Amtrak Empire Service (New York State)

RandallW wrote: ↑Sat Nov 26, 2022 6:47 am The 28x trains carry cafes. It's the 23x trains that do not offer cafe services.

Once again as I have mentioned before cafe service was close to returning to all Empire service trains. Like spring of 2020 close. Amtrak was busily cleaning and preparing the commissary in the ALB station. The only thing that had yet to happen was the official job bids hiring. COVID killed that and it has yet to return. NYS has no money, we are just getting trains back that we were running pre-COVID.

The only part of the service that NYS is currently is not happy about, Amtrak is not going north to Montreal.

New York State gave 100s of millions of Dollars to CSX for track upgrades and yet we have only 3 trains going in each direction Buffalo/NF-Syracuse and Albany---

What does that have to do with CSXT? The tracks are fine. You're missing one, 4 EB Amtraks went through Fairport yesterday.

sextant wrote: ↑Sat Nov 26, 2022 8:16 am New York State gave 100s of millions of Dollars to CSX for track upgrades and yet we have only 3 trains going in each direction Buffalo/NF-Syracuse and Albany---

They did??? For what??? Same speeds poor dispatching

4 westbound 63 281 283 49
4 eastbound 280 284 48 64
Current train numbers have been for quite a while except for a brief period during COVID. Unless you want to count the LSL as long distance but its still crewed by Empire service T&E all the way to Buffalo. The Engineer side has it to Toledo I believe.

RandallW wrote: ↑Sat Nov 26, 2022 6:47 am The 28x trains carry cafes. It's the 23x trains that do not offer cafe services.

I stand corrected. Still... should be a separate line.

STrRedWolf wrote: ↑Sat Nov 26, 2022 2:59 pm

RandallW wrote: ↑Sat Nov 26, 2022 6:47 am The 28x trains carry cafes. It's the 23x trains that do not offer cafe services.

I stand corrected. Still... should be a separate line.

And to clarify (though most probably know this), ALL Empire Service trains actually HAVE a cafe car. It's simply not staffed for any that originate or terminate in Albany. (the Berkshire Flyer was an exception that went "beyond" Albany but also was not staffed).

So the real key as said above is "do not offer cafe services". It's money for the staff. The equipment is there.

Railjunkie wrote: ↑Sat Nov 26, 2022 7:57 am
Once again as I have mentioned before cafe service was close to returning to all Empire service trains. Like spring of 2020 close. Amtrak was busily cleaning and preparing the commissary in the ALB station. The only thing that had yet to happen was the official job bids hiring. COVID killed that and it has yet to return. NYS has no money, we are just getting trains back that we were running pre-COVID.

That's interesting, but sad that it took that long to even try to get it restored. We're talking 15 years or more! Hard to believe it's been that long, but cafe car service elimination and the short lived Subway debacle were right after the Turboliner fiasco. My thoughts on how New York is basically a cautionary tale for high speed rail proponents, policymakers, and taxpayers in general: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/high-spe ... w-johnson/