Passenger Trains > Oklahoma funds Heartland Flyer to end of 2026

 Oklahoma ensures Heartland Flyer to operate through end of 2026 

They have enough money to fund the train until then 
despite Texas backing out.

Oklahoma is OK.

https://www.trains.com/pro/passenger/intercity/oklahoma-ensures-heartland-flyer-to-operate-through-end-of-2026/
 



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 05/01/26 08:50 by GenePoon.

This train seems to have Nine Lives.

Good.  The  train  sgould   go  north   to Newton/ Kansas  City. 

          Newton, Kansas City ?? Probably so. The current Ks governor would buy 20 engines and 50 cars just for that 5 or 6 people to go all the way to Kansas City.....twice a year.          

I am sure there is a LD market to KC from Texas and Oklahoma. But if it serves Newton in the middle of the night and terminates there, it won't work for connections with trains 3 & 4. It'll be another Pittsburgh situation with the Floridian/Capitol Ltd and Pennsylvanian, which is down to a captive audience of mostly Amish. They killed the Broadway Ltd market. Sending the Flyer to Newton won't re-capture the Texas Chief market.

If it goes beyond 750 miles, it's on Amtrak, not the states



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 05/01/26 13:05 by joemvcnj.

Ive always thought it should go north to KC then all the way to Minneapolis via Des Moines on the Spine Line or via Omaha on the BNSF and UP. Public transportation between Kansas City and Minneapolis is a very neglected corridor. 

Tom Loftus
Omaha, NE

who would be the target market?

That sucks Texas had to do this, but anyone remember Mineta's crappy Dog and Pony Show when he claimed States should subsidize LD Trains and if one state refuses the train should just keep going? This shows why it'll never work and the ridership I bet on 822/821 is pretty solid besides also a great connection with 21 and 22! BTW that's why I didn't like that so called "expansion' Map Amtrak put online a few years ago, all corridorts and no LD Trains, this situation with Texas shows why it'll never happen by 2035!

Not sure how to solve this, but the Heartland Flyer needs to connect with the Texas Eagle, in the south at Fort Worth, but then also should extend to Kansas City, despite missing connections with 3 and 4 AND having an overnight schedule if it is to "connect." Course, the good old days is when the Texas Eagle also split a section and had it run to Houston, which I doubt the Heartland Flyer could also do. Course, that's also relying on the fact that the Heartland Flyer does provide a meaningful connection to the Texas Eagle. So much of Amtrak inter-connectivity has been lost nationally, so not advocating for another "miss." The lack of a Broadway Limited/Three Rivers from NYP/Philly to Chicago via Pittsburgh OR through cars between Pennsylvanian and Floridian at Pittsburgh should not be repeated.....