Passenger Trains > Amtrak National Timetable no longer able to down load

The PDF issue of the Amtrak National Timetable has been removed.  Last issue  had a June 2018 date.

Been missing for two days now from Amtrak site.

mundo Wrote:
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> The PDF issue of the Amtrak National Timetable has
> been removed.  Last issue  had a June 2018
> date.
>
> Been missing for two days now from Amtrak site.

If there's no trains there's no need for a timetable....looks like Anderson has won. 

engineerinvirginia Wrote:
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> If there's no trains there's no need for a
> timetable....looks like Anderson has won. 

Might be a little too early for that conclusion, but so noted. In the future, you might be correct in hindsight.

Maybe Gardner is busy arguing with "railfans" and Boardman on Railway Age, and forgot the tasks at hand. This looks more like Amtrak mismanagement. IT staff blunder? Managers simply "forgot?" Lots of possibilities.

To be fair, it took them over a month to put a Nov 12 NEC-1 schedule pdf up, despite the prior one having many contradictions with NEC-2, while it was posted on Nov 12.. 

Inattentiveness to details, what they see as redundancy, and a low priority, given the panel schedules, though much system information goes missing. If it doesn't come back, add it to Amtrak's publishing graveyard along with long distance Performance Improvement Plans and passenger miles metric missing from monthly reports.

All amounts to Anderson-Gardner virtual book-burning. That is how stupid dictators operate. 



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 01/12/19 06:01 by joemvcnj.

We haven't heard much from Anderson lately, it seems.

sums007 Wrote:
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> We haven't heard much from Anderson lately, it seems.

He avoids the press/media as though they improperly emerged from hospital quarantine, and he hasn't produced any hit-and-run Powerpoint shows lately, so why would he be heard from. He's in his bunker. 

Any chance that one of our TO brothers/sisters has the tools needed to print out a hard copy version of what used to be called " Amtrak System Timetable" ?? I'd gladly help underwrite the costs as my Winter-Spring 2016 edition is falling apart and being held together by lots of Scotch tape. I use it frequently to plan my trips and sure would welcome a new edition.

   With my very limited computer skills and old fashioned flip phone ( I refuse to become another " smart" phone addict I find myself depending on my now outdated timetable.

   Any help will be most welcome. Thanks, Ross Rowland

I have one in good shape, but it would cost a fortune to reproduce at Staples. I have had them spiral-bind a few books over the years as the binding glue dried up, but they managed to screw up inserting some pages upside down each time anyway. 

Joe, Could I go to my local Staples and have them go online and get all the pages that constitute the current " System Timetable" and print them out and bind them together using my 2016 version as a template so they get the pages in proper order/sequence??  If that's possible that's what I'll do. Please advise.

   Thanks, Ross Rowland

co614 Wrote:
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> Joe, Could I go to my local Staples and have them
> go online and get all the pages that constitute
> the current " System Timetable" and print them out
> and bind them together using my 2016 version as a
> template so they get the pages in proper
> order/sequence??  If that's possible that's what
> I'll do. Please advise.
>
>    Thanks, Ross Rowland

I don't know if they do that or not. I have only simply walked in with hard-copies of books. 
There are also a lot of pages in the system timetable that do not exist anywhere on the the panel schedules, like Station Directory, Glossary of Amtrak Services, and Travel Information pages. 

3rd world. Not just Amtrak.

co614 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Joe, Could I go to my local Staples and have them
> go online and get all the pages that constitute
> the current " System Timetable" and print them out
> and bind them together using my 2016 version as a
> template so they get the pages in proper
> order/sequence??  If that's possible that's what
> I'll do. Please advise.
>
>    Thanks, Ross Rowland

I just looked to see if I had the latest full timetable download and for some reason I can only find a 2017 national TT copy and that's not the last one that was done. Let me see if I can find anything in my download history that has the most recent Amtrak TT copy - that's what you are looking for Ross right? 

Most rail fans have the schedules completely memorized so this shouldn’t be too much of a burden. Not too difficult with the lack of changes in the last 30 years.

Posted from iPhone

TWC Wrote:
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> The timetable was taken off the site because it
> was out of date and not being updated. Customers
> are to be told to use the online booking tool at
> Amtrak.com.
>
> Posted from Android

Yes, that's nice, but when you start to try and  add in train connections or figure out alternative options (be it emergency or within a trip) - the print verion was more helpful in piecing together the puzzle, or present other options that the online system is not coming up with. Yes, the online version can give you train connections too, but often I wanted to see it in print to see what I was up against. That's fine if they don't want to print the full timetable and put out on the shelves - that stopped by 2017 (just the "wallet size" was made available on shelves). But at least have a downloadable copy of all routes with services, Thruway Bus connections etc. VIA omitted its printed national schedule for a few years, but they then brought back some sort of print form that could go on the shelf! 

I suspect it is gone because the people who would have kept it up to date are gone too.  Almost everyone in the charters and special movements organization was reassigned or laid off and other departments are probably hit as well.

It seem to be a day's work every few months to pull it togther. A part-time student who likes transportation could do it. 

joemvcnj Wrote:
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> sums007 Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > We haven't heard much from Anderson lately,
> it seems.
>
> He avoids the press/media as though they
> improperly emerged from hospital quarantine, and
> he hasn't produced any hit-and-run Powerpoint
> shows lately, so why would he be heard from. He's
> in his bunker. 
No he apparently has sent out Mr. Gardner, maybe to save face. However Mr. Gardner is not likely to return any time soon either lacking the will to address any of the questions raised by Messrs. Boardman, Singer or Selden.

I wonder if NARP/RPA will respond to this issue.

We are supposed to be able to get one in our internal files to carry in our grips....and the latest we have is six months old so.....and unfortunately TO does not seem to be able to accept PDF's....how quaint....

engineerinvirginia Wrote:
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> We are supposed to be able to get one in our
> internal files to carry in our grips....and the
> latest we have is six months old so.....and
> unfortunately TO does not seem to be able to
> accept PDF's....how quaint....

Be nice if TO could. Then we could also share our hardcopies of the Performance Improvement Plans to counter Amtrak's virtual book burning.