AMTRAK SERVICE ALERT Crescent, City of New Orleans, Sunset Limited Tropical Storm Gustav Service Disruption
August 29, 2008 11:30 a.m. CDT
The approach of severe weather and a declaration of an emergency have prompted Amtrak to temporarily suspend service to and from New Orleans for the safety of passengers, employees and equipment.
Amtrak train equipment currently in New Orleans will be made available to federal and state authorities to assist in the evacuation of the city and to help maximize capacity for the evacuation. Amtrak is taking this action as a national transportation asset in accordance with its contract with the Federal Emergency Management Administration (FEMA), which is preparing for the evacuation of New Orleans.
Effective immediately and through at least September 4, the following services are suspended:
Crescent, Trains 19 & 20
Service is suspended south of Atlanta, including Birmingham, Ala. No alternate transportation is available.
City of New Orleans, Trains 58 & 59
Service is suspended south of Memphis, including Jackson, Miss. No alternate transportation is available.
Sunset Limited, Trains 1 & 2
Service is suspended east of San Antonio, including Houston. No alternate transportation is available.
All passengers who have travel plans through the affected areas on routes of the New York-Atlanta-New Orleans Amtrak Crescent; Chicago-Memphis-New Orleans Amtrak City of New Orleans and the Los Angeles-San Antonio-New Orleans route of the Amtrak Sunset Limited are urged to call Amtrak at 800-USA-RAIL.
Those passengers with telephone contact information in their reservations are being called by Amtrak and offered options including future travel dates. Ticketed passengers affected by this service suspension will be eligible for refunds.
Amtrak regrets any inconvenience. This information is correct as of the above time and date. Information is subject to change as conditions warrant. Passengers are encouraged to call 800-USA-RAIL or visit Amtrak.com for schedule information and train status updates.
Posted by Railroad Bill (Member # 5097) on :
Seems like a bit of an over reaction this early in the game, but I suppose they must accumulate passenger cars in NOL just in case. I wonder if this is going to be a common practice everywhere in Florida and the Gulf Coast as per FEMA or is this just for New Orleans each time a possible hurricane is imminent? We are headed for NOL in October. Hope the hurricanes leave something worth seeing by that time. Our thoughts are with those in NOL for a safe season. Railroad Bill
Posted by smitty195 (Member # 5102) on :
At first, I thought the same thing about jumping the gun on suspending service....but on another railroad list that I participate in, a few Amtrak employees mentioned that this is necessary so that employees and family members of employees can evacuate the area and not be stuck there with a train.
Posted by Gilbert B Norman (Member # 1541) on :
Interesting development and bears correlation with my thought expressed over "#20 6hrs Late".
Now what will be of interest is that it be necessary to use any of the requisitioned equipment for "evacutrain" service, will the "First Class" cars be used?
I would guess "yes"; likely seating four adults in each Bedroom; two in each Roomette plus a small child.
Since domesticated household pets are also to be evacuated, will Amtrak trains handle them?
This reminds me of an occasion likely almost sixty years ago. The New Haven often got an extra NY-NH turn from equipment assigned to their premier NY-Boston trains. As I recall (and with a little help from an NH Form 200 - PTT) #371, an 'everyday Local-Express" would turn (around the GCT loop) for #22, the "crack" Yankee Clipper. For whatever reason one day, there were standees in the Coaches, and the Parlors were opened for seating space. So as a ten year old kid going into NY with my Mother (me in suit and tie) "for a day in town" from Greenwich - and sitting in a Parlor Car seat!!!
Posted by Henry Kisor (Member # 4776) on :
As of 7:10 pm Saturday, The New York Times web site was saying that New Orleans authorities were planning to issue a mandatory evacuation order Sunday.
If you can get it wusa9.com/weather has a teriffic hurricane tracker. You can track up to 10 storms at a time and it gives much info on past ones as well. You just download the tracker.
Posted by Henry Kisor (Member # 4776) on :
The first Amtraker left NOL with "800 to 1,000" evacuees for Memphis today. It had to deal with the sinkhole at Memphis, too!
P.S. That hurricane tracking tool Trainlady mentioned is cool, but it's Windows-only. I went a-Googling and found a nice real-time hurricane-tracking widget for Macs at:
It is nice to see Amtrak coming through in a crisis.......something they were not prepared to do with Katrina 3 years ago.
Posted by Henry Kisor (Member # 4776) on :
Some of those news stories say that 800 to 1,000 passengers were on the first train to Memphis. One said 1,500 passengers.
Either there has been more than one train or Amtrak is running 13- or 14-coach trains. Would they have that many 74-seat Superliner coaches available?
Hmmm. Surely they're not cramming them into the lounges and even baggage cars? Are sleepers also involved?
I'm sure Trains Magazine will have a story on all this in a few months, assuming that Gustav does hit New Orleans.
Posted by notelvis (Member # 3071) on :
The Memphis Commercial Appeal article Henry speaks of two Amtrak trains on Saturday leaving New Orleans 4 hours apart, planning to bypass the sinkhole and back into Central Station from the north, and then returning to New Orleans for another trainload. This would be four trains total.
Presumably with the suspension of Amtrak service through September 4th there would be a consist from both the City of New Orleans and the Crescent.....maybe even one from the Sunset....available for evacuation service.
Posted by Gilbert B Norman (Member # 1541) on :
Whatever the "tea leaves and tarot cards" hold for Amtrak LD; even if killed in its entirety, a stong case is being made for Amtrak to remain an entity national in scope and to think long and hard before any of the Superliner and A-II cars are sold or scrapped.
If these "evacutrains" run without any major "glitches", such will likely be the best "feather in the cap" Amtrak has had in a long...long time, and hopefully negate the bad image that Gunn's blunder of "shutter down" caused with legislators let alone the public.
Posted by Ocala Mike (Member # 4657) on :
CNN reported a little while ago that the last train out will leave at 5:30 CDT today. After that time, according to CNN, three floodgates will be closed, and no more trains in and out are possible.
Question: Where are these floodgates located in relation to CN (ex-IC) trackage and what is the relationship between their closing and rail operations?
Posted by Gilbert B Norman (Member # 1541) on :
NBC Nightly News video related to Ocala Mike's report:
quote:Originally posted by Ocala Mike: Question: Where are these floodgates located in relation to CN (ex-IC) trackage and what is the relationship between their closing and rail operations?
That surprised me. I had an interest in that area (modelling for Microsoft Train Simulator) and did extensive research by train, car, and from IC track charts. Nowhere did I see, or see mention of, floodgates. Perhaps if they exist then they were added post-Katrina.
I noticed the "last train out" was a single-level train. It was hard to tell but it looked like it had a single red stripe along the windows, not the usual Amtrak colours. Was I seeing things or was this equipment borrowed from elsewhere?
Geoff M.
Posted by Gilbert B Norman (Member # 1541) on :
The cars with the "single Red stripe along the windows" are Budd SPV-2000 cars once owned by Connecticut; they have since been demotored and were acquired by FEMA.
Look closely and you will note each consist has locomotives on either end.
Posted by Geoff M (Member # 153) on :
quote:Originally posted by Henry Kisor: Either there has been more than one train or Amtrak is running 13- or 14-coach trains. Would they have that many 74-seat Superliner coaches available?
From Mr. Norman's links both trains were a good 14 cars long, if not more - one double deck train; the other single deck of mixed vintage. Interesting that FEMA acquired these cars and that they've been pressed into use.
I can't see the rear engines on the first photo (trees in the way) but the second shows tail lights so that must indeed be the rear of the train. Three (or 4?) engines on a 14+ car train on what is a fairly level route is rather overkill so perhaps Amtrak are moving equipment out of the area as well?
Geoff M.
Posted by notelvis (Member # 3071) on :
The single level train includes a pair of Viewliner Sleepers and the FEMA no-longer self-propelled vehicles. The Amtrak equipment here is no doubt from the Crescent.
The Superliner train......from it's length alone....appears to be made up of a Sunset Limited consist combined with a City of New Orleans consist. Remember, the CONO no longer carries a sightseer lounge.
I imagine that Amtrak is wanting to get all of it's rolling stock out of New Orleans for the duration.
Again, it's good to see Amtrak coming theough (apparantly) in a crisis for a change.
Posted by royaltrain (Member # 622) on :
Since there are viewliner sleepers on the train, was space sold to evacuees or simply used as "sleeper coaches?"
Posted by notelvis (Member # 3071) on :
I imagine the space was used for evacuees in day-seating configuration.
But that's a guess.
Posted by Henry Kisor (Member # 4776) on :
There is an interesting article in Newsweek about how New Orleans and the feds and the state prepared for Gustav and learned from their mistakes in Katrina.
Before Katrina, the article says, Amtrak called Mayor Nagin and offered trains to evacuate New Orleanians, but Nagin never returned the call.