Passenger Trains > Railway Age Article - "Amtrak 2025: The Rest of the Story"

Railway Age came out with "the rest of the story" on Amtrak's touted success in performance for FY2025 - "Amtrak: A Year of Records." They go on to analyze ridership from points in time from 2008 to 2025, pre-COVID to post-COVID, etc. They also concentrate on the Empire Builder's blatant "sabotage" for lack of a better term - providing a number of examples that hurt ridership and the train's general operation/performance. Removal of the second Seattle coach during Amtrak's peak month of operation - August - and then never restoring it.

"The Rest of the Story" is basically how Amtrak is NEC-centric, while stalling to make any substantive improvements to "the rest of Amtrak's service." Meanwhile the later is Amtrak's face for the rest of the country!!! Good article. 
 
https://www.railwayage.com/passenger/intercity/amtrak-2025-the-rest-of-the-story/?utm_source=&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=55175

NEC types have long had the mindset that they are the only ones doing the real railroading, and
anyone beyond Harrisburg or not under wire is just a bunch of lazy dolts wandering around in cornfields.

That was a good article on the rest of the story.
Waiting to catch a Lincoln service train to Chicago and jump on the Empire Builder.
Joe

Take another look at the ridership figures I posted (11-23, 7:36) and
you will see that there is definitely "The Rest of the Story" to consider.

No one doubts the great news that Amtrak is setting ridership records
again--I know I am thrilled.

But, the figures show that the Western Long haul trains are not contributing
to this growth--nor, are some short-haul trains, like Chicago-Milwaukee.

They also show that the NEC Regionals are going Gangbusters (But, Not Acela).

All this doesn't diminish Amtrak's record ridership--it just makes it more clear.
I think this is what Railway Age is pointing out.
 



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/03/25 06:53 by ronald321.

PumpkinHogger Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> NEC types have long had the mindset that they are
> the only ones doing the real railroading, and
> anyone beyond Harrisburg or not under wire is just
> a bunch of lazy dolts wandering around in
> cornfields.

I’m dead.

Regards

Posted from iPhone

PumpkinHogger Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> NEC types have long had the mindset that they are
> the only ones doing the real railroading, and
> anyone beyond Harrisburg or not under wire is just
> a bunch of lazy dolts wandering around in
> cornfields.

I B&O colleague who went to Amtrak the day I went to SP observed that Amtrak was being run by The Standard Railway of the Wrold according to the principles of The Standard Railway of the World, and that anything else was wrong and unacceptable.

TAW

That makes sense, Spatch. And we all know what happened to the Standard Railroad of The World.

Regards

Posted from iPhone

And the LD’s, and any thing west of Pennsylvania really, get the message. We is out here in the sticks; with one train each way a day, at 1:30 AM and 2:45 AM, using LD equipment that is not maintained very well that is approaching 50 years old, pulled by locomotives that have earned the nickname “Edsels”, at carded speeds slower than the early 1980’s on schedules on par with the 1890’s.

Amjoke DID buy a bunch of new baggage cars, for baggage and express service they have discontinued or greatly reduced.

But Amjoke IS increasing their prices, lowering service and showing greater margins. What’s the problem? The Foamers and retirees love us, we get you there most of the time and sometimes even around the time we said we would.

The general public? Serving them takes money, time, talent, experience and desire. Rome wasn’t built in a day and getting the “Trains worth riding again” is going to take a while longer; just wait, it’ll be great. 👍

Edit: tongue firmly in cheek.

Regards

Posted from iPhone



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/03/25 11:06 by Drknow.

And qualify that further. According to the practices of The Standard Railroad of the World - east of Pittsburgh.

In his excellent book "The Pennsy in Chicago", Ed DeRouin points out how little managers in Philly thought about the western end of the system, and the very condescending attitude they had toward it. And how stingy they were towards it financially. Despite being very revenue-rich. One ex-PRR guy from HQ in Philadelphia whom I knew once called it "bow and arrow country", with a completely condescending attitude. Nothing west of the Alleghenies mattered to him...no wait, maybe west of Harrisburg. Pennsy fan that I am, I was shocked at the time. But that conversation broke through in my consciousness. Ever after, I saw time after time many examples of the same kind of damaging arrogance and condescension. On the freight side. But especially on the passenger side. Including as it infiltrated into Amtrak. Sad to say.

MC

Posted from Android

Over the years, many thoughtful people, including many at Amtrak, have suggested it might work better were it not based in Washington DC but rather Chicago, or STL or somewhere else.  If you take the view that some have, that Washington pollutes everything that it touches, Chicago probably would be a better location.  At least walking through Union Station now and then and seeing trains bound for places like Dallas, Portland or Seattle might register.  Washington, for better or worse, tends to be a self-contained world and feedback cycle.

This is not unique to Amtrak.  Many people have commented that Via Rail might have worked a bit better were it not in Montreal with almost a singular focus on their corridors.

 

Didn't Pennsylvania Railroad actually have a term for lines west of Pittsburgh?  They called it Lines West.  

There are benefits to being far away from 16th and Arch...

I do think Railway Age did a good job with this particular article. Good examples. It definitely put a different perspective on things that many here already know, or have considered. The ridership numbers at present lack the context/perspective of where certain business lines, or train lines, were, and how much the Acela Express brand is being eroded away. As much as I don't want to drink the Kool Aid that Amtrak management is ignoring and even stifling LD growth/opportunity, it's pretty clear that they are not trying to advance "what they are stuck with." That seems to be the mindset at least. 

ironmtn Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> One
> ex-PRR guy from HQ in Philadelphia whom I knew
> once called it "bow and arrow country", with a
> completely condescending attitude.

That's actually a funny quip.

If you live outside of the Northeast, send this article to your represenatives in DC, your senators and cogressperson.  They need to know what is going on.

My other half works part-time for the USPS as a "rural carrier assistant," mostly for fun.  I can tell you that as bad as we think the USPS may be, from what he tells me, the operation is far better than Amtrak.  Employees generally care, and the clerks are competent.  There are some bad apples, and the union protects them.  But my broad point is that they at least try.  Amtrak does not even try once you get west of Albany and Harrisburg.  

It is sad, honestly.  So much potential, but with no leadership or vision, this is all we are going to get.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/03/25 17:41 by Chessie1963.

Good and well written article.    Hopefully it will have legs beyond preaching to the choir.