Passenger Trains > Acela Leaves NY Without Boarding Passengers

In a story worthy of Believe It or Not, Saturday's (8/2) Acela #2253, bound from Boston to Washington, departed from New York leaving approximately 200 passengers behind. It seems the boarding passengers had been directed to the wrong platform at NYP. Despite the fact that not one passenger had boarded the train, the Acela departed on time leaving all it's boarding passengers behind and furious. Did the train crew not think it was odd to not have one passenger board, or did they simply not care?

[u]New York Daily News[/u]

They get paid the same whether 200 people board or none board. Actually, if none board it makes their job that much easier.

rfprr

One problem is that for many people railroading is now just a job, not a profession, something you do while you're looking for the job you really want. When I was growing up, we had the same staff at my station for over 30 years. They were professionals. I've been in NM eight years, and we have had five different agents during that time. How do you expect them to know what is going on?

When Amtrak started, there were still people working who had begun in the 1920s. How many people working for Amtrak now started with the private roads?



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/03/14 08:02 by Ptolemy.

Goes to show what I have been saying for the longest time: these station ushers, gate-scanning, and cops blocking stairs in the Exit concourse are by people lacking authority and abilities. It is a combination of management-sanctioned Kindergarten antics and 9/11 theatre.

Had this happened to a LD train, it would not have hit the Daily News. Perhaps management will wake up for this one since it affects Acela frou frou and their image.

Sad situation all around.

I can't imagine Mr Claytor brushing this off with an "oh well, things happen". He'd swing an axe and make sure several people felt some pain. "Not my job" doesn't cut it in a company that it struggling to build revenue in its most profitable line of business.

The operations folks dream come true. Just run a railroad without bothering about pesky customer. We got a full scale model railroad set to play with. What me worry? Juuuust kidding of coure LOL!

But more seriously, what exactly did the Conductors think was happening? Did they bother to ask anyone why there were no passengers? I suppose unless it is written in their contract or in some thick rule book that they must check to see why there are no passengers they will not consider it something that they must do? Sigh....

Why can't boarding be done as in Europe? Platforms are posted for the entire day for God sakes. I just pulled up several schedule alternatives for next month and along with the train times and numbers it shows the platform....4 weeks ahead! Of course things change and if that happens, in plenty of time they announce and post the new platform. Passengers are allowed to wait on the platform as far ahead of train time as they choose as long as they have a valid ticket if its a gated platform. If you board the wrong train it's your fault...not the train companies. Of course I doubt anyone would want to do that in Penn Station's dungeon.

andersonb109 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Why can't boarding be done as in Europe? Platforms
> are posted for the entire day for God sakes. I
> just pulled up several schedule alternatives for
> next month and along with the train times and
> numbers it shows the platform....4 weeks ahead! Of
> course things change and if that happens, in
> plenty of time they announce and post the new
> platform. Passengers are allowed to wait on the
> platform as far ahead of train time as they choose
> as long as they have a valid ticket if its a gated
> platform. If you board the wrong train it's your
> fault...not the train companies. Of course I doubt
> anyone would want to do that in Penn Station's
> dungeon.

The platform situation at NY Penn has always been something of a crap shoot. The practice is not to post exact platform assignments until a few minutes before departure, which always leads to stampedes down the steps or escalators etc. Has happened for decades. Even though the train --almost--always leaves from the same platform.

Sometimes it's a legitimate issue, an incoming train on a track sharing the platform has to offload, so the escalators are reversed. You don't want a full load of outbound Trenton passengers blocking a platform as an incoming train offloads. Or, sometimes a train will be rebadged and that Montclair electric train waiting becomes a Morristown train.

But, much of the time there are two outbound trains waiting at the same platform, and they could be posted 20 minutes earlier. Crews are down there, but it's more convenient to make everyone wait, then rush at the last moment.

Would the crew have a list or at least a count of expected passengers boarding at NYP?

prrmpup Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Would the crew have a list or at least a count of expected passengers boarding at NYP?


Yes.

Each train crew has a manifest which shows the projected "off" and "on" each station at the time it was printed (usually a few hours before origination).
-HG



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 08/03/14 11:25 by hazegray.

How long before someone blames John Mica and the House Republicans for this.

prrmpup Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Would the crew have a list or at least a count of
> expected passengers boarding at NYP?

That's what I was wondering too. The Acela is all-reserved, is it not? So shouldn't the operating crew have known roughly how many passengers were expected to board and thought it odd that no passengers boarded at their busiest station? Has an Acela ever passed through NYP without any passengers boarding?

joemvcnj Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Goes to show what I have been saying for the
> longest time: these station ushers, gate-scanning,
> and cops blocking stairs in the Exit concourse are
> by people lacking authority and abilities.

Not lacking authority. The drones above them all the way to the top,
have given them all the authority.

However, they do lack the abilities and this goes all the way to the top, too.

===============================================




billroland Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> How long before someone blames John Mica and the
> House Republicans for this.


What are you, one of the much-fabled "naysayers" here? Or another "apologist?"

Amtrak did nothing wrong. Sh!t just happens. Live with it.

And we must realize that once the no-fault incident occurred, Amtrak did all they could. The passengers got free Doritos.

<G>

---

billroland Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> How long before someone blames John Mica and the
> House Republicans for this.

Or demands that Amtrak be given more money too cover deficits in the operation.

That particular stunt left $50,000 to $60,000 in revenue on the platform. Figure 200 riders, many bound for DC ($275), or Baltimore ($250), etc.

If somebody stole $50,000 in liquor or food or cash receipts, the company would be all over them (maybe) and insurance would make up the losses. But this is money gone, and probably some kind of additional make-good will be required.



ETA: The comments on the NY Daily News site are scalding. Multiple people should be fired, send them on a local train leaving two hours later?, entitled white management, service has been slipping for years, find an extra Acela, put them on a bus, etc



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/03/14 09:21 by Lackawanna484.

No, this could not possibly have happened, every knows the NEC is perfect, just ask 'em.

doubtful the crew left without making some protest about having no pax, the train director prolly told 'em, "you have a light, let's go."

PumpkinHogger Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> No, this could not possibly have happened, every
> knows the NEC is perfect, just ask 'em.
>
> doubtful the crew left without making some protest
> about having no pax, the train director prolly
> told 'em, "you have a light, let's go."

Nope, crew's in the stew they never got the light.

Have no fear...the lowest-ranking involved will be disciplined. The
higher up the chain, the less the discipline. Those at the top,
responsible for the poor corporate culture, will praise each other
for being prescient and having bags of Doritos available.

</S>

MW4man Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> PumpkinHogger Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > No, this could not possibly have happened,
> every
> > knows the NEC is perfect, just ask 'em.
> >
> > doubtful the crew left without making some
> protest
> > about having no pax, the train director prolly
> > told 'em, "you have a light, let's go."
>
> Nope, crew's in the stew they never got the light.


uh-oh


30th Street station had (has?) a button and light system which allows the conductor downstairs to be in touch with the station usher at the train gate / head of escalator. The conductor pushed a button on a platform column, which alerted the usher to close the escalator to additional passengers. That also alerted the train director to fire the light for train movement, etc. It also eliminated last minute people rushing down the escalator in a futile effort to board the train.

MW4man Wrote:

> Nope, crew's in the stew they never got the light.


Do we know if the light was working as intended?

andersonb109 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Why can't boarding be done as in Europe? Platforms
> are posted for the entire day for God sakes. I
> just pulled up several schedule alternatives for
> next month and along with the train times and
> numbers it shows the platform....4 weeks ahead! Of
> course things change and if that happens, in
> plenty of time they announce and post the new
> platform. Passengers are allowed to wait on the
> platform as far ahead of train time as they choose
> as long as they have a valid ticket if its a gated
> platform. If you board the wrong train it's your
> fault...not the train companies. Of course I doubt
> anyone would want to do that in Penn Station's
> dungeon.

Things change week to week at Penn Station as planned track outages shift about to accommodate the progress of multiple projects. Also, with trains not operating as close to schedule as Europe, attempting to hold platforms constant would be chaotic in the case of late trains.