Amtrak Capitol Limited Thread

[The Metropolitan]

It's been a rough past 30 days for the Cap and the PGH area. I was aboard 30(9/21) when we had to detour due to the Mudslide 9 miles West of PGH, taking us through Youngstown and finally along the old PLE alignment on the South Shore.

Now we get this disruption at the Beaver River. I'd be curious to know which route the train is taking now. I'm curious if it might be backing in and out of the PGH station, and using the bridge across the Allegheny to take the twisty route up North of PGH. Will be interesting to discover the rest of the story.

[amusing erudition]

This would be much easier had they left a platform track at the P&LE station. They could just keep it on the P&LE tracks all the way up to Youngstown. Station Square's certainly not the worst place to stop a train, though the facility would be quite improvised.

And Amtrak could have chartered a PAT trolley to run from Penn Park to Station Square for the connecting passengers!

-asg

[Silverliner II]

The CSX mainline was closed due to the derailment too...it runs under the same bridge that the NS train derailed on. We got some detour trains via NJ and Philly over the last two days due to that wreck.

Amtrak had to bustitute between Cleveland and Pittsburgh for a few days.

[amusing erudition]

[Under instruction from the moderators, I am reposting this as its own thread.]

While on train 30 early on Saturday morning, hanging out in the quiet lounge, my reading (and waiting for a nice view of Pittsburgh in the dark) was interrupted by an unruly passenger who violently ripped out the rubber molding around an emergency exit window (the glass fell out later), was restrained by train personnel, and forced us to be held waiting for emergency personnel who detrained the man.

To date, I must admit this was the scariest thing that's happened on any of my many trips on Amtrak, not least because we were never told specifics about what happened, even afterward (who knows what motivation someone has for screaming and apparently trying to leave the train?). The only reason I knew as much as I did was because I was there at the time--it certainly doesn't hurt to be one of the few people with information when questions got asked later at breakfast--but I was shooed out of the car and into the frontmost coach before police arrived (I still watched from the distance).

But since it all worked out for everyone in the end, it didn't detract from an otherwise wonderful trip.

Does anyone have an epilogue on what happened?

-asg

[David Benton]

Does it matter ? , sorry , but i think the only value in such info is if a member of an emergceny service ,or mental health worker , can tell us what a passenger should do in the event they are present when such a incident takes place .

[RichM]

At least it wasn't happening on a plane.

[amusing erudition]

Does it matter ?

I don't think others get to make normative judgments over what matters to me. The question was asked; you may assume it matters.

-asg

[rohr turbo]

That must have been an experience!

I hate to say, but I think train travel attracts some kooks and crimminals. Probably to do with the anonymity of buying a non-traceable ticket onboard.

I remember one harmless drunk entertaining our coach on the Adirondack, swearing he was the heir to the Mars Candy fortune and promising cases of free candy to anyone who would give him their address.

A scarier incident happened on the Cal Zephyr in 1983 when we stopped seemingly in the middle of nowhere, we were told to sit still, and armed police entered the train. The police in my car waited for a walkie-talkie signal then rushed the car ahead. A few minutes later they came back through with a handcuffed guy and took him off the train.

It's probably rare that you learn the whole end of the story.

[amusing erudition]

Well, I don't think we were in any real danger or we would have been evacuated from the train. Medical and safety (rather than merely safety) personnel were called to the train for the gentleman.

In any case, they should make some more effort to explain the incident to passengers. We were 1:20 late out of Cleveland and 2:50 late into Pittsburgh. If only for PR reasons, it would be good to establish that it wasn't Amtrak's fault that we lost the 90 minutes. It's the first trip I've lost so much time to a single stoppage--usually we just lose a few minutes here and there to slower speeds.

Some conductors I've seen are very verbose in describing what's going on to delay us (be it waiting for a train to pass or an emergency on a leading train or whatever) and some are very laconic, usually saying only how long before we move again (if that)--this time we basically got nothing (but through the train's grapevine from those of us who were eyewitnesses). Giving information to passengers (if only ex post) is, in my opinion, usually a good thing for your image and only more so if it establishes the lateness was someone else's doing.

-asg

[wigwagfan]

People are naturally curious; after all why are we all here? Do we just assume that a train will show up and take us where we want to go, without question?

I work for an electric utility. If the power's out, customers want to know why. What's down, where is it at, when will the power on, will I get money for this, etc. Do customers need to know all this? No. But do we tell them? Yes.

While I agree that when the event involves a specific individual that some details are unnecessary to be made public, the fact that an unruly person caused a disturbance is a valid reason for delay. A customer with a "medical concern that required the assistance of paramedics" is sufficient; we don't need to know what the condition was (i.e. heart attack, seizure, vomiting, etc.)

A total lack of information, coupled with the customers' need to be at a scheduled place at a scheduled time, and missing that appointment, is bound to upset people. People naturally will understand if something happens that is unexpected, extraordinary, or just out of the control of those trying to make it all work. But without information they cannot make that judgement, and will assume that someone is causing a delay for no reason.

[David Benton]

True , to the passengers in the train , some explanation of what is causing the delay . i was referring to the need for an epilogue , pesumably on what happend to the individual .

[gprimr1]

Aren't court records and stuff like that public records? Seems to me that we would need to establish the county he was arrested in and contact that county's courts.

The only issue is, since Amtrak is quazi governmental, would the person go to a federal court or a county (state) court?

Either way, I believe the information is there if someone wants to look.

[wigwagfan]

The only issue is, since Amtrak is quazi governmental, would the person go to a federal court or a county (state) court?

State.

49 USC 24305(e) states that Amtrak Police officers must comply with state laws regarding railroad police officers.

(e) Rail Police.--Amtrak may employ rail police to provide security
for rail passengers and property of Amtrak. Rail police employed by
Amtrak who have complied with a State law establishing requirements
applicable to rail police or individuals employed in a similar position
may be employed without regard to the law of another State containing
those requirements.

In other words an Amtrak police officer is viewed no differently than, say, a BNSF police officer.

[CarterB]

"ELKHART — An Amtrak train that left Chicago last night bound for Toledo, Ohio, was stuck all night east of Waterloo, Ind., an Amtrak spokesman said today.

The train, number 30, left Chicago at 7:05 p.m. and broke down a few hours later, said spokesman Cliff Cole.

Cole said an engine failure was to blame."
SOURCE: http://www.southbendtribune.com/apps/pb ... 1/70316023

[JimBoylan]

According to Amtrak's website, it's due to leave Toledo at 11:45 a.m. 3/16, and pick up 11 min. by Cleveland, as of 11:20 a.m. 3/16:

> 30 Capitol Limited Toledo, OH - (TOL)
supposed to depart 11:59 pm 15-MAR-07
(11:45 am) estimated
Estimated departure: 11 hours and 46 minutes late.

Cleveland, OH - (CLE)
supposed to arrive 2:06 am 16-MAR-07
(1:41 pm) estimated
Estimated arrival: 11 hours and 35 minutes late. <