Not much to complain about, but anyone feel interested in listing some reasons for Amtrak 7 departing 30 minutes late...out of Chicago Union Station?
Could be a last minute equipment problem (nothing breaks when you check it but when you go to use it...), late incoming trains that left Amtrak short of equipment in time, held for a late connection (can't what, though), and/or loading problems (passenger or baggage).
I don't know which day was being cited above but sadly this is a common situation. To take an example, yesterday (August 11th) the Builder was 28 minutes late out of Chicago and the Zephyr was 32 minutes late. As those two trains depart in different directions, the likelihood the cause was host railroad problems is remote.
The City and the Eagle are the only Superliner trains that arrive in Chicago with any time margin (9:00am and 1:52pm arrivals) that would allow the equipment be turned to go out as that afternoon's Zephyr or Builder. The City was 5 minutes late into Chicago on the 11th and the Eagle 19 minutes early.
From time to time I've considered starting a thread on late starts at Chicago and adding to it as the days go by. I doubt that a lot of forum participants realize the extent that this occurs.
When my daughter and I went to Memphis this past April, the coaches on the City of New Orleans had Texas Eagle numbers on them, which indicated that the interchange is between those two trains.
Johnny
Deggesty When my daughter and I went to Memphis this past April, the coaches on the City of New Orleans had Texas Eagle numbers on them, which indicated that the interchange is between those two trains.
That's because the Eagle equipment arriving in Chicago turns as the southbound City of New Orleans and vice versa. It is not just the coaches; the whole train set runs as the City. It is good example of where Amtrak has a strategy to optimize its equipment utilization.
The Texas Eagle could leave Chicago 1.5 hours late and still arrive in San Antonio on time because of the fat built into the schedule.
I have experienced late departures on the Eagle from Chicago as well as the Acela from New York. One of the late departures from Chicago was due to a mechanical problem with the sleeper. Another was because a passenger apparently got sick just before the scheduled departure time (serious enough to have the EMS get on the train), and the train was delayed departing. In the case of the Acela, the doors would not close, and the crew had to call the mechanics for some help. We were 25 minutes late leaving NYC.
Given the complexity of operating a train over long distances or not so long distances, I marvel at how few delays occur. From the giddy-up to the whoa the personnel, equipment, host facilities, other traffic, etc. all have to perform flawlessly to get the train over the road on time.
Dakguy201From time to time I've considered starting a thread on late starts at Chicago and adding to it as the days go by. I doubt that a lot of forum participants realize the extent that this occurs.
I would find that interesting.
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