Passenger Trains > Track Work Affects Palmetto Service May 9-20

Track Work Affects Palmetto Service

Effective May 9 - 20, 2022

Due to track work being performed by CSX, Palmetto schedules will be impacted on Monday through Friday, May 9 through 20, as outlined below.
Schedule times listed on Amtrak.com have been updated to reflect these changes.Monday - Thursday, May 9 - 12 and 16 - 19

• Train 89 and 90 are canceled with no alternate transportation provided.
•  
• Passengers may book alternate dates of travel or use other Amtrak services.

Friday, May 13 and 20

Train 89, which normally operates between New York and Savannah, will operate on an adjusted schedule between Washington, DC, and Savannah, as outlined below.

• Departs Washington, DC, at 10:45 am, 45 minutes later than normal.
•  
• Departs Richmond Staples Mill at 3:19 pm, 3 hours later than normal.
•  
• Scheduled to depart all stations between Fayetteville and Savannah 210 minutes later than normal on the affected dates.
•  

Train 90, which normally operates between Savannah and New York, will operate on an adjusted schedule between Savannah and Washington, DC, as outlined below.

• Departs Savannah at 6:15 am, 80 minutes earlier than normal.
•  
• Departs Richmond Staples Mill at 4:01 pm, 40 minutes earlier than normal.
•  
• Departs Washington, DC, at the normal scheduled departure time of 7:10 pm.
•  

Trains 89 and 90 will operate normally on Saturday and Sunday, May 14 - 15.



"Uh, let's see.   I was supposed to leave from Wherever, at Whatever Time, what's 210 minutes later than that??????  I'll look at the TIMETABLE!!    WHAT?  There ISN'T ONE???!!!  I gotta go through the whole 'look up to book' process????""



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 05/10/22 10:57 by GenePoon.

"...use other Amtrak services."  Such as...?????
" 210 minutes" -  Is that the same as three hours and thirty minutes?   
Question - If trackwork is being performed between Selma-Smithfield
and Savannah, then is it possible to detour 89/90 via Raleigh?

 

GenePoon Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------

>
> "Uh, let's see.   I was supposed to leave from
> Wherever, at Whatever Time, what's 210 minutes
> later than that??????  I'll look at the
> TIMETABLE!!    WHAT?  There ISN'T ONE???!!! 
> I gotta go through the whole 'look up to book'
> process????""

PDF timetables for any train and date can be generated and printed on Amtrak.com.  No need to start a dummy booking.  The May 13 timetable for Train 89 shows the adjusted times at every station.

 

prr60 Wrote:
---------------------------------------
>
> PDF timetables for any train and date can be
> generated and printed on Amtrak.com.  No need to
> start a dummy booking.  The May 13 timetable for
> Train 89 shows the adjusted times at every

YOU know that. Does Joe Average Amtrak Passenger?

If Amtrak is notifying passengers individually with a personalized itinerary change, it could work out once the passenger gets past the "210 minutes later" shock. Although, if Amtrak is relying on Internet notifications there are going to be people arriving at stations at the wrong time.

It is somewhat of a quandary.

prr60 Wrote in part:

> PDF timetables for any train and date can be
> generated and printed on Amtrak.com.  No need to
> start a dummy booking.  The May 13 timetable for
> Train 89 shows the adjusted times at every
> station.
>
>  
Could you please share with us how to generate and printout out a complete end-to-end PDF timetable for a given route. All I've come across is a panel that shows 10 stations at a time.

Thank you

WP17

WP17 - Well, at least you're having better luck than I am. I tried getting a schedule
for 89/90, but instead, got a message - " A portion of your trip is unavailable - try again."

Anyway, so if I'm reading correctly, 89 will arrive Savannah "210 minutes later" 
which means at or just after midnight, and then 90 leaves "earlier" at 6:15 a.m.
Question - Is that enough time for a "turnaround" and servicing of equipment?
Seems like a tight schedule.

WP17 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------

> Could you please share with us how to generate and
> printout out a complete end-to-end PDF timetable
> for a given route. All I've come across is a panel
> that shows 10 stations at a time.
>
> Thank you
>
> WP17

• Go to Amtrak.com, click the "Schedules" tab, enter the from and to stations and the date of travel.  Click "Find Schedules."
• The next screen will show the train options. Click the one you want.
• Next to the departure date, there is an icon with nine boxes. Click that icon. Select "Print Selected Train."  A PDF with arrive/depart times for all stations is generated.

Do that for NYP-SAV, May 13, Train 89, and the schedule generated reflects the track work schedule.  Clunky?  Yes. But, it's something.
 

Yup, but you have to know that "nine button" option is there. 

Here are the results for Alexandria-Petersburg on Friday. 

 

Paul Wilson
Arlington, VA

---

Sheesh no wonder people simply give up and opt to fly.

Also note that due to the service disruption the running time for the Palmetto is substantially increased on the affected days. Perhaps the way it is "announced" is designed to conceal that either the train is going to be running really slowly and stopping in between stations a lot, or standing still (it looks like, at Richmond VA) for an extended time.

prr60 Wrote in part:
-------------------------------------------------------

• Go to Amtrak.com, click the "Schedules" tab,
  > enter the from and to stations and the date of
  > travel.  Click "Find Schedules."
  >
• The next screen will show the train options.
  > Click the one you want.
  >
• Next to the departure date, there is an icon
  > with nine boxes. Click that icon. Select "Print
  > Selected Train."  A PDF with arrive/depart times
  > for all stations is generated.
  >
  > Do that for NYP-SAV, May 13, Train 89, and the
  > schedule generated reflects the track work
  > schedule.  Clunky?  Yes. But, it's something.
  >  
  Amazing, it does produce a full schedule with additional train features detail. And even more amazing if you have a connection, it will produce schedules for each segment of your trip.  it's actually a pretty good feature but whoever designed the page violated a cardinal rule of User Interface design by hiding the feature so no one (with the exception of you) would ever find it.  
  I've worked for many years in the User Experience world and it's clear whoever designed never did any user testing:-(
  
  WP17

> possible to detour 89/90 via Raleigh?

Not only is it possible, it has been done. I have ridden 90 when it detoured Dillon-Hamlet-Raleigh-Selma. However, this is considerably slower than the usual route. 

I still don't have much faith in today's Amtrak, train cancelation for day 1 with no alternate service really tells me Gardner and Co. could care less, cancel a train and screw the passengers!