It has been a while since I could go anywhere. We are planning trip to NY from Houston and may drive to New Orleans to catch the Crescent ( due to the Sunset being so late the last time I took). What is the latest on the Sunset being on time? And is the Crescent still the most fabulous train with a beautiful diner and great car attendants? Thanks! Becki
Posted by jmarch (Member # 2953) on :
from everything I've ever heard about the Sunset Limited, it's chronically late. I just took that line from New Orleans to Orlando and we got there 10 hours late......
Posted by CG96 (Member # 1408) on :
The route that the Sunset takes across TX, NM, and AZ is very crowded with rail freight traffic, and that congestion, coupled with a certain freight RR company's known hostility towards Amtrak's presence on its' tracks, combine to make the Sunset one of the most chronically late trains in the AMTK system. It really is a dissapointment, as the Sunset covers parts of the US that will continue to have large rates of population growth in the future. if anything, one would want this train to be punctual, if only to show folks in our car culture that trains can be a valid choice in the transport or travel market place.
Just to reiterate, the level of freight traffic on the Sunset's route can make timekeeping for that train a serious challenge, as the line has approached capacity in the past several years.