Sunset Limited

Has there been any update when the sunset limited will be traveling back all the way to Orlando? Just wondering!

Sunset East (better term, anyone?) seems to be in 'who cares' mode?

--Does Amtrak seem to be on any big "push" to have it restored?
--Is CSX seeking same?
--Does it really have any legislative "patron saint"?
--Is the region deprived of essential transportation?

I'm afraid the answer to all of the above is NO.

--Is NARP and other advocacy groups pushing for its restoration?

Well I guess the answer to that one is YES.

Incidentially I have ridden Sunset East during both '02 and '04 as part of Chi-Florida itineraries and it is a part of my personal "more positives than negatives" assessment that I hold regarding my Amtrak LD travel.

But it appears that Sunset East is likely to be Amtrak's "Korean War". That "forgotten war" is still a war that has not been ended by any kind of treaty. There has only been a truce in place for the past 53 years. Sunset East could hold its "temporarily annulled' timetable status for quite some time to come, even though I would expect that as the region gets "back to normal" (or at least from a tourist's perspective) the Katrina reference may be dropped.

It would make greater sense to me to have a separate train runing from Miami to Orlando and terminating in New Orleans, and have a through sleeper and coach connecting to the Sunset.

New Orleans is what I consider to be a natural hub city, since you also have the Cith of New Orleans and the Crescent also terminating there.

Ya, cause since they dont have the railroad back to normal. people have to pay twice as much to fly on a airplane.

There is much to suggest, Sgt. Hensley, that Amtrak is best advised to retain temperate/warm weather maintenance facilities. New Orleans can be justified in that frozen cars can be moved there from Chicago overnight. Absent a weather extreme, Mother Nature can be expected to start her thawing process long about when #59 would pass Memphis and that the cars could start 'thaw out' repairs upon arrival.

But, on the flipside, despite having a Super Bowl contending team (lest we forget, the whole "system' in the NFL is 'stacked' against building dynasties) at present, there are raising doubts if New Orleans is ever "coming back'. This means a lesser passenger "base' than in past years. The analogy is that no airline has chosen to establish a hub in a central location but at where there is no traffic base to speak of. I would have thought an airline could have bought or otherwise acquired use of Chanute AFB "on the cheap' and there would have been a centrally located hub to be used solely by connecting flights unimpeded by "interference' from exigencies such as air traffic.

Having been volunteering in New Orleans this weekend, I can safely say that this assessment is largely true. Over 250,000 people are displaced with no financial means of returning. Many new building codes require houses to be raised to 3 ft above sea level (or 3 ft above the curb, depending), to the tune of tens of thousands of dollars -- money that isn't available. The city attempted to come up with a plan that would buy out the residents who are in risky areas in order to rebuild in somewhat more suitable areas... that plan was due around the beginning of the year, but unfortunately the city does not have the money to pay market value (and it's not easy to figure out what that number is at this point).

If New Orleans ever comes back, it won't be soon.

ryanov wrote:Having been volunteering in New Orleans this weekend, I can safely say that this assessment is largely true. Over 250,000 people are displaced with no financial means of returning. Many new building codes require houses to be raised to 3 ft above sea level (or 3 ft above the curb, depending), to the tune of tens of thousands of dollars -- money that isn't available. The city attempted to come up with a plan that would buy out the residents who are in risky areas in order to rebuild in somewhat more suitable areas... that plan was due around the beginning of the year, but unfortunately the city does not have the money to pay market value (and it's not easy to figure out what that number is at this point).

If New Orleans ever comes back, it won't be soon.

I seem to remember the same thing being said about the San Francisco bay area following the 1989 earthquake. And it rebuilt and survived...on that same fault line.

You would think that with the equipment not being used to operate the Sunset to Orlando could go to add more trains on the western portion of the train. If daily service could be provided that would maximize the utility of the route. The OTP has somewhat improved in recent months, running on somewhat of a more predictable schedule. It even had a better OTP than the California Zephyr had according to Amtrak.com. Would such a daily train benefit from the current thrice weekly? I would imagine it would lower the overhead of the stations which are currently divided by six trains a week, that number would increase to 14 per week. The trainsets would also get more useage because there would be no more day long layovers in LA, and NOL. If reliability continues to improve, the trainsets could be sent through on the Coast Starlight to further dive up the utility of Superliners, the only problem would be the Pacific Parlor Cars, which could be added and removed in LA, but that would require some time.

The following could be construed as off topic and I respect if it be dealth with accordingly.

Actually, Mr Mikey, the Sunset once was routed New Orleans-San Francisco, but this is WAAAAY back when - discontinued by Office of War Transportation order in early 1942, well before the 1950 Budd reequipping (those cars were best of best from Budd; some remain in Amtrak service today having been converted to the center car overhead door Baggage Cars) and likely to the days when the train X'd Ol' Man River on a car ferry rather than on Huey.

Lest we forget Sunset Limited and Empire Builder are the two longest running train names out there - and somehow I think Sunset wins.

CNJ wrote:

ryanov wrote:If New Orleans ever comes back, it won't be soon.

I seem to remember the same thing being said about the San Francisco bay area following the 1989 earthquake. And it rebuilt and survived...on that same fault line.

I don't think the financial situation in San Francisco was ever as bad as New Orleans. I could be wrong, but I believe there is money there. Flood damage is also very different than earthquake damage. Some things survive an earthquake -- here even things that are left standing generally have to be dozed or ripped apart because water got into EVERYTHING.

What I am mainly asking is, is there enough equipment to run daily trains now that it is curtailed to New Orleans? or what is the situation with the thrice weekly trains?

Mr Mikey,

The answer is a definite "maybe."

The number of SL cars out of service has stayed fairly constant the last couple of years. As one goes bad, one seems to come out of repair.

The real question is: Does Amtrak have the corporate will to restart the Sunset east of New Orleans? The obvious answer: NO.

Gilbert B Norman wrote:The following could be construed as off topic, etc. Sunset once was routed New Orleans-San Francisco...

I posted elswhere that in 1970, at least, the transcontinental sleeper via PC-SOU-SP continued to San Francisco and could be used as a day parlor car North of Los Angeles if the through passengers didn't sell it out. I don't know if more of the cars from the Sunset ran through LA

Possibly some of my thoughts on travel over "train hating" SP may prove of interest:

http://www.railroad.net/forums/viewtopic.php?t=253

What I am truly asking on a basis level, the two trainsets required to run the Sunset from New Orleans to Orlando, couldnt they be used to make service from New Orleans to LA daily? Since the Sunset wont be re-established east of NOL any time soon why not see how the sunset performs daily from NOL to LA? This is possible