United Rail Passenger Alliance

Volume 5 Number 22

1. Ah, summertime! Those lazy, hazy days when America hits the rails and roads. Here’s an enroute firsthand report from a dedicated railfan who had just a bit too much of Amtrak’s hospitality. Read more…

Volume 5 Number 21

PLEASE NOTE: URPA is experiencing some cosmic hiccups in our computer system’s subscription and distribution program. Therefore, if you have recently cancelled your subscription, or recently added a subscription, you’re not being ignored by the humans on this end, but the computer program is being cranky. We’re working as fast as we can to debug this program. Thanks for your understanding.

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A comparison of the Empire Builder to the Hiawatha Service trains:

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Volume 5 Number 20

1. We need to have a very serious conversation – right now. Let’s plunge in. Read more…

Volume 5 Number 19

1. “There’s trouble my friend, right here in River City,” sang Tony Award winner Robert Preston first on Broadway in 1957 and on the silver screen in 1962′s The Music Man. Preston was playing Professor Harold Hill, who had just arrived in fictional River City, Iowa on the Rock Island Railroad. The setting was pre-World War I, and the trouble was River City’s children were trying out near-beer, known by the brand name of Bevo, and reading a salacious monthly magazine called “Captain Billy’s Whiz-Bang.” The alleged real fear Professor Hill was promoting was the satanic influence of a new pool table just arrived in town in a pool hall, which was unfortunately owned by River City’s mayor. Read more…

Volume 5 Number 17

1. When the telephone rings here at URPA World Headquarters, one never knows who could be on the other end of the line. These days, it’s often a reporter, looking for a quote about the correlation between high gas prices and Amtrak ridership. (If you believe all reporters call with an open mind about a story, and are not looking for a specific quote to back up what they believe, I have a bridge in Brooklyn I’d like to sell you while the price is still cheap.) Read more…

Volume 5 Number 16

1. Here’s a follow-up to the saga of commuter rail in Central Florida, as reported in the previous This Week at Amtrak. Read more…

Volume 5 Number 15

1. New commuter rail in Central Florida went down on Friday in the Florida Senate, but it may not be out. Read more…

Volume 5 Number 14

1. Mayday! Mayday! Yes, it’s May Day, and Amtrak is having its 37th anniversary of operations, and it still needs all the help it can get. Read more…

Volume 5 Number 13

1. Amtrak has of late been wooing various parts of these united states trying to drum up new business for the corporation. Instead of looking to expand the most profitable parts of Amtrak’s business — the long distance train network — Amtrak is seeking to have more states and commonwealths simply hand it money from the various state treasuries to run local and regional passenger trains. Read more…