I don’t recall the precise route of the City of Miami beyond IC and CofG, but track to Jackson is certainly much faster than the routes through Indiana.
Here is the 1941 schedule (courtesy of Streamliner Memories.)
Very fast to Carbondale, faster now with the Illinois project to improve this stretch. Then via Fulton down to Jackson (TN), thence to Corinth and then via Jasper (along the route of what is now I-24, I believe) to Birmingham. Here it went to C of G via Columbus, NOT Atlanta, to Waycross, where ACL took it to Jacksonville. FEC or course took it from there down the east coast; there was a connecting train on ACL that served Sanford (a logical stop for a revived train!), Orlando, and Tampa.
For comparison here is possibly the last pre-Amtrak schedule (Jan 1971). Note the west-coast connection is now via SCL, to St. Pete (with lowly bus service to anything else of interest from there!) I doubt replicating this would be anyone’s idea of a proper west-coast connection…
Is it possible to get it from Birmingham to Atlanta and then split sections for East and West coasts (of Florida)?
Oh dear God, no, no, NO.
There is already an Amtrak train that goes across from Birmingham by way of Anniston and Douglasville. It puts a major dent in the considerable freight traffic on that line. Another one would be unspeakable… and that’s before you figure out how to get yet another ‘faster’ and priority train through the hell that is Atlanta trackage.
Then you have nice congested lines out of Atlanta for your ‘sections’ – plus the fun of switching out the train in Atlanta??
If I were you, I’d set this idea aside, and never, ever revisit it. If you want to offer service to Atlanta from the northern points on that train, have them lay over or change in Birmingham or whatever. Even a modern bus ride down I-20 is preferable to the awful fate you’d get by routing the thing as you propose.
I know the Crescent is operating like it’s in a 4th world banana republic. However, if the FRA actually cares about passengers as they say in a Mission Statement (yes yes CMStPnP says no to that) maybe there is room for another track and redoing Atlanta rails. After all, they worked fine 60-70 years ago.
Something you got me thinking about, though, would be to combine the Chicago consist with the Crescent at Birmingham, operate the thing through the Atlanta confusion as one freight-train-length City of Everywhere thing, double-stop in Atlanta and cut off the Crescent after the second stop is made and send it on its way.
You’d want distributed power on what is now a ‘midtrain’ consist. That might be easily arranged on the new Siemens power…
Not sure I’d run full east and west-coast trains through… I would definitely retain a stop at Sanford or similar location that would serve the automobile traffic. You would find a logical ‘division’ point between east and west coast sections if you wanted them FAR south of Atlanta… someone more familiar with lines south of there could indicate a modern-day ideal point to make the split/join.
Sensible. I’ve never been a Florida guy but I am a Chicago area guy. I seem to recall from the (very) dim recesses of my mind that the older set of snowbirds tend to favor the West coast. That may not be true any longer but it would make the whole deal a lot simpler for an AutoTrain.
You can do that with the current equipment. In fact, VIA has done this exact sort of operation for decades between Toronto, Ottawa and Montreal. They are called “J-trains”.
http://www.railpictures.ca/?attachment_id=26545
The ‘Rupert Rocket’ (later ‘Skeena’, now unnamed No. 5 and No. 6) used to originate and terminate in Edmonton instead of Jasper, and would be coupled to the rear of the Super Continental for the eastern portion of the run.
http://www.railpictures.ca/?attachment_id=9317
You only need DP or MU cables through the whole train if you need the power of the middle unit at all times. Otherwise you can just leave it idling and set the brakes up for ‘dead haul’ (automatic cut out and independent in lead with the independent handle in the released position), then the unit will just be along for the ride and its brakes will behave like any other car.
Heh, is that the line that goes through Fort Benning, GA past the Sand Hill, Infantry training barracks. There is some C of G line that does. In 1982, it was in fairly good shape with approx 4-5 trains a day. 2007, it looked significantly downgraded from 1982, no idea as to number of trains in 2007. Thats if it is the same line…which I think it is because it says Fort Benning, GA on the CofG map. I would guess the line is 35 mph now, in 1982 it was easily 45 mph or higher. So Birmingham, AL to Americus, GA (through Columbus) is still in place but would require some money for upgrading. The railroad crossings through Fort Benning would need to be upgraded as well, they had fairly old signals…some only cross bucks. Probably Americus, GA is also still there though I have no clue as to condition to Albany. Zero clue on the now CSX connection in Albany, GA. I think the former SAL through Columbus is torn up, if not in GA then in FL. Is there still a West Coast SAL or SCL North of Tampa? Have my doubts. Remember a car trip using that routing to Naples and saw no tracks in Western Florida beyond the East West NO to Jacksonville line. Could have been I missed them but the former SCL/SAL from Georgia through West Coast of Florida from old rail maps looked like it was always a light density line traffic wise…so would not surprise me if it is all abandoned now.
My knowledge may not be current, but last I knew the old line from Fulton KY to Birmingham, was bought by the NS. They ran to Fulton, and then had trackage rights on the CN to Centralia IL, where they got on their own line into St. Louis. There’s also a short line, West Tennessee RR, that had some sort of a lease on portions of it. Some of the line may be abandoned by now, I don’t know. I had some Aunts and Uncles down that way, but they are gone now, and the last I railfanned that line was about 20 years ago. Track was in good shape then, at least through Martin TN.
If it means anything, I never see any NS trains on the CN from Cairo to Centralia anymore.