Will happen between March 1st, 2008 and completion is expected by May 1st, 2008 before the summer season starts next year. One of the main items holding everything up, of course, was money. However, they have now officially received the money needed for all of the changes that are coming and everything is a go. Keep in mind that since the "official" re-launch date is March 1st, this does not mean that everything will be finished and completed on that date. It will take time to get things done (as I will explain below), but the target date for everything will be May 1st, 2008.
PACIFIC PARLOUR CARS:
-They will be sent back to Beech Grove, one at a time, to get refurbished. The basic design as we see it now will basically remain unchanged. However, all of the worn seating and cover materials will be replaced, and the car will generally be spiffed up. While these cars cycle in and out of Beech Grove, there *will* be a Sightseer Lounge as a replacement (in other words, 2 lounge cars---one for coach passengers, and one for sleeper passengers)
-A cappaccino machine will be placed in each car (at $8,000 per machine!)
-The car will be staffed by an employee, just as it used to be. Amtrak has not decided yet if they will assign people to these cars based upon seniority, or if they will do it strictly by interviewing interested personnel and then assigning them to that position. This will be decided sometime in the future.
-Movies will be returning to the lower level of the car, with sponsorship by MGM Studios and Warner Brothers Studios. This sponsorship will allow Amtrak to show "classic" movies in the theater, without being charged the huge fees they once paid for current movies.
-A buffet brunch will be served on Saturday and Sunday from 10AM to 3PM. This is not free----it is still for sleeping car passengers only, but you will need to pay for this service. (Dining car meals are still included in the price of your sleeping car ticket).
-Wine tasting will still be held daily, with upgraded "regional" wines. Brian Rosenwald is speaking with various wine vendors this week to secure a contract. They are considering bringing back fruit with the wine/cheese/crackers, but this is undecided at the moment.
-Soft drinks and alcoholic drinks will be available for sale in this car. The soft drinks will not be free as they once were (and soft drinks will continue to not be offered in the sleeping cars, but juice/coffee remain as always).
I was told that the reason for charging for soft drinks and the bufett brunch is to help pay for the cost of keeping these cars. I don't mind this at all if this is what they need to do in order to keep these cars running.
DINING CARS:
-Simplified Dining Service will disappear on the Coast Starlight, with "normal" food returning. There will be 4 servers upstairs, and 3 people working downstairs in the kitchen.
-Regional menus will once again return (I specifically asked, and **NO**, they will not offer a special of Chicken Fried Steak!).
-China and glassware will return, with the same color/pattern this is currently being used on the Empire Builder.
COACH CARS:
-Wi-Fi internet will be available in all cars. She could not provide more information on this, so my specific questions as to how this will work are unanswered for now.
Posted by train lady (Member # 3920) on :
I keep getting the message web site not found. Is anyone else having this problem?
Posted by climbguy (Member # 5879) on :
got it thanks
Posted by Rick Morris (Member # 5347) on :
I've always wanted to ride the CS the entire way and now this report gives me cause to do just that. Regardless of the cost. If anybody does ride the CS before June and can give a detailed report about it, I, and all other fellow railfans, would be eternally grateful.
Posted by Mr. Toy (Member # 311) on :
I was wondering what happened to this. RailPAC was reporting earlier this year that the re-launch was supposed to happen last month.
While this sounds official, I must point out that this is a repost from another forum, which I traced back to yet another forum, one which is rife with unsubstantiated rumor.
But assumin' it is accurate, I have no trouble with paying for sodas. Sponsored classic movies seems like a good way to provide quality entertainment at a fair price. It would give the distributors exposure of their archives to modern audiences.
Interesting that simplified dining service is starting to be phased out. As I understand it, the Starlight is the second train, but not the last, to get upgrades, so one must assume that SDS isn't the financial savior that was anticipated.
Posted by hookedup (Member # 1691) on :
When we were on the CS a couple of weeks ago our attendant told us some of this info. He said that one of his counterparts had just returned from a meeting (I think he said it was a union mtg) and that they had hoped to relaunch this September but pushed it back to March, therefore saving some money and waiting closer to the summer travel season to do it. He confirmed the redo of the Parlour Cars, and the upgraded dining services. He said that the CS will return to "superior service status" whatever that means.
Our friends went southbound a week after our southbound and they did not have a Parlour Car (we did on our rt) but they did put the extra lounge car on for them.
I really hope this does happen. It would be so great for the CS!!!!
Posted by Gilbert B Norman (Member # 1541) on :
Since my idea of Joe is two cups a day starting from a red can marked Folger's, I'd be inclined to think....$8000 bucks for a what....machine.....???? What a waste!!!.
But then, a wine bar such as appearing in the movie "Sideways' (filmed BTW on location in Mr. SBA Frank's backyard)....well, that's something else....of course if Virginia Madsen and Sandra Oh wish to hire on with Amtrak and play bartender....wow.
You know, I could be mistaken, but somehow I think that those two actresses honestly enjoy wine in their off-the-screen lives.
Posted by climbguy (Member # 5879) on :
I'm not sure I would accept the $8,000 figure at face value. Like I said, the information does not cite the original source, so we cannot confirm its accuracy. Somewhere in the rumor mill an extra zero might have been added.
Posted by Gilbert B Norman (Member # 1541) on :
Still ridiculous, Mr. Climbguy. I think the last Mr. Coffee appliance I bought cost $19.95.
But then let's not get into what the wine cellar in my home cost.
Posted by 20th Century (Member # 2196) on :
Well, the train does travel to/from Seattle. But $8,000 for the machine ?.....I don't know. A Starbucks concession stand on the train might be more appropriate. I'm happy with Melitta, Maxwell House, or Eight O' Clock coffees. But it is nice to hear that the CS will return to upgrade status.
Posted by climbguy (Member # 5879) on :
quote:Originally posted by Gilbert B Norman: Still ridiculous, Mr. Climbguy.
I didn't come up with idea of having an $8k coffee maker, I think its a little crazy too. If they have 5 PPC that comes to $40k. I think amtrak could put that money to better use elsewhere.
Posted by smitty195 (Member # 5102) on :
Very interesting to see how my thread made it around to various forums without citing the original source. As my posting made it's rounds, the very first part of what I wrote was not included. Here is how I started out my comments: _________ I'm on-board #11 at the moment, heading to LAX for the TO special tomorrow. There is an Amtrak customer service manager on-board this train, and she was kind enough to sit and spend some time with me answering many of my questions, as well as correcting some rumors I had heard. I probably forgot to ask her a few things, but here are some highlights of the topics I talked with her about. By the way, she said I can publish her name and contact information on a public railroad forum, as well as everything we discussed.
Contact information: Elizabeth Peterson, Customer Service Manager, National Railroad Passenger Corporation, 815 N. Alameda Street, Los Angeles, CA, 90012, Phone # 213-891-3539 and 213-505-4857 ________________
When I spoke with Elizabeth, I made it clear that I would be posting this on a forum that is very well read by many people, including Amtrak management. One of the things I made VERY clear with her is that I did **not** want to have ANY rumors in what we were discussing. I only wanted information that was approved and rock solid. The information comes from a meeting she had a few days prior to my talk with her, which included Brian Rosenwald and Alexander Kummant. There are no rumors in this---this is straight from the horse's mouth. I purposely included all of her contact information so that there would be no rumors.
With that said, I'm happy that Amtrak is doing all of this. My personal favorite in the Amtrak system is the Coast Starlight, and I can't wait until the upgrades happen! Specifically, I'm looking forward to them dropping SDS. I've never been a fan of this new service, and I now skip most dining car meals and either bring my own or getting something simple from the lounge car. It might be okay if I only ate in the dining car once or twice a year, but seeing the same menu over and over for the last 18 months has worn me out.
Posted by train lady (Member # 3920) on :
Thank you Smitty for clearing that up. When I read the original post I thought it was a rumor for sure because there was no source. I do wish the Zephyr would go back to the regular food service. I have always enjoyed breakfast on the train and from all reports my enjoyment is gone.
Posted by Mr. Toy (Member # 311) on :
Whooda known the source would have been one of our own. Thanks for clearing that up. I met Elizabeth Peterson on my trip last fall, and she was sincerely interested in what the passengers had to say. However, knowing a little about how the Amtrak employee rumor mill works, and the exaggerations it often develops, I can't vouch for the accuracy of her information. The "facts" given by employees regarding the Parlour Car's future were all over the map on that trip.
As an aside, she was on my train that hit a truck. She told me later that the fire captain who responded asked her if she needed to let the passengers off the train to use the bathroom, not that there were any around.
Posted by smitty195 (Member # 5102) on :
quote:Originally posted by Mr. Toy: As an aside, she was on my train that hit a truck. She told me later that the fire captain who responded asked her if she needed to let the passengers off the train to use the bathroom, not that there were any around.
Heh heh heh......coming from a public safety background, that doesn't surprise me a bit. As railfans, we tend to think that emergency responders know a lot about trains and the railroads. Unless the responder is a railfan, they will know absolutely nada about trains. Oh well, at least the fire captain was thinking of the passengers, even though he was a little off-target in his intentions.