Passenger Trains > West Of Spokane Today

A few unusual happenings with the Empire Builder west of Spokane this morning.

First, number 27 came through Ritzville with 5 cars instead of the usual 4. Looks like a diner, or cross-country cafe deadheading west.

Number 7 has been stopped at Espanola for about an hour, as I write this at 5:45 a.m.  UPDATE: Amtrak blames a disabled freight train.
 



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 07/08/26 06:03 by walstib.

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I wonder if that was the diner that I think was taken off 7 the other day at Minot? I assumed it was taken off there because that train arrived there early and left well over an hour late. I can't figure out why they'd take that diner to Portland, though, unless they are sending it to Los Angeles or Oakland because Seattle can't do additional work that it might need.

I think it was the diner from Minot.

I read (either here or FB) the car had a suspension issue, which was fixed in Minot.

I expected 8 to pick it up, and take it to Chicago. Sending it to Portland raises more questions.

Posted from iPhone

7 just pulled into Seattle at 3:14 p.m., three hours and 45 minutes late. There will be yet-another very late eastbound departure from 8 for Seattle tonight, something that's now becoming a regular occurence. Surely Amtrak must realize that it has to put a sixth set into the Empire builder rotation, at least for the Seattle section, to guarantee on-time departures from Seattle on a regular basis, and things aren't going to get any better operationally on the BNSF now that Berkshire Hathaway is demanding more profit from it. Yes, I know Amtrak supposedly doesn't have the equipment right now, but it should when the shunt problem gets solved and when it finally gets enough Superliners out of Beech Grove. It only takes five Superliners and one baggage car now to build a sixth Seattle section trainset. Even now, just having the in-season Auto Train do without its ninth sleeper would provide the sleepers for that sixth set, and that's assuming there aren't two repairable sleepers at Beech Grove. Taking just one of the current four or five 'non-California-repaired' Superliner coaches now in Pacific Surfliner service would take care of the coach requirement. 

NPRocky Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> 7 just pulled into Seattle at 3:14 p.m., three
> hours and 45 minutes late. There will be
> yet-another very late eastbound departure from 8
> for Seattle tonight, something that's now becoming
> a regular occurence. Surely Amtrak must realize
> that it has to put a sixth set into the Empire
> builder rotation, at least for the Seattle
> section, to guarantee on-time departures from
> Seattle on a regular basis, and things aren't
> going to get any better operationally on the BNSF
> now that Berkshire Hathaway is demanding more
> profit from it. Yes, I know Amtrak supposedly
> doesn't have the equipment right now, but it
> should when the shunt problem gets solved and when
> it finally gets enough Superliners out of Beech
> Grove. It only takes five Superliners and one
> baggage car now to build a sixth Seattle section
> trainset. Even now, just having the in-season Auto
> Train do without its ninth sleeper would provide
> the sleepers for that sixth set, and that's
> assuming there aren't two repairable sleepers at
> Beech Grove. Taking just one of the current four
> or five 'non-California-repaired' Superliner
> coaches now in Pacific Surfliner service would
> take care of the coach requirement. 

Rocky the shunt problem on CN and UP has been going on for like forever now, don't even think that'll ever get resolved anytime soon if ever!



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/09/26 19:23 by ProAmtrak.

Assuming the diner was added to the end of train at Minot, that section goes to Portland. Yeah, they could have played musical cars in Spokane (of Minot) but that would eat a lot of time.
I suspect the diner will go to Seattle on a Cascade, and/or it will just to back to Chicago on #28 and they'll sort it there.

depends on what track in minot it was on perhaps, since 7 set it out,  it was stub track only from the west end, perhaps it could only be easily picked up by a 7 and tacked on the rear, which has the portland cars?