There is an Ethan Allen Get Well plan to make some critical fixes for the route to Rutland. Won't fix all the slow orders, but is supposed to trim up to 18 minutes off of the very slow trip time between Rutland and Whitehall. See the summary at http://vtwesternrailcorridor.com/
Under the Documents page, there are copies of letters sent by Amtrak, Vermont, and VRS about the conditions of the tracks. Amtrak's letter of December 21, 2010 is rather blunt for official correspondence.
No expansion should be contemplated until the problems of Vermont RR's slow speed from Rutland - Whitehall is resolved. A lesser delay section is CP's section from Whitehall - Schenectady. Vrr's section of the route has the worse delay record on the complete Amtrak system. The Ethan Allen has lost 80% of their passenger ridership in the last 5 years.
Interesting article from the Burlington (VT) Free Press:
http://www.burlingtonfreepress.com/article/20110821/NEWS02/110820005/1007/To-Rutland-by-train-68-miles-many-millions-dollars
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