things are "normal."

Urban columnist Aaron Renn added his own insight concerning this vexing situation:

http://www.urbanophile.com/2017/08/05/a-little-bit-of-penn-station-comes-to-grand-central/

As you all know, all of Ohio's Amtrak trains use CSX tracks for significant portions of their routes. I sent out via social media that All Aboard Ohio welcomes the STB's action. Here is an article.....

 

https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/nation-now/2017/08/15/amtrak-train-delays-csx/569869001/

^Funny that the CSX spokesman's name is Doolittle... I love ironic names.

A day’s worth of Amtrak train traffic, animated map with TransitFlow. https://t.co/EhCmwlhtTl https://t.co/I92OP1UZaz

trump is now supposedly on board for gateway, the number one priority infrastructure project:

 

http://www.nydailynews.com/amp/news/politics/cuomo-asserts-new-hudson-tunnels-vital-trump-meeting-article-1.3477367

 

 

also, two large cranes are now going up inside the farley post office for the major moynihan penn station construction.

 

All Aboard!

https://wtop.com/business-finance/2017/10/amtrak-unveils-new-acela-trains/

Congrats to Amtrak as it posts its best financial & ridership performance in its 46-year history!

 

https://www.wsj.com/articles/amtrak-posts-lowest-operating-loss-in-decades-as-ridership-grows-1510793592?platform=hootsuite

 

If airlines & bus companies had to own/lease/maintain/insure much of their rights of way, they wouldn't come near Amtrak's 95% cost recovery.

Congrats to Amtrak as it posts its best financial & ridership performance in its 46-year history!

 

https://www.wsj.com/articles/amtrak-posts-lowest-operating-loss-in-decades-as-ridership-grows-1510793592?platform=hootsuite

 

If airlines & bus companies had to own/lease/maintain/insure much of their rights of way, they wouldn't come near Amtrak's 95% cost recovery.

 

Amtrak intends of cover 100% of its operating costs in future years and they have a good chance of doing it. They will never earn a return on investment, however, which doesn't mean the investment isn't worth it in terms of service and convenience.

 

The 2018 proposed budget for the Federal Railroad Administration is $1.049B; for the Federal Aviation Administration it's $16.126B.  Amtrak could get well on the money the FAA sweeps off the floor on Fridays.

Congrats to Amtrak as it posts its best financial & ridership performance in its 46-year history!

 

https://www.wsj.com/articles/amtrak-posts-lowest-operating-loss-in-decades-as-ridership-grows-1510793592?platform=hootsuite

 

If airlines & bus companies had to own/lease/maintain/insure much of their rights of way, they wouldn't come near Amtrak's 95% cost recovery.

 

Amtrak intends of cover 100% of its operating costs in future years and they have a good chance of doing it. They will never earn a return on investment, however, which doesn't mean the investment isn't worth it in terms of service and convenience.

 

The 2018 proposed budget for the Federal Railroad Administration is $1.049B; for the Federal Aviation Administration it's $16.126B.  Amtrak could get well on the money the FAA sweeps off the floor on Fridays.

 

??? Is there a decimal point in the wrong place there?

??? Is there a decimal point in the wrong place there?

 

No. 

cuomo, christie and the port authority step up for their half of the gateway tunnel $$$:

 

 

 

TRANSIT

Gateway Tunnel Program funding deal between Cuomo, Christie puts pressure on Trump

 

By Vincent Barone  [email protected] December 14, 2017

 

 

Govs. Andrew Cuomo and Chris Christie on Thursday committed to pay for about half of a vital new train tunnel under the Hudson River, putting pressure on the Trump administration to fund the rest.

 

The governors announced that they’re budgeting a combined $5.55 billion through various agencies in order to cover half the cost of the Gateway Tunnel Program, a project to replace the 107-year-old Amtrak tunnel under the Hudson River that was badly damaged during superstorm Sandy in 2012.

 

The commitment represents a fulfillment of an Obama-era agreement establishing that the two states would fund half of the project, with the federal government picking up the rest of the tab.

 

 

more:

https://www.amny.com/transit/gateway-tunnel-funding-1.15455694

The third paragraph isn't correct. The project won't replace the existing tunnels. It will augment them by adding two more tunnels and rebuilding the old tunnels. Only near the end does the article report that the existing tunnels are proposed to be rebuilt.

it will be correct if they dont work out what the differences are between the $12.6B, $12.7B and $14.9B estimates, because the new tunnels (and penn south to receive them) need to be built, the old tunnels will have to be taken out of service soon and the sandy repairs won't be funded.

I am thinking of doing a two day train trip from Cleveland to San Fran this spring. Yay or nay?

That's not reporting. It's speculation. It could happen, sure. But such estimations are above a journalist's pay grade.

I am thinking of doing a two day train trip from Cleveland to San Fran this spring. Yay or nay?

 

I took the train from Omaha to Sacramento (bus from Cincy to Omaha and from Sac to SFO). I highly recommend it. The best two portions of the route are Denver to Salt Lake City and Reno to Sacramento. Salt Lake City to Reno is pretty uneventful and mostly overnight. Omaha to Denver is the same. It's pretty comfortable, and I spent most of my time in the observation/dining cars to enjoy the scenery unless I was sleeping. I recommend staking out a spot in the observation car for the eventful portions. I also brought a bottle of bourbon with me. Optional (they do serve drinks on the train, but this was much cheaper, though technically against the rules).

 

I created a series of photos from my trip here if you're interested. It's mostly photos of the cities, but a couple albums are from the train ride: https://www.urbanohio.com/forum/index.php?topic=29325.0

 

The train route I took was the California Zephyr, which is what I imagine you would be taking.

 

Also, it's worth it to break up your trip by actually stopping in a couple cities. I really like Salt Lake City and Denver. Omaha and Sacramento were pretty neat in their own right, though.

That's not reporting. It's speculation. It could happen, sure. But such estimations are above a journalist's pay grade.

 

 

no, its fair to say as its the scenario for the moment. it comes down to the sandy repair costs that are the difference in what they are bickering about (estimated at $1.8B last i read).

 

 

Replacing means getting rid of something old as part of getting something new. At least that's what it means to me. I know what you're saying. The old tunnels would remain mothballed if they can no longer be used and funding doesn't emerge to rebuild them. But no one is going to get rid of them.

 

So how about that Amtrak November!

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2017/12/18/amtrak-train-derails-in-washington-state-blocks-interstate-5.html

 

I'm not a rail expert, some of you are.  What are the chances this had "help" happening?  This is two hits to the US travel infrastructure in as many days, during the busiest travel time of the year.

Really??

^^ In looking at the location on Google Maps, my first guess would be that the train took this curve at too high a speed:

 

https://goo.gl/maps/2aCdLr3BC122

^^ In looking at the location on Google Maps, my first guess would be that the train took this curve at too high a speed:

 

https://goo.gl/maps/2aCdLr3BC122

18mph on a freshly rebuilt ($800 million) track from what I understand.

Really??

 

The timing and the location means it should at least be considered.....

^^ I had read 81 MPH according to Amtrak's online tracker, but who knows if that was accurate or live.

 

That said, it is known that radical Islamic terrorists have issued guidance and suggestions that specifically target rail infrastructure (in fact, this line in particular). This is from August:

 

https://pjmedia.com/homeland-security/2017/08/14/al-qaeda-targets-d-c-to-boston-line-hazmat-cargo-trains-in-diy-derailment-guide/

 

The latest issue of al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula's English-language Inspire magazine names Amtrak's D.C. to Boston Acela Express and several other specific passenger rail lines in the United States as prime targets for their new focus on train derailment operations that the group says has been more than a year in the planning stages...

 

Specific U.S. passenger lines discussed in addition to the Acela Express are the Amtrak Cascades in the Pacific Northwest...

Tacoma Transit provided a tweet that suggested there was a collision with a truck on the tracks.

^^ I had read 81 MPH according to Amtrak's online tracker, but who knows if that was accurate or live.

 

That said, it is known that radical Islamic terrorists have issued guidance and suggestions that specifically target rail infrastructure (in fact, this line in particular). This is from August:

 

https://pjmedia.com/homeland-security/2017/08/14/al-qaeda-targets-d-c-to-boston-line-hazmat-cargo-trains-in-diy-derailment-guide/

 

The latest issue of al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula's English-language Inspire magazine names Amtrak's D.C. to Boston Acela Express and several other specific passenger rail lines in the United States as prime targets for their new focus on train derailment operations that the group says has been more than a year in the planning stages...

 

Specific U.S. passenger lines discussed in addition to the Acela Express are the Amtrak Cascades in the Pacific Northwest...

 

Right by a major military base as well.

^^ I had read 81 MPH according to Amtrak's online tracker, but who knows if that was accurate or live.

 

That said, it is known that radical Islamic terrorists have issued guidance and suggestions that specifically target rail infrastructure (in fact, this line in particular). This is from August:

 

https://pjmedia.com/homeland-security/2017/08/14/al-qaeda-targets-d-c-to-boston-line-hazmat-cargo-trains-in-diy-derailment-guide/

 

The latest issue of al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula's English-language Inspire magazine names Amtrak's D.C. to Boston Acela Express and several other specific passenger rail lines in the United States as prime targets for their new focus on train derailment operations that the group says has been more than a year in the planning stages...

 

Specific U.S. passenger lines discussed in addition to the Acela Express are the Amtrak Cascades in the Pacific Northwest...

 

Right by a major military base as well.

 

Let's let the investigation occur before speculation and conclusions are drawn.  We've had enough of that in the media and from politicians about lots of topics.

 

Seems initially to be a general safety concern about this project.  The mayor of the town just north of this location made a dire warning about this line and its safety.  Day 1 of line operation=deadly accident.

 

This is the inaugural run for this line so an accident on day 1 is bizarre. Could be another north Philly type accident; heading into a curve too fast.  Who knows.  Let the NTSB do its work.

 

Sad and tragic. 

Some more speculation:

 

Object on tracks may be cause of deadly Amtrak derailment

 

https://nypost.com/2017/12/18/object-on-tracks-may-be-cause-of-deadly-amtrak-derailment/

 

Monday’s deadly Amtrak train derailment appears to have been caused by an object on the railway, according to a government official briefed on the crash.

 

A preliminary investigation suggests maintenance problems are unlikely to blame because the incident took place on brand-new tracks, the official told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity.

According to http://www.startsandfits.com/RailMaps/USRailMap.html, Cleveland's Amtrak boardings for 2017 were 53,528 up 12% from 47,757 the year before and the highest number since the list began in 2003.  I'm not sure how the data is compiled since 2017 isn't over; but that's what it shows. 

Amtrak's fiscal year is the same as the federal fiscal year--Oct. 1 to Sept. 30.

https://itineranturbanist.wordpress.com/2017/12/18/what-we-know-about-amtrak-501/

Remember when people were taking trump's desire to invest in infrastructure seriously?

 

http://www.crainsnewyork.com/article/20171229/POLITICS/171229921/trump-administration-kills-gateway-tunnel-deal

You would think he would want to build physical structures given his history building skyscrapers. However, his ignorance of public policy combined with his general laziness means he defers to traditional 'swamp' Republicans on all actual matters while he runs around trashing the media and campaigning.