What was the last non amtrk long distance passenger train? The Southern Crescent?

[Anonymous]

Was the last non amtrak long distance train the Crescent in 1979, Rock Island, or the Western Zepher of 1983?[/size=6]

[Anonymous]

I belive that last one was the zepher between Chicago and San Fransico.

[MP57313]

It was the Rio Grande Zephyr, which ran on the D&RGW between Denver and Salt Lake City until 1983.

[nanaimo73]

This was going to expire. I'll get to it Sunday.The proper answer is Texas Mexican.

eolafan-Texas-Mexican ran what I believe was the last long distance regularly scheduled passenger train in the lower 48 States in the late 1980s. See the Jan 1987 Trains. If you want to say their train was not long distance, that is fine.
I believe Alaska should be included, and then the answer would be the Alaska RR.

[eolafan]

QUOTE: Originally posted by nanaimo73

This was going to expire. I'll get to it Sunday.The proper answer is Texas Mexican.

[#offtopic] What the heck does that answer have to do with the subject of this thread, may I ask?

[daveklepper]

You question should, of course, have included "48-states-USA"

But that the Crescent route was taken over my Amtrak before the Rio Grande Zephyr route is a fact.

[Junctionfan]

Did CN still run the Super Continental between Toronto and Vancouver then or was it already VIA?

[nanaimo73]

I found this year old question, and I guess the person who asked is not a member of the forum any more. I am going to interpet it as meaning long distance regularly scheduled passenger train in the United States. There must be well over 100 other countries that still have passenger service.

As far as Canada goes, Via's route history is in the May 2003 Trains. The Quebec, North Shore and Labrador and Ontario Northland still run trains. I guess CN is now running the former Algoma Central trains it got with Wisconsin Central. And BC Rail stopped running passenger trains on Oct. 31, 2002.

In the United States, the Alaska Railroad is still running trains. That is the proper answer. I am going to disqualify dinner trains and tourist trains like the American Orient Express , the D&RGW Ski train and the Montana Daylight.

As far as the lower 48 States go, I have this run down of non Amtrak trains;

1-The Southern Railway ran from Salisbury to Asheville (139 miles) until August 8, 1975.

2-Conrail ran from Cleveland to Youngstown (68 miles) until Jan.14,1977. I don't know if that should be classed as a commuter train or if 68 miles is long distance. Conrail got this train from the Erie Lackawanna. Conrail also ran from Chicago to Valparaiso Indiana but that was only about 43 miles.

3-The Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific could not afford to join Amtrak and so they ran from Chicago to Peoria (161 miles) and to Rock Island (181 miles) until Jan 1, 1979

4-The Southern dropped the Southern Cresent (1,153 miles) on Feb 1, 1979. I would like to know if they were running from Washington or New York City, and did they go through Birmingham or West Point ?

5-Autotrain ran until May 1, 1981 between Sanford, Florida and Lorton, Virginia (861 miles). They also had a run between Sanford and Louisville, Kentucky (1,004 miles). Amtrak resurrected the Lorton-Sanford route on Thanksgiving Day 1983. The Louisville route ended on Sept. 4, 1977 and used the same route as Amtrak's Floridian.

6-The Denver and Rio Grande Western dropped Grand Juction to Salt Lake City (255 miles) on Apr. 14,1983. This train may have gone to Ogden.

7-The Denver and Rio Grande Western dropped Denver to Grand Juction (275 miles) on Apr. 24, 1983.

8-The Georgia Railroad dropped their branchline mixed trains on Apr 29, 1983. Washington to Barnett was only 17 miles and Macon to Camak was 79 miles.

9-The Georgia Railroad dropped Atlanta to Augusta (170 miles) on May 6, 1983. I believe the charter for the Georgia said they did not have to pay any land taxes as long as they ran passenger trains.

10-The Soo line dropped their mixed train service on September 20, 1986. From Neenah to Sault Ste Marie was 370 miles and from Rhinelander to Gladstone was 126 miles. I believe the fare was $1 to ride in the caboose.

11-The Texas-Mexican Railway ran from Laredo to Corpus Christie (157 miles) . They started this service on Jan 31, 1986 and ran until June 18, 1989.

[Anonymous]

Good info Nanaimo73 I believe the Southern Crescent did go fom NYC to New Orleans but was under Amtrak from Nyc to Was.

[Junctionfan]

Ontario Northland still runs their Northlander too.

[Anonymous]

If I am not mistaken the Cresent ran through Birmingham after the formation of AMTRACK. I think . . .

[Junctionfan]

When did Santa Fe stop their passengers from Chicago?

[Anonymous]

The santa fe stoped all passenger service in 1971 although I think BNSF still may run some METRA commuter trains along with UP.

Did CP or CN run any passenger service past 1971? I would imagine Canadian National would have ran a train into Chicago or Buffalo or Seattle past 1971.

[nanaimo73]

Yes, there were Canadian trains that ran in the USA. The route to Seattle was Great Northern, and only Amtrak has run on that.
Canadian National ran across northern Minnesota until May 23, 1977 on a route from Winnipeg to Thunder Bay Ontario.
Canadian Pacific ran the Atlantic across Maine which became VIA and stopped Oct. 28, 1994.
There was a RDC run to Buffalo from Toronto until Sept. 28, 1980
There was the joint Amtrak-VIA Chicago to Toronto International across Michigan. I believe only Amtrak equipment was used and I don't know when it stopped.
Amtrak's Southern Crescent has only gone through Birmingham. It must have been in the 1960s that Southern used the West Point Route,

Gluefinger-The Adirondack was always an Amtrak train.The State of New York was paying for part of it so they used D&H locomotives.

[Gluefinger]

What year did those post-AMTK D&H trains stop running?

[oltmannd]

QUOTE: Originally posted by Gluefinger

What year did those post-AMTK D&H trains stop running?

The D&H joined Amtrak, so technically, the D&H trains stopped on May 1, 1971.

If you mean the date the PAs stopped running, it was sometime in late 1977 or early 1978 when Turboliners started running on the Adirondak.

[oltmannd]

Oops. It looks like it was early in 1977. Here's a shot of the Adirondak in Whitehall in Apr 1977 http://oltmannd.rrpicturearchives.net/showPicture.aspx?id=90193

Here it is in 1976 with the PAs

http://www.railpictures.net/viewphoto.php?id=8457

[Anonymous]

Even after VIA took over long-distance Canadian passenger trains, I know of at least one loophole: the electric line that runs through Mount Royal was still operated by CN when I visited Montreal in 1988--not by a commuter-transit agency or by VIA.

But that's really an anomaly of semi-suburban service, much like Amtrak was able to run its "Valpo Locals" from Valpariso to Chicago years after Chicagoland's Metra started operating our commuter trains.

And, for what it's worth, the late-1970s Crescent was a lovely train; clean, with a good diner. The springs in many of the coaches were weak, but as the rail had been welded by then, it didn't matter all that much.

[andrewjonathon]

QUOTE: Originally posted by nanaimo73

Yes, there were Canadian trains that ran in the USA. The route to Seattle was Great Northern, and only Amtrak has run on that.
Canadian National ran across northern Minnesota until May 23, 1977 on a route from Winnipeg to Thunder Bay Ontario.
Canadian Pacific ran the Atlantic across Maine which became VIA and stopped Oct. 28, 1994.
There was a RDC run to Buffalo from Toronto until Sept. 28, 1980
There was the joint Amtrak-VIA Chicago to Toronto International across Michigan. I believe only Amtrak equipment was used and I don't know when it stopped.
Amtrak's Southern Crescent has only gone through Birmingham. It must have been in the 1960s that Southern used the West Point Route,

Gluefinger-The Adirondack was always an Amtrak train.The State of New York was paying for part of it so they used D&H locomotives.

What was the CN passenger train that ran from Winnipeg to Thunder Bay through the US? Did the Super Continental use CN's northern route?

I understand CN and Grand Trunk operated an overnight train called the International from Chicago to Toronto prior to Amtrak's creation. The service was dropped in 1971 when Amtrak was created. Amtrak and VIA re-created the International and it ran until April 26, 2004. Its death was primarily caused by lengthy border delays after 9/11. Amtrak replaced it with The Blue Water service between Chicago and Port Huron.

[nanaimo73]

It was just a RDC train that ran on the former Canadian Northern (now Canadian National) route from Winnipeg to Thunder Bay south of the Lake of the Woods.

[Anonymous]

Does anyone have any pictures, or know of any links, for the Texas Mexican Ry service?

[Anonymous]

Does the Auto Train count? [;)]

[nanaimo73]

Thanks Allen. I put the Autotrain in my list.

The Texas Mexican operation was covered in the January 1987 Trains magazine. They used 3 ex Pennsylvania P70 coaches, an ex ACL coach and an ex Union Pacific lounge.