Amtrak: Empire Builder and Borealis (TCMC)

[HuskyGrad]

I thought it might be worthwhile to build a station over Central Avenue here. Then in the future you could build light rail up Central or if they wanted to build a branch line to the St. Paul Campus and Fairground they could build a station at the transitway bridge over the railroad.



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[Korh]

Out of curiosity when comparing TF and SPUD, which station to you guys think is currently as is and which one do you think has more potential if they actually had frequent train device?

[commissioner]

I'm thinking SPUD, mainly because they have more room to put trains if need be and the Empire Builder doesn't have to back up a mile or so (which I'm sure would be a deal breaker for BNSF for Target Field).

[Silophant]

Mod note: split discussion of the FRA Long-Distance study off to its own thread.

[Silophant]

All Aboard Minnesota has an update in their Q1 Newsletter. Still no start date, but apparently operating agreements are nearing completion. The service will be named the Borealis. Thematically appropriate if the long-term intent is to combine it with NLX once that gets going.

[Tcmetro]

The Horizon cars are more comfortable than the new Venture cars IMO, so I'm glad about that.

[Wezle]

Borealis service officially begins on May 21st! Looks like it'll be the same arrival and departure time on both ends (11:50am to 7:14pm).

[Silophant]

[ron_paul_its_happening.gif]

Eastbound is scheduled for 11:05 departure from Chicago with a 6:30 arrival in St. Paul, not that I booked a trip as soon as seeing the news or anything.

[twincitizen]

I just checked Amtrak's website and you can officially buy tickets for Borealis service. Interesting that the two departures from St. Paul are just 3 hours apart, 8:50am on Empire Builder and 11:50am on Borealis. Borealis is a bit quicker - 7h24m, while the Empire takes 7h55m. The westbound departures out of Chicago are 11:05am (Borealis) and 3:05pm (Empire), with identical durations as the eastbound trips.

[mulad]

Here's their announcement

https://media.amtrak.com/2024/05/introd ... milwaukee/

They also have posts up on Facebook and Instagram
https://www.facebook.com/Amtrak/posts/p ... hJsKM11Bel
https://www.instagram.com/p/C6bn-Brr4sc/

[Mdcastle]

Would have been nice if the timing had been condusive to day trips to Wisconsin Dells, but oh well. I've done quite a few car trips where I've left at 6 in the morning and gotten back home after midnight.

[Korh]

I'm guessing the 30 mins time saving comes from the chargers running around with maybe 3 or 4 horizon cars instead of the full empire builder sleeper train consist

Also here's hoping it doesn't take another 9 years to add a 3rd train, maybe if we ever get up to 4 a day SPUD will actually start to feel more like a train station, less like a bus shed

[angrysuburbanite]

Glad to see this start service. As someone who has never ridden Amtrak before, I'll be trying this out sometime, either as a day trip down to Red Wing or Winona or Chicago!

I hope that the introduction of trips during the day means SPUD will be convinced to make the concourse feel like a public space again. The one time I went into Union Depot all of the beautiful architecture was hidden behind those massive "private event" curtains and the headhouse was filled with some art show. As a member of the public, I felt like I didn't belong. I suspect the Borealis will be moderately successful, so more seating is a must at the depot.

[eazydp]

I was hoping to ride bike down to Red Wing and ride the train back. Unfortunately they do not allow bikes on board... BOO! I did write them and suggest they improve that. Still excited to try it out this summer.

[Tom H.]

I believe the annual ridership estimate for Borealis was 100k+, so some napkin math (100k divided by 365 days per year divided by two trips per day [one each way]) gets you to something like 130 expected passengers per trip. Combined with the Empire Builder trips, and that's an expectation of several hundred arrivals and departures per day, which will add some nice activation to the depot.

I think even better than the additional passengers to the depot is the continuing diversification of arrival and departure times during the day. With Borealis and Empire Builder, there are now trains arriving or departing at 9am, noon, 6:30pm, and 11pm. That's a far cry from continuous activity, but it's baby steps. Add a few more intercity and commuter routes and it might really start to feel like a hub again!

[daveybabymsp]

If nothing else it will make the screen in Union Depot with upcoming Amtrak trains a tiny bit less depressing