Anyway. I would like to ride the final New York to Chicago Three Rivers, but I'm not quite sure WHEN that train is actually departing. The press release talks about "March 1st", but does that refer to the Westbound departure, the Westbound arrival, or do they just use Eastbound trains for that kind of reference? To add to further confusion, someone I met on the Central Coast Pacific Surfliner inaugural run said that Amtrak might even sneak a Thruway Bus in on the final day, just to get a jump on the closure.

Anyway, as one might expect, this is causing me some difficulty in getting things planned correctly. Without regard to DATE, here is my planned itinerary:

• Day 0 - Fly, etc, to Vermont (visit family)
  
• Day 1 - Train #57 "Vermonter" from Montpelier, VT @ 7:47am to New York Penn @ 4:20pm (hotel)
  
• Day 2 - Train #41 "Three Rivers" from NYP @ 1:15pm to Chicago @ 7:45am
  
• Day 3 - Train #5 "California Zephyr" from CHI @ 2:20pm to Sacramento @ 2:39pm
  
• Day 5a - Depending on travel dates, stay with family...
  
• Day 5b (Friday, March 4th?) - Train #551 "Capitol" from SAC @ 8:40pm to Oakland @ 10:40pm
  
• Day 6 (Saturday, March 5th?) - Train #11 "Coast Starlight" from OKJ @ 8:50am to Los Angeles @ 9:00pm

Lastly, how does Amtrak Guest Rewards work with a multi-multi city trip like this? Can I group these all as connections? Would they have a problem with the stopover in Sacramento? Does the fact that some of the trains (Vermonter, Three Rivers, Capitol) don't have sleeping car accommodations throw a wrench into redeeming a "three zone sleeper" reward (do I end up Coach or Business Class on the non-sleeper trains)?

Thanks in advance!

In fact, depending on what they cost, you may want to consider getting your Guest Rewards just for the 3-zone travel (Montpelier to Sacramento) and then paying cash for additional tickets for the Sacramento to Oakland and Oakland to LA, rather than wasting points on them. If you want to do that, you can get your Guest Reward tickets, then buy your additional tickets on line (with a Triple A discount, senior discount, NARP discount, or any other discount that you may be eligible for . . . there was 20 percent off recently, but I think that special has ended).

As for your accommodations on the Montpelier to NYC leg of your trip, where there is no sleeper, I guess you can ask the Guest Rewards person if there is a business class ticket (rather than just regular coach) on the Vermonter and if you are eligible for it because you are cashing in your points for first-class/sleeper travel. But on the extra legs in California, if they are not part of your three-zone redemption, it would cost more points to get anything special.

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Originally posted by sojourner:
However, once you get off in Sacramento, that will be the end of your 3-zone redemption, because if you were making Oakland your California terminus, there would be no need to go to Sacramento--in other words, Sacramento is not a connection, it's a stopover. So your additional travel in California would mean extra points beyond the 3-zone redemption.

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*nods*

That's what I figured, and I suppose I will sort it all out with the AGR representative when I book the trip.

Of course, this entire schedule hinges around the LAST AND FINAL departure of the Chicago-bound Three Rivers from NYP. If it departs March 1st, for example, then I might be able to squeeze everything through Guest Rewards as connecting trains, perhaps even "fooling" the system a little by booking the Zephyr all the way to Oakland, but then stepping off in Sacramento and paying cash to ride an evening Capitol into Oakland.

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Originally posted by RRRICH:
Does anyone know if there are any plans for future day schedules between CHI and Pittsburgh?

Concerning the old route of the Three Rivers, AMTRAK used the old Broadway Ltd route (through Ft Wayne, Lima, and Crestline) for many years -- I believe they switched to the B&O route about 10 years ago, and I believe that was because Conrail abandoned the old line through Ft Wayne and Lima-Crestline -- can anyone confirm that?

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I think a portion of the old PRR route in Northern Indiana was actually abandoned and the rest downgraded to the point that it was not suitable for passenger train use.

If the line is still intact it's not up to 'passenger train standards' anymore.

It also seems like there was a period of 6-18 months after the Broadway when nothing except the Capitol via Cleveland operated west from Pittsburgh. The Three Rivers was routed via the old B&O when it was extended west from Pittsburgh to Chicago in order to handle the express traffic.

According to the December 2004 National Association of Railroad Passengers newsletter, which I received Saturday:

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Three Rivers—Last New York-Chicago runs originate March 6, not March 1. New-York Pittsburgh only service returns March 7 on a schedule to be determined. it will connect in Pittsburgh with Capitol Limited to/from Chicago, but layover time could be substantial, so New York-Philadelphia travelers (perhaps others) should consider connecting with Capitol Limited in Washington.

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