Track Work to Affect Texas Eagle

Track work being conducted by Union Pacific will disrupt operations of Amtrak’s Texas Eagle between Feb. 24 and March 10.

In a service advisory, Amtrak said that during that time Train No. 21 will detour between Texarkana, Arkansas, and Mineola, Texas, with passengers bound for intermediate stops between those cities riding a bus.

That includes stations in Marshall and Longview, Texas. It also affects passengers riding a thruway bus to Shreveport, Louisiana, that connects with the Eagle at Longview.

Affected passengers will detrain at Mineola and board Amtrak Thruway Bus 6121 to their destination. Bus 6121 will originate at Mineola instead of Longview.

Amtrak said that Train No. 21 may be delayed up to 15 to 20 minutes at Mineola to hold for connecting buses.

Track Work to Affect Lincoln Service, Texas Eagle

Track work being performed on May 4 by Union Pacific will affect certain Lincoln Service trains and the Texas Eagle between Chicago and St. Louis.

Train 300 will be cancelled with no alternate transportation provided. Train 302 will be canceled with bus service being provided to intermediate stops in Illinois at Alton, Carlinville, Springfield, Lincoln, Bloomington-Normal, Pontiac, Dwight, Joliet and Summit.

Bus 5002 will make limited intermediate stops at Alton, Springfield, Bloomington-Normal and Joliet.

Trains 301 and 303 will be cancelled. Alternate transportation will be provided for missed stops will be as follows

Bus 3301 will make all stops for Train 301 at Joliet, Pontiac, Bloomington-Normal, Springfield and Alton. Bus 3303 will make all stops for Train 303 at Summit, Joliet, Dwight, Pontiac, Bloomington-Normal, Lincoln, Springfield, Carlinville and Alton. Bus 5003 will make limited intermediate stops at Joliet, Bloomington-Normal, Springfield and Alton.

The Texas Eagle will detour between Chicago and St. Louis and miss all scheduled intermediate stops. Passengers traveling to points other than intermediate stations in Illinois will remain on the train.

No alternative transportation is being provided to the missed intermediate stations in Illinois. However, passengers for those points will be able to ride Lincoln Service trains or buses.

Nos. 21 and 22 may experience up to an hour of delay on the detour route. Buses may arrive or depart stations earlier than the train schedule.

 

Texas Eagle Delayed 10 Hours En route to St. Louis

A detouring Texas Eagle this week got stuck behind a disabled freight train on Monday in Tuscola, Illinois, and wound up being delayed 10 hours.

The westbound Eagle had departed Chicago on time and was detouring over the former Chicago & Eastern Illinois route of Union Pacific due to track work being done on its regular route via Springfield, Illinois.

No. 21 did not arrive in St. Louis until 3:30 a.m. An Amtrak spokesperson said that a two-hour delay was expected, but not a 10-hour one.

“We were alerted by Amtrak that there might be some delays because apparently there is work on the track,” said passenger Janelle Jones. “Our first delay was about a three-hour standstill. They kept us pretty apprised of what was going on, they let people off the train for a smoke break and what not.

“Then we traveled for about an hour and then we stopped for another three hours. There was a lot of communication at that point that we were gonna get started as soon as possible. We rolled for about five minutes and then the communication stopped and we were at a standstill for another three hours. No one would tell us why we weren’t moving. Apparently, the crew had to switch out because they had been on board for 12 hours, so they were tired.”

Amtrak officials could not say when crew change occurred.

Jones said the café car was open until about 10 p.m.. “There were some hungry people on the train,” Jones said.

 

Texas Eagle to Detour in Texas May 24-June 21

The detours just keep coming for Amtrak’s Texas Eagle. Nos. 21 and 22 will detour in in Texas between Longview and Taylor starting May 24 and extending through June 21.

Passengers at intermediate stations will begin or end their journey on a chartered bus.

The buses will travel southbound from Longview and northbound from Austin.

The Eagle will not be serving Dallas or Fort Worth, but will be using a freight-only route that will be faster than the train’s normal route.

No. 21 will use a former Cotton Belt route between Big Sandy and Tyler, then a former Southern Pacific route to Corsicana, then the former Texas & New Orleans to Hearne, Texas, before getting on the former Missouri Pacific west to Taylor.

No. 22 will use the ex-MoPac from Taylor to Longview via Hearne, Buffalo, Palestine and Jacksonville.

“This detour will provide the opportunity for some unusual mileage for rare mileage fans,” Amtrak said in an email sent to ticketed passengers affected by the Texas detour.

No. 21 will depart all stations between Chicago and Longview one hour later than scheduled, but is expected to resume its regular schedule at Taylor.

No. 22 will operate on its regular schedule from San Antonio to Taylor, but run an hour earlier from Longview to Chicago.

The detour has been prompted by extensive track work by Union Pacific between Longview and Dallas.

The Texas detour will come on the heels of a detour between Chicago and St. Louis between May 16 and May 23, although No. 22 will use the detour route through May 24.

That rerouting involves the former Chicago & Eastern Illinois passenger route via Pana and Villa Grove, Illinois.

Chicago-St. Louis Corridor Disruptions Set

Amtrak has announced a series of service disruptions and detours on its Chicago-St. Louis corridor between May 15 and 24 due to track work being undertaken to bring higher train speeds to the route.

Lincoln Service trains 305 and 307 on May 15 will operate from Chicago to Springfield, Illinois, with bus service between Springfield and Carlinville, Alton and St. Louis.

Between May 16 and 23 all Lincoln Service trains will operate between Chicago and Springfield only with buses replacing all trains except No. 300 between Springfield and St. Louis.

On May 24, Nos. 300 and 302 will operate between Springfield and Chicago only. Bus service will be provided for No. 302 from St. Louis to Alton, Carlinville and Springfield.

In a service advisory, Amtrak said that the charter bus service replacing Nos. 302, 304 and 306 will depart earlier than their respective trains. Passengers are advised to pay close attention to the bus departure time on your ticket.

The westbound Texas Eagle will depart Chicago two hours early at 11:45 a.m. between May 16 and May 23 and detour via the former Chicago & Eastern Illinois route of UP between Chicago and St. Louis.

No. 21 is scheduled to depart St. Louis westbound at its regularly scheduled time of 7:55 p.m.

The detour route will miss the scheduled intermediate stops in Illinois of Joliet, Pontiac, Bloomington-Normal, Lincoln, Springfield, Carlinville and Alton.

Texas Eagle passengers are advised to travel instead on Lincoln Service trains or buses.

The eastbound Texas Eagle will operate as scheduled from St. Louis to Chicago between May 16 and 23, but will be detouring over the same route as its westbound counterpart.

No. 22 will miss its scheduled stops at Alton, Carlinville, Springfield, Lincoln, Bloomington-Normal, Pontiac and Joliet.

Passengers on No. 22 traveling to Chicago from point south of St. Louis will remain on the train.

Those traveling to the missed intermediate point on No. 22 will instead be transported by bus.

Amtrak said Nos. 21 and 22 may encounter delays of up to 45 minutes while traveling on the detour in addition to the two hours of time added to the train’s timetable in each direction.

Operating Issues Plague Amtrak Trains

Amtrak long distance trains serving the Midwest have been hit with a long list of woes that have caused service disruptions, detours and cancellations.

The Texas Eagle was forced to detour in southern Missouri after a washout on its route via the Union Pacific’s Iron Mountain Subdivision prompted a detour on the former Cotton Belt route between St. Louis and Polar Bluff, Missouri.

Consequently Nos. 21 and 22 missed the scheduled stop at Arcadia Valley, Missouri, and ran late, arriving in Chicago 11 hours late on Sunday.

The Southwest Chief was delayed by a spring snowstorm between Dodge City, Kansas, and Lamar, Colorado, on Sunday that led to No. 3 being more than 15 hours late arriving in Los Angeles.

BNSF personnel provided grade crossing protecting during whiteout conditions.

A head-on collision of two Canadian National trains at Money, Mississippi, on Sunday caused the City of New Orleans to be terminated en route.

Passengers were taken from bus from Memphis to New Orleans on Sunday and Monday.

Northbound passengers rode a bus from Jackson, Mississippi, to Memphis on both days.

A BNSF derailment on Monday led to the Empire Builder being detoured in both directions. Nos. 7 and 8 were expected to detour on Tuesday over a Union Pacific route between Spokane, Washington, and Sandpoint, Idaho.

SB Texas Eagle Facing Delays in Texas

Amtrak is warning that Union Pacific track work in Texas may delay the southbound Texas Eagle between Taylor and San Antonio through March 15.

Delays of up to an hour might occur. The northbound Eagle is not expected to be effected.

Passengers can check the status of the train on Amtrak.com, through a free mobile apps or by calling 800-USA-RAIL (800-872-7245) for up-to-date departure and arrival times.

Amtrak passengers can also sign up for text and email delay notifications when making a reservation.