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While the most immediate impact will be on the passage of the Dodd-Frank Financial Reform legislation, I have to wonder to what extent, if any, the death of Sen Byrd (D-WV) will have on the future of The Cardinal.
Hands down Cardinal is the weakest Long Distance train out there; many a proposal floated here and surely at 60 Mass to enhance the lowly Cardinal, i.e. make it Daily, restore Superliner equipment, more Sleepers, more Diners, etc. That the train has lived on is no doubt a result on Sen Byrd's influence. While I am at a loss for a cite and am inclined to believe such is unfounded, there have been reports that the Cardinal's continuation is specifically provided by law.
While at present, Amtrak is not under any pressure to cut any services, I can guarantee that it will be in the future - and I somehow think that will occur before the Obama administration leaves office (one pundit not with Fox News holds that will be as early as 2013). I would think The Cardinal will be quite vulnerable in any kind of a "cut Amtrak" environment.
Thoughts?
HillsideStation Member # 6386
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As previously mentioned on another forum, I fear a great many of the long list of "pork" the late Senator brought home to West Virginia are ripe for picking. First among them the IRS facility in Martinsburg; a prime example of what a single Senator's power can accomplish. As to the Cardinal, it struck me more as a Toonerville Trolly than a LD Amtrak train when we rode it between Chicago and Washington a few years ago. And that one trip was enough. It along with LSL a prime examples of how NOT to run a rail road. When we travel from New England to the west we try heroically to avoid the LSL, and choose the CAP over the Cardinal between Washington and Chicao every time. Our condolences to the Senator's family, but we would not have the same feeling if the Cardinal, in its present form should follow Robert Byrd. Best regards, Rodger
RRRICH Member # 1418
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I don't believe the Cardinal is really the "weakest" AMTRAK train -- we rode it on our vacation 2 weeks ago from WAS to CRF, and the one sleeper was sold out (I know, since we couldn't get more than a roomette on that trip, since the bedrooms had been sold out for months in advance -- I realize there is only one sleeper on the train), and the coaches appeared to be reasonably full also. Some of the towns the Cardinal serves (like Crawfordsville, where we got off) don't have any other transpotation choices, not even air in some cases (such as the towns in the New River Gorge, for example). And of course Cincinnati, the largest city on the line outside of the Northeast, and Indianapolis, another large midwestern city, are also on the line and contribute significant passengers to the train. When I lived in Cincinnati in the mid-1980's, I rode the Cardinal quite a bit, and, even in spite of its middle-of-the-night schedule, there were always quite a few passengers getting on there.
I'm sure the late Senator Byrd had a lot of other things to keep him occupied during his many many years in office besides assuring that the Cardinal continues to run through his state, but I do know that he was definitely a very good "friend of AMTRAK."
palmland Member # 4344
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Say what you will about the Senator's politics and the bacon he brought home to WV, he had no peer in the understanding of the operation of the senate and our Constitution. We saw him peform on the floor of the senate shortly after 9/11 and he was quite impressive, even though he was in his 80's then.
As to the Cardinal, while it is a scenic route, it could certainly stand some improvements. With two other east coast- Chicago trains, it really is a train for the many small cities enroute, especially rural WV. A daylight superliner with CCC train Washington- Cincinnati and another Cincinnati to Chicago would make the most sense. Passengers west of the great mid-western city of Cincinnati receive lousy middle of the night service. A daylight train would be a real improvement - and would arrive early enough into Chicago to connect to the LSL for eastern destinations.
PullmanCo Member # 1138
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Not much. Bureaucratic inertia...
notelvis Member # 3071
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Recall that the Cardinal was axed on October 1st once before..... either in the 1979 Carter Cuts or perhaps the single round of Reagan cuts in 1981.....I forget which....
A fairly strong grassroots movement, with Sen. Byrd's help of course, had the Cardinal back on track within five or six months..... the restoration coming between issues of the National Timetable. Prior to being cut, the train operated daily....... it was when the train was restored that the Cardinal's frequency was set at tri-weekly.
This train, perhaps moreso than many, serves it's intended purpose as most of those communities in West Virginia have little or no other public transportation. As large of a town as Clifton Forge, VA is, surprisingly, is no longer on Greyhound's map.
I think that even with Senator Byrd's passing that the grassroots support for the Cardinal is still there and that it is more likely that the two Florida trains would be combined into one on the Silver Star (SAL) route before the Cardinal goes under threat.
Tanner929 Member # 3720
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Like John Murtha I think Byrd should be burried under one of their pork barrel projects they are so famous for.
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