Passenger Trains > Amtrak Service Adjustments for Winter Storm Cora

From Amtrak:

Service Adjustments for Winter Storm CoraJanuary 09, 2025 8:20 AMWe are closely monitoring severe weather conditions across the country, which are forecasted for the remainder of the week and may cause additional cancellations or delays to our services. We are committed to providing you with up-to-date information and are actively planning to minimize any potential service disruptions. Please stay tuned for updates via Amtrak's mobile app, text, email, or by checking Amtrak.com for train status. Your understanding and cooperation are greatly appreciated as we navigate these weather challenges together.For the safety of Amtrak customers and employees, due to forecasted winter weather, the following adjustments have been made with no alternative transportation being offered:Thursday, January 9Heartland Flyer (Operating between Fort Worth and TX Oklahoma City, OK):

• Train 822 is cancelled.

City of New Orleans (Operating between Chicago, IL and New Orleans, LA):

• Train 59 is cancelled.

Texas Eagle (Operating between Chicago, IL and San Antonio, TX):

• Train 22 is cancelled between San Antonio and St. Louis.
• Train 21 is cancelled between St. Louis and San Antonio.

Friday, January 10Heartland Flyer (Operating between Fort Worth and TX Oklahoma City, OK):

• Train 821 is cancelled.

City of New Orleans (Operating between Chicago, IL and New Orleans, LA):

• Train 58 is cancelled.
• Train 59 is cancelled. 

Texas Eagle (Operating between Chicago, IL and San Antonio, TX):

• Train 22 is canceled between San Antonio and St. Louis. 

Saturday, January 11City of New Orleans (Operating between Chicago, IL and New Orleans, LA):

• Train 58 is cancelled. 

Customers with reservations on affected trains will typically be accommodated on trains with similar departure times or another day. Amtrak will waive additional charges for customers looking to change their reservation during the modified schedule by calling our reservation center at 1-800-USA-RAIL. Follow us on X for real-time service information:
• @AmtrakNECAlerts for service information in the Northeast Corridor (Acela, Northeast Regional, and other corridor services).
• @AmtrakAlerts for service information outside the Northeast Corridor.
Subscribe at Amtrak.com/DelayAlerts to receive automated email or text message notifications if Amtrak trains are behind schedule at specific stations.
This information is correct as of the time and date above. Information is subject to change as conditions warrant. https://bcp.crwdcntrl.net/5/c=931/b=98414022https://bcp.crwdcntrl.net/5/c=931/b=91269200https://bcp.crwdcntrl.net/5/c=931/b=98413962https://secure.adnxs.com/px?id=1628892&t=2 https://insight.adsrvr.org/track/pxl/?adv=fexpdsw&ct=0:0hxse7x&fmt=3

Top bad they can't commit to running reliable transportation.

And winter storm names?? Give me a break. What's next? Naming thunderstorms? Actually, that could be fun if they let people vote on the names.

Posted from Android

P Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Top bad they can't commit to running reliable
> transportation.
>
> And winter storm names?? Give me a break. What's
> next? Naming thunderstorms? Actually, that
> could be fun if they let people vote on the names.
>
>
> Posted from Android

Well considering that it's the Weather Channel that names the storms, go complain to them. Maybe if you pay them enough they'll let you pick the names.

PHall Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> P Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Top bad they can't commit to running reliable
> > transportation.
> >
> > And winter storm names?? Give me a break.
> What's
> > next? Naming thunderstorms? Actually, that
> > could be fun if they let people vote on the
> names.
> >
> >
> > Posted from Android
>
> Well considering that it's the Weather Channel
> that names the storms, go complain to them. Maybe
> if you pay them enough they'll let you pick the
> names.

Maybe Amtrak can buy naming rights for these storms. Great advertising for a storm where they can’t run a railroad for a storm named after them

Posted from iPhone

P Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Top bad they can't commit to running reliable
> transportation.
Ah, but remember, "Our trains use less energy........"
Yes, and much less energy when they are "Service Adjusted.'

Think of the possibilities of naming storms by Amtrak.  Montana Blast.  California Crunch.  West Virginia Wipe-out.  Midwestern monolith.  

OR

(have some fun.........)   Just like photos looking for caption on TO.  Name your storm!

DutchDragon Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> From Amtrak:
>
> Service Adjustments for Winter Storm CoraJanuary
> 09, 2025 8:20 AMWe are closely monitoring severe
> weather conditions across the country, which are
> forecasted for the remainder of the week and may
> cause additional cancellations or delays to our
> services. We are committed to providing you with
> up-to-date information and are actively planning
> to minimize any potential service disruptions.
> Please stay tuned for updates via Amtrak's mobile
> app, text, email, or by checking Amtrak.com for
> train status. Your understanding and cooperation
> are greatly appreciated as we navigate these
> weather challenges together.For the safety of
> Amtrak customers and employees, due to forecasted
> winter weather, the following adjustments have
> been made with no alternative transportation being
> offered:Thursday, January 9Heartland Flyer
> (Operating between Fort Worth and TX Oklahoma
> City, OK):
>
> [*]Train 822 is cancelled.
>
> City of New Orleans (Operating between Chicago, IL
> and New Orleans, LA):
>
> [*]Train 59 is cancelled.
>
> Texas Eagle (Operating between Chicago, IL and San
> Antonio, TX):
>
> [*]Train 22 is cancelled between San Antonio and
> St. Louis.
> [*]Train 21 is cancelled between St. Louis and San
> Antonio.
>
> Friday, January 10Heartland Flyer (Operating
> between Fort Worth and TX Oklahoma City, OK):
>
> [*]Train 821 is cancelled.
>
> City of New Orleans (Operating between Chicago, IL
> and New Orleans, LA):
>
> [*]Train 58 is cancelled.
> [*]Train 59 is cancelled. 
>
> Texas Eagle (Operating between Chicago, IL and San
> Antonio, TX):
>
> [*]Train 22 is canceled between San Antonio and
> St. Louis. 
>
> Saturday, January 11City of New Orleans (Operating
> between Chicago, IL and New Orleans, LA):
>
> [*]Train 58 is cancelled. 
>
> Customers with reservations on affected trains
> will typically be accommodated on trains with
> similar departure times or another day. Amtrak
> will waive additional charges for customers
> looking to change their reservation during the
> modified schedule by calling our reservation
> center at 1-800-USA-RAIL. Follow us on X for
> real-time service information:
> • @AmtrakNECAlerts for service information in
> the Northeast Corridor (Acela, Northeast Regional,
> and other corridor services).
> • @AmtrakAlerts for service information outside
> the Northeast Corridor.
> Subscribe at Amtrak.com/DelayAlerts to receive
> automated email or text message notifications if
> Amtrak trains are behind schedule at specific
> stations.
> This information is correct as of the time and
> date above. Information is subject to change as
> conditions
> warrant. https://bcp.crwdcntrl.net/5/c=931/b=9841
> 4022https://bcp.crwdcntrl.net/5/c=931/b=91269200ht
> tps://bcp.crwdcntrl.net/5/c=931/b=98413962https://
> secure.adnxs.com/px?id=1628892&t=2
> https://insight.adsrvr.org/track/pxl/?adv=fexpdsw&
> ct=0:0hxse7x&fmt=3

Minimizing service disruptions? Yeah right!

Posted from Android

MEKoch Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Think of the possibilities of naming storms by
> Amtrak.  Montana Blast.  California Crunch. 
> West Virginia Wipe-out.  Midwestern
> monolith.  
>
> OR
>
> (have some fun.........)   Just like photos
> looking for caption on TO.  Name your storm!

Those sound like bad sports teams! 😆

Meanwhile, in colder, sometimes harsher weather up north, VIA keeps on running.

41 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> MEKoch Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Think of the possibilities of naming storms by
> > Amtrak.  Montana Blast.  California Crunch. 
> > West Virginia Wipe-out.  Midwestern
> > monolith.  
> >
> > OR
> >
> > (have some fun.........)   Just like photos
> > looking for caption on TO.  Name your storm!
>
> Those sound like bad sports teams! 😆

You need to check out the names of some Minor League Baseball Teams then. 

coach Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Meanwhile, in colder, sometimes harsher weather up
> north, VIA keeps on running.

You mean where they are used to snow, ice storms are minimal, and switch heaters are standard equipment.

Who would have actually thunk it!?!?!?  They are actually able to cope with normal conditions for their environment!!!!  Oh My God!!!!

Just think how Memphis would deal with snow if they regualarly got it!  Or Mississippi!  But guess what?  They don't invest in equipment to deal with weather conditions that are rare exceptions.

It's absolutely astounding!

Mary McPherson
Dongola, IL
Diverging Clear Productions

coach Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Meanwhile, in colder, sometimes harsher weather up
> north, VIA keeps on running.

But with a quite a bit of red on their map on Transitdocs. As has been the case for quite a few recent days. As of 7:42 PM ET today 1/10/25, 50% of VIA's trains were running late. On the the Corridor routes west of Montreal through Toronto to Windsor and Sarnia, 10 of 18 trains are late.

That compares to 88 out of 124 Amtrak trains operating in an On Time status. 28.8% of Amtrak's trains are late, as compared to 50% of VIA's at that time.

Some Corridor trains are now operating with VIA's new Siemens Charger locomotives. I have no way to correlate the trains that are struggling with schedules with whether those are also trains running with Chargers. But it does leave one to wonder if the Chargers are not causing delays, as they have so often for Amtrak. And in any case, it shows that VIA is having its struggles with winter as well.

Which is not to excuse either VIA nor Amtrak. Both should be more reliable and more timely in winter weather. They should both be the reasonably reliable all-weather transportation option in all but the most severe conditions, a service standard I have espoused here on TO many times in the past.

Just as was once the case here in the US, and for CN and CP and VIA in Canada. Once upon a winter's day, not so long ago.....

MC



Edited 4 time(s). Last edit at 01/10/25 17:05 by ironmtn.

---

ironmtn Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> coach Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Meanwhile, in colder, sometimes harsher weather
> up
> > north, VIA keeps on running.
>
> But with a quite a bit of red on their map on
> Transitdocs. As has been the case for quite a few
> recent days. As of 7:42 PM ET today 1/10/25, 50%
> of VIA's trains were running late. On the the
> Corridor routes west of Montreal through Toronto
> to Windsor and Sarnia, 10 of 18 trains are late.
>
> That compares to 88 out of 124 Amtrak trains
> operating in an On Time status. 28.8% of Amtrak's
> trains are late, as compared to 50% of VIA's at
> that time.
>
> Some Corridor trains are now operating with VIA's
> new Siemens Charger locomotives. I have no way to
> correlate the trains that are struggling with
> schedules with whether those are also trains
> running with Chargers. But it does leave one to
> wonder if the Chargers are not causing delays, as
> they have so often for Amtrak. And in any case, it
> shows that VIA is having its struggles with winter
> as well.
>
> Which is not to excuse either VIA nor Amtrak. Both
> should be more reliable and more timely in winter
> weather. They should both be the reasonably
> reliable all-weather transportation option in all
> but the most severe conditions, a service standard
> I have espoused here on TO many times in the
> past.
>
> Just as was once the case here in the US, and for
> CN and CP and VIA in Canada. Once upon a winter's
> day, not so long ago.....
>
> MC

Also Via has speed restrictions over grade crossings for the Chargers too, so that's a built in delay on every trip.

PHall Wrote:
>
> Also Via has speed restrictions over grade
> crossings for the Chargers too, so that's a built
> in delay on every trip.

And you are correct about that. I had read articles about CN's restrictions in relation to concern over loss of shunt for signalling with Venture trainsets, but forgot to mention that as a factor. So now with the new Venture cars, VIA has also been affected by the same "loss of shunt" concerns by CN that have affected Amtrak on some routes, particularly the CN ex-IC Chicago - Carbondale line. And with that concern came the need to add additional axles. In the case of VIA, a 32-axle requirement. But apparently not one related to weight and use of only heavier Superliner cars for shunt-assurance purposes, as for Amtrak on the ex-IC CN line between Chicago and Carbondale. In either case, it's really very unfortunate.

Some articles on the new application of these restrictions on VIA Venture equipment from Trains News Wire. Usually no subscription required.

Oct. 17, 2024 -- https://www.trains.com/trn/news-reviews/news-wire/via-venture-slowdown-limited-to-cn-maintained-track-analysis/
Oct. 30, 2024 - https://www.trains.com/trn/news-reviews/news-wire/via-retains-existing-venture-schedules-despite-delays/
Nov. 13, 2024 - https://www.trains.com/trn/news-reviews/news-wire/via-goes-to-court-over-cn-speed-restrictions-on-venture-trainsets/

MC



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/11/25 13:31 by ironmtn.

So every time it simply snows that’s severe weather. How often did IC cancel the CONO or Panama?

filmteknik Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> So every time it simply snows that’s severe
> weather. How often did IC cancel the CONO or
> Panama?

Why, back in my day, we walked to school uphill 5 miles both ways. In the morning we walked through 3 feet of snow. In the afternoon it was 120 degrees.

Yes, walking through the scary, dark woods with a big mean wolf stalking you!

longliveSP Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> filmteknik Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > So every time it simply snows that’s severe
> > weather. How often did IC cancel the CONO or
> > Panama?
>
> Why, back in my day, we walked to school uphill 5
> miles both ways. In the morning we walked through
> 3 feet of snow. In the afternoon it was 120
> degrees.

PaTrainFan Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Yes, walking through the scary, dark woods with a
> big mean wolf stalking you!

Hey there Little Red Riding Hood, man you sure are looking good........

Mary McPherson
Dongola, IL
Diverging Clear Productions

https://www.angelfire.com/il2/grimm/redhood.mp3