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This was actually posted yesterday at 3, but I didn't see it until this morning... ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Southwest Chief, Empire Builder and California Zephyr POSTPONEMENT Of Service Restoration Plans From Midwest Flooding Disruption
June 19, 2008 3:00 pm CDT
NOTE: THIS IS A CHANGE FROM PLANS ANNOUNCED ON JUNE 18 AND IS BASED ON NEW INFORMATION FROM THE ROUTE.
Amtrak has been notified by BNSF Railway of the postponement of plans to restore rail service on one of the three routes disrupted due to flooding on the Mississippi River and its tributaries . A second cresting of flood waters at Fort Madison, Iowa, prevents the planned restoration of service by the Amtrak Southwest Chief on Friday, June 20, until at least Saturday, June 21.
As was previously said, these plans remain subject to change but are based on information from the BNSF and Canadian Pacific railways, which host these trains on tracks they own, maintain and dispatch.
Plans are now to restore service on the Los Angeles-Chicago route of the Amtrak Southwest Chief on Saturday, June, 21, the same day a detour route is expected to be established for the Seattle/Portland-Chicago Amtrak Empire Builder. Service restoration plans for the San Francisco Bay-Chicago route of the Amtrak California Zephyr are still pending, due to flooding in Iowa.
Passengers are urged to call Amtrak at 800-USA-RAIL if they have travel plans on the three routes below, through June 23. Those passengers with telephone contact information in their reservations are being called by Amtrak and offered options including future travel dates.
Southwest Chief, Trains 3 & 4
Alternate transportation will continue to be provided June 20 between Kansas City and Galesburg or Chicago, with the exceptions of La Plata, Mo., Fort Madison and Mendota and Naperville, Ill. Passengers ticketed at those stops are being offered travel at other Amtrak stations or on other Amtrak trains.
Service by the Southwest Chief between Kansas City and Chicago, temporarily suspended due to flooding on the BNSF Railway route in Iowa since June 17, is expected to resume June 21.
Empire Builder, Trains 7/27/807 & 8/28/808
Service by the Empire Builder between St. Paul and Chicago, suspended due to flooding on the Canadian Pacific Railway route in Wisconsin since June 10 and the closing of a detour route since June 15, is expected to resume on the BNSF Railway detour route June 21.
Alternate transportation by chartered motorcoach will be provided between St. Paul and Chicago, with the exceptions of Portage, Columbus and Milwaukee, Wisc., and Glenview, Ill. Passengers ticketed at those stops are being offered travel at other Amtrak stations. Amtrak Hiawatha Service trains are available as alternate transportation to and from Glenview and Milwaukee.
California Zephyr, Trains 5 & 6
Service by the California Zephyr between Chicago and Denver is temporarily suspended due to flooding on the BNSF Railway route in Iowa, effective June 13.
Alternate transportation will be provided between Denver and points in Nebraska, including Omaha, by chartered motorcoaches. No alternate transportation is available to or from points in Iowa. Alternate transportation between Chicago and other points in Illinois will be provided by other Amtrak trains.
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.
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