I've read this rumor on a couple of other Amtrak related websites, and here's my take on it. Supposedely it would be evening departures with early morning arrivals in both cities. Also, Texas Eagle would "supposedly" cover the SAS-LAX route.
1) This would severly curtail the Crecent's on time performance leaving NOL every morning. Not good to start a long haul trip a few hours behind schedule. You know it only can get worse from there.
2) If this happens, they would have to keep connections in SAS for the passengers from Houston, New Orleans, and other stops to LAX. The past two times i've been on #1, there has been a significant # of passengers going to LAX from those two cities.
3) Word is #19/20 would run to SAS 3x weekly. They should make it daily. Houston is a big enough city to warrant daily service at a minimum, and the population of the New Orleans area continues to increase month after month.
If those concerns are addressed, (although I would mourn the loss of the Sunset Limited) I could at least accept it better.
Apparently this is just one of several ideas being thrown around by Amtrak management. A better idea, in my opinion, would be to make the Sunset go 4x weekly, and extend the City of NO to JAX at least...maybe have a through coach and sleeper connect with the NOL-JAX portion of the City. Overall I think the Crescent is fine the way it is.
Posted by Gilbert B Norman (Member # 1541) on :
If you acknowledge such is only a rumor, what useful purpose is served by further dissemination of such?
Considering the other sources at which I have seen this material posted, I would be highly skeptical of any such report at this time.
Posted by NativeSon5859 (Member # 2993) on :
Just for information, really. To let people know one of the options being considered. No more, no less.
Posted by gp35 (Member # 3971) on :
Maybe quad-weekly for the Sunset. Extend the Crescent for the remaining 3 days. The Sunset won't be daily, but the route will be daily.
Posted by notelvis (Member # 3071) on :
Curious whether in this scenario if the 'new' CHI-SAS-LAX train will operate daily or tri-weekly? Possibly daily as far as SAS as the Texas Eagle does currently.
Such an extension of the Crescent would make it the only two-night train utlizing Viewliner sleepers. Are there enough Viewliners to cover the extra night? I would find taking the Crescent for it's entire route to be unpleasant because that's a long time to spend in the single level consists.
Would these changes mean additional crew quarters and service facilities in San Antonio....possibly duplicating facilities already established in New Orleans?
I wouldn't rule change out BUT there are some tough questions (such as these above) to be addrssed first. I'm not sure it would make sense to make changes such as these.
But then again, what makes 'sense' hasn't always ruled the day at Amtrak either.
Posted by Mr. Toy (Member # 311) on :
Every day new rumors fly Facts are harder to come by
Posted by sojourner (Member # 3134) on :
I understand these are only rumors, but I am confused about these plans--why are they mulling them? You are right, they would make the Crescent less reliable, and what exactly would they improve? They don't help with the missing connection to Florida, and isn't that what they should be mulling?
Posted by notelvis (Member # 3071) on :
quote:Originally posted by sojourner: I understand these are only rumors, but I am confused about these plans--why are they mulling them? You are right, they would make the Crescent less reliable, and what exactly would they improve? They don't help with the missing connection to Florida, and isn't that what they should be mulling?
This would be a way to maintain what service presently exists while 'eliminating' Sunset (in name only anyway).
Get the Sunset off the timetable altogether and it's harder to make the case for 'restoring' the Sunset east of New Orleans.
I'm getting pretty cynical I'm afraid.
Posted by Mr. Toy (Member # 311) on :
quote:Originally posted by sojourner: I understand these are only rumors, but I am confused about these plans--why are they mulling them?
People tell stories, somebody repeats them wrongly, then rumors spread. There's no evidence at this point that anyone is actually mulling any plans.
Posted by dixiebreeze (Member # 3224) on :
I know I won't be personally satisfied until the Sunset is totally restored between NO and Miami. It's insane to cut off the whole Florida Peninsula from E to W travel. And no, getting to Calif. and other points west via Washington, Chicago, etc., is NOT an option IMHO.
Posted by sojourner (Member # 3134) on :
I still think there ought to be a train from Florida to Chicago, through Atlanta and Nashville.
Posted by delvyrails (Member # 4205) on :
NativeSon5859, if the Crescent were extended from New Orleans through Houston to San Antonio, it would be well insulated from the timekeeping problems of Sunset/Texas Eagle west of San Antonio.
From the Crescent's westbound arrival at NOL to the westbound Eagle's arrival at SAS is 27 hours 723pm to 1035pm). The train takes only about 14 hours running from NOL to SAS now. Similarly in the eastward direction.
At nSan Antionio, travellers would have an afternoon (westbound) or a morning (eastbound) to visit the Alamo. etc.
Direct train service connecting the Northeast, the Piedmont and Atlanta, and southern Texas is a worthy goal. More population is connected by this route than the old Sunset route from Florida to southern Texas. Population is potential ridership.
If the City of New Orleans is extended eastward to Florida (the other half of the rumor), there would be a good, reliable, daytime connection at NOL between it and the extended Crescent in both directions.
Posted by Mr. Toy (Member # 311) on :
I think I may have found the nugget of truth at the center of the rumor: Gainsville to Texas passenger train service? The story is about a proposal by the Georgia and Texas Associations of Railroad Passengers to split the Crescent at Meridian Miss. with one section going to Dallas/Ft. Worth and the other to New Orleans. This was once proposed by Amtrak during the Warrington years but it fell through. There's nothing to indicate it would replace the Sunset or any portion thereof. Nor is there any evidence that Amtrak has any official position on the proposal at this time.
Posted by gp35 (Member # 3971) on :
Yesterday Sunset was strolling it's way through Downtown Beaumont at 4:30, 8 hours late. If this dumb plan was in place, either the Texas Eagle would have been 8 hours late or the Crescent.
Posted by Gilbert B Norman (Member # 1541) on :
Admittedly, I am infringing upon rights held by another railforum - save such being a "brief passage" from their topic discussion in its entirety, but I think this posting appearing at that site, as well as that of Mr. Toy's above, pretty well sume up this whole rumor environment:
Let's see, the Texas Association of Railroad Passengers passes a resolution making the Meridian-Dallas train one of TARP's "priorities". Then the Georgia Association of Railroad Passengers passes that info to local media, along with a little history. And that's a done deal?? Give me a break
Fortunately, the insulting "tone' of such does not prevail here at our Forum.