United Rail Passenger Alliance

1. The dog continues to eat Amtrak’s homework. Mayor Robert F. Apgar, Mayor of the City of DeLand, Florida, has written two letters to Amtrak in favor of restoring the Sunset Limited east of New Orleans. DeLand, a far suburb of Orlando, and the Amtrak stop closest to Daytona Beach, is an active Amtrak stop. It is also served by the Silver Meteor and Silver Star, which operate between New York City and Florida.The letter was written to Mayor Apgar on May 9, 2007, and is reproduced here in its entirety. Read more…

Volume 4 Number 20

1. Let’s continue our conversation about ways Amtrak can help itself – using current assets – to generate more revenue than expenses, widen its route matrix to provide a more appealing transportation product for its passengers, and lessen its long standing dependence on annual doses of free federal monies.The rules of this exercise are simple: Expand travel offerings by altering existing routes, terminals, and destinations without creating a need for many new stations (very expensive), or pioneering complete new routes (while desirable, new routes are an exercise for another time with another set of criteria and a lot of money), or creating a need for new equipment. A large part of this exercise consists of putting existing equipment to better use, or bringing warehoused equipment out of storage to become a product asset versus a stagnant asset. Read more…

1. If you’re going to make a mistake, make an embarrassing one, don’t fool around with something trivial. In the last issue of TWA, a comment was made about the Silver Fleet of the Seaboard Air Line Railroad, which consisted of three daily trains. Two of those were named correctly, but, the third was named in haste instead of in accuracy. The Seaboard’s train between New York City, Atlanta, and Birmingham was the Silver Comet, not the name applied in the last TWA. It’s tough getting a fact wrong you’ve know your entire life because of a simple typo. Thanks to the many friends who caught the embarrassing error, and apologies to all.
2. We know the Florida trains in pre-Amtrak days were always considered money-makers. Even up to the end the year before the advent of Amtrak, Seaboard Coast Line operated the Florida Special, a winter season, extra-fare train that always had good patronage. During the height of the Great Depression, this train and others of the Seaboard and Atlantic Coast Line would often run with extra scheduled sections.At the end of private passenger service, Seaboard Coast Line was operating daily into Florida from New York the Silver Meteor, Silver Star, Champion, Gulf Coast Special, and the Everglades.Between Jacksonville and New Orleans the Gulf Wind was operated, and between Chicago and Miami the City of Miami and South Wind alternated running one train on even days, and one train on odd days.

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1. Aboard Amtrak train number 92, the northbound Silver Meteor, Sunday, May 6, 2007 between Fort Lauderdale and Jacksonville, Florida:Sitting in Viewliner roomette number seven, you realize you’re in a sleeping car that is only 12 years old, but looks much older. For those of us too young to have been alive at the end of World War II, you imagine the condition of this sleeping car must have been what it was like in a Pullman Company sleeper in 1945, when every piece of rattle-trap rolling stock was pressed into service to meet the demands of wartime traffic.

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1. URPA’s “take no prisoners” numbers cruncher, Dennis Larson, has a new set of numbers for consideration. Read more…

1. Twice a year, Amtrak comes out with new national timetables, And, twice a year, it is appropriate to say one of the best working parts of Amtrak are the folks who publish Amtrak’s timetable. This spring, Amtrak has gone to a new size, a full standard magazine size. Also included in the upgrade is a better quality of newsprint on which the timetable is published, plus the benefit of full color printing throughout the book, which has allowed for a much more colorful timetable, making it look not only more appealing, but easier to use.

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1. Many thanks to all those who wrote and expressed sympathies and shared stories about our late founder and chairman, Austin Coates. Mr. Coates had friends all over America, and he made a lasting mark on American passenger rail. All comments received will be forwarded to his family.One note about Mr. Coates must be added, however. Interviewing him a few years ago to write a biography of him when he assumed the chairmanship was like trying to pull water from a stone. Mr. Coates was a modest man, and wasn’t interested in talking much about himself. A communique came today from the Florida Coalition of Rail Passengers revealing new information. Read more…

1. The man who was known for telling Capitol Hill politicians “I talk to God everyday, why can’t I talk to you?” passed away yesterday at 4 A.M. on Easter morning. Austin M. Coates, Jr., the founder and Chairman of United Rail Passenger Alliance, Inc., was 74 years old when he died on Sunday, April 8, 2007 in Hendersonville, Tennessee.In addition to being a devoted friend to many, and a true southern gentleman in every sense of the word, he was a hard fighter for what he believed in and wasn’t afraid to challenge or debate anyone about causes he fought for, including the betterment of passenger rail in the United States.

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1. Last week, TWA was fortunate to share a speech by former Federal Railroad Administration Administrator and former Chairman of the Amtrak Reform Council Gilbert E. Carmichael on the new science of intermodalism.March 23rd, the same day Mr. Carmichael was delivering his speech in Washington, the current Chairman of Corridor Capital LLC in Chicago and the former Vice Chairman of the Amtrak Reform Council, James E. Coston delivered a fascinating speech in Chicago about the future of passenger rail and the importance of long distance trains. Mr. Coston’s remarks follow. Read more…