*** TRAIN INFORMATION                       (John Ockerbloom, 9/13/95)

[This file was written in 1995, and reflects the timetables and fares
 in effect then. 
 Exact details of times and fares have changed substantially since then,
 so this file should be taken only as a general description.
 For the latest routing and schedule information, see Amtrak's Web site at
 http://www.amtrak.com/]

With the recent loss of the Broadway Limited, train service to Pittsburgh
is not what it used to be.  But it can still be a useful way to get around
when driving or flying is impractical.  Below I describe the Amtrak routes
out of Pittsburgh, give their most recent schedules, and talk a little about
general things you might want to know when riding the trains.

  Even after the recent cuts in passenger service, Pittsburgh still has
trains serving Chicago and the midwest; Washington and the south; and
Philadelphia, New York, and the northeast.  And the train is still
my favorite form of public transportation.  You can sit in comfortable seats
(with much more legroom than you get in a plane, car, or bus), rest or
enjoy meals in the lounge or dining cars, take in the scenery, and socialize
with the other passengers on board, many of whom are also students.

  If you get excursion round-trip fares, the fares are reasonable as well;
for instance, round-trip excursion fares to New York or Chicago can be
had for $100 or less.  Seats at these fares can go fast, though, so it's good
to make reservations or buy tickets as early as you can.  The lowest fares
are not available during certain blackout periods (such as the summer months,
and a few days around Thanksgiving and Christmas.)

  The Amtrak station in Pittsburgh is on Liberty Avenue just east of
Grant Street downtown.  To get there, you can take one of the buses
downtown, get off at Grant St., and walk a few blocks north.  Right after
you pass the Busway entrance, the road bends right, and the Amtrak station
will be on the right.  (If you're carrying heavy luggage, you may prefer
getting a ride there.)  Note that if you're going there to get tickets,
don't go in the evening, because the ticket office is closed after 5pm
(though it should reopen for the Capitol Limited trains).

  The condensed schedules below only reflect major stops.  For a full
listing of stops, see the file "/afs/cs.cmu.edu/user/spok/train-stops".
For complete Amtrak schedules, see http://libertynet.org/~dvarp/Amtrak/
on the Web, or Amtrak's own Web site at http://www.amtrak.com/.

  Here are the routes out of Pittsburgh:

EAST AND NORTHEAST

  Two trains per day (the Three Rivers and the Pennsylvanian) head east
through Pennsylvania to Philadelphia, and then onward to Penn Station in
New York.  Intermediate stops include places like Altoona, Harrisburg,
and Trenton.  Connections are available in Philadelphia or New York
to Wilmington, Baltimore, Washington, Atlantic City, New England points,
Hudson Valley points, or Long Island (via LIRR).

  The trains have a snack-cafe car for food.  There is no checked baggage,
and reservations are not required.

Condensed schedule:

 Eastbound

   Three Rivers:            Lv Pgh. 7:00 am;  Ar. Phl. 2:51 pm; Ar. NY 4:50 pm
   Pennsylvanian (Mon-Sat): Lv Pgh. 10:30 am; Ar. Phl. 6:24 pm; Ar. NY 8:17 pm
   Pennsylvanian (Sunday):  Lv Pgh. 12:15 pm; Ar. Phl. 8:09 pm; Ar. NY 9:59 pm

 Westbound

   Pennsylvanian:           Lv NY 7:15 am;  Lv Phl. 9:15 am; Ar Pgh. 5:11 pm
   Three Rivers:            Lv NY 12:20 pm; Lv Phl. 2:15 pm; Ar Pgh. 10:10 pm

Connecting cities:

  Wilmington, Baltimore, other NE Corridor points south of Phila.:
   Take one of the trains above to Philadelphia.  Change to one of
   the southbound NE corridor trains, which run about once an hour
   until midnight.  You can also catch trains that will reach Philadelphia
   in time for the return trip. For Washington, see also the "Southeast
   and South" section for more direct service.  If you're only going
   to Wilmington, you can also catch SEPTA commuter rail out of Phila.
   Call SEPTA to see if they are running Wilmington trains
   when you arrive; I'm not particularly familiar with the Philly-area
   commuter system.

  Atlantic City:  New Jersey Transit runs trains out of Philadelphia
   to Atlantic City.  Through ticketing is available from Amtrak.
   Call Amtrak or New Jersy Transit (201-762-5000) for more information
   on schedules and fares.

  New England:  Take the Three Rivers to Philadelpha, and switch to the
   4:15 train.  It splits in New Haven, with the halves going to Boston
   and Springfield.  
     For the Springfield line, you can also catch the 7:31 from the
   Pennsylvanian any day except Sunday.
    For points between New York and New Haven (inclusive) take whatever
   of the above looks good, or ride to New York and switch to Metro-North
   (see below).

  Long Island:  Take either train to New York, and then catch a Long
   Island Railroad train, which leaves from elsewhere in Penn Station.
   A separate ticket is required.

  Hudson Valley:  Take either train to New York, then switch to an Empire
   Service train.  These trains now leave from Penn Station, so you don't
   have to change stations in New York.  Empire Service trains go as far north
   as Albany-Rensselaer, and some continue along the Mohawk Valley towards
   Buffalo.  (If you're going beyond Albany, you'll need to make reservations,
   and on the weekend you'll need to take the Three Rivers to New York, unless
   you're willing to wait in New York till 11:30 pm.)  Going back, you'll
   need to take the Three Rivers back from New York, as none of the
   Hudson Valley trains get in early enough to catch the Pennsylvanian,
   unless you travel in the early morning Sunday.
   Call for reservations.
    If you're not going farther than Poughkeepsie, see "Metro-North" below.

  Metro-North (Serves lower Hudson Valley, southwest CT):  Take either
   train to New York, go to Grand Central Station, and catch the appropriate
   Metro-North train.  A separate ticket is required, though on the Hudson
   Valley line you can now get a combined ticket through Amtrak.  At least
   on the New Haven line, trains leave at least once an hour until past 1 am.
     You'll have to get from Penn to Grand Central station, though.
   You can do this by cab, walking, or subway.  By subway, take the
   northbound (uptown) 1-2-3 line one stop to Times Square, then hop
   an 'S' train to Grand Central.  You should allow at least half an hour
   to get from station to station, though I've done it in less.   (One trick:
   buy extra tokens to use those times when you're in a hurry.)
     Seth Kadesh writes: "Metro-North trains also depart from Hoboken.  To
   get to Hoboken, get off at Newark (stop immediately before NYC).  Pick
   up a PATH train ($1).  Transfer once onto another PATH train (there's
   only two routes) to get to Hoboken.  The Metro-North trains are upstairs.
   Hoboken [also] has a couple of NJ Transit trains".  I do not know
   which Metro-North lines depart from Hoboken, but it's probably a
   west-bank-of-the-Hudson route.

     Vermont/New Hampshire/Montreal:  The famed Montrealer has been
   discontinued due to service cuts.  I'm told that there may still be
   connecting bus service to Vermont from Springfield, but you can't
   connect to it the same day as you leave from Pittsburgh.

SOUTHEAST AND SOUTH

  The Capitol Limited travels directly between Pittsburgh and Washington, D.C.
You can connect in Washington for trains running farther south.  (If you're
traveling in coach, you might not even have to change trains; one car on the
Capitol Limited gets linked up to the Silver Star).  You'll have to
get up early, though: the outbound train leaves Pittsburgh at 6:00 am.  If you
need to leave later in the day, and are only going as far as Washington,
you could try taking a train to Philadelphia and then catching a Northeast
Corridor train south, but this will take much longer.
  The Capitol Limited is an all-reserved long-distance train.  As such,
it has full-service dining cars, lots of legroom, checked baggage, and
sleepers.  (You may want to consider using the sleepers, with its schedule.)
It now runs with double-decker "Superliner" cars, including a "dome car"
for nice high-level views in the daytime.

Condensed schedule:

  Eastbound:  Lv. Pgh 6:00 am; Ar. DC    1:12 pm
  Westbound:  Lv. DC  4:05 pm; Ar. Pgh. 11:17 pm

Connecting cities (reservations usually necessary):

[Connecting city information for the south is out of date.  Call
 Amtrak to find the latest information.]

  Virginia:  A few trains serve Fredericksburg and Richmond.  Your quickest
   connection is the Palmetto, but the connection is tight, so you may need
   to use the Silver Star instead.  The Old Dominion also goes to
   Williamsburg and Newport News, with a connecting shuttle bus to Norfolk
   and Virginia Beach, but doesn't leave till 5:05 pm (or 5:40pm on Saturdays
   and Sundays).  To get to Charlottesville from DC, take the Cardinal on
   Sunday, Wednesday, and Friday, and the Crescent on other days.  (The
   Crescent doesn't leave until the evening though.)  To return from there,
   take the Crescent, which runs in the morning. (All these trains make some
   intermediate stops as well).  If you go out on the Palmetto, return on
   the Silver Star.

  Raleigh, Columbia, Florida points:  The Silver Star goes all the way to Tampa
   or Miami, with many intermediate stops.  This is an overnight train.
   Sleepers are available.  (One of the coach cars on the Capitol Limited
   gets joined onto the Silver Star in Washington, so you don't even have
   to leave the train in DC.)

  Charleston:  The Palmetto leaves from Washington at 11:35 am, not long
   after the Capitol Limited gets in.  (If the Capitol gets in late, you can
   use the Silver Meteor instead, or the Silver Star if you're not getting
   off in South Carolina or in N. Carolina after Rocky Mount.)  It takes the
   same route as the Silver Star, but follows a more coastal route between
   Rocky Mount, NC, and Savannah, GA.  Going back, you'll have to take the
   Silver Meteor if you're getting on between Savannah and Rocky Mount;
   otherwise, take the Silver Star.

  Greensboro, Atlanta, Birmingham, Mobile, New Orleans:  The Crescent
   leaves Washington at 6:50 pm (on the way down, you can spend the
   afternoon touring Washington; the train station is only a few blocks
   away from the Capitol and the Smithsonian).  It's also an overnight
   train, with sleepers available.  It makes many intermediate stops.
   In Birmingham, part of the train (the Gulf Breeze) splits off to go
   to Montgomery and Mobile; the rest of the train continues to New Orleans.

WESTBOUND

   The Capitol Limited is now the only westbound train from Pittsburgh.
It leaves late, arriving in Chicago early the next morning.  Sleeper
compartments are are available on the trains, though they can be
expensive.
   The Capitol Limited leaves Pittsburgh at 11:57 pm, cutting northwest
to Alliance and Cleveland.  From there, it follows the lakeshore line
through Toledo and South Bend (with a few intermediate stops) before
arriving at Chicago at 9:00 am.  Connecting shuttle buses along the route
serve various Michigan points, as well as Fort Wayne, and might also provide
connections to VIA Rail Canada.
   Chicago is a major railway hub.  From there, you can catch trains to
central and southern Illinois, St. Louis and Kansas City, and Wisconsin, as
well as long-distance trains to Seattle, Portland, Minneapolis, Denver,
Salt Lake, San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Texas.

Condensed schedule:

  Westbound:

    Capitol Limited:  Lv. Pgh. 11:57 pm, Ar. Tol. 5:09 am, Ar. Chi. 9:00 am

  Eastbound:

    Capitol Limited:  Lv. Chi. 6:50 pm, Lv. Tol. 12:10 am, Ar. Pgh. 5:20 am

Connecting cities:

  Detroit, Dearborn, Ann Arbor, E. Lansing, Ontario:  Amtrak shuttle bus
   connects with the Capitol Limited in Toledo.  Connections may be available
   in Detroit to southern Ontario points on VIA rail Canada, on a joint
   venture with Amtrak; call for details.  (The timetable mentions it, but
   does not go into detail.  Reservations would be required, as well as the
   appropriate documentation for crossing the border.)

  Milwaukee:  Change to a Hiawatha Service train in Chicago (several run daily).

  Madison:  Change to an Amtrak shuttle bus in Chicago.  The connections
   may be a long wait; call Amtrak to find out what they are currently.

  Springfield, St. Louis, Kansas City: Take the Capitol to Chicago, and then
   catch the Ann Rutledge, which serves those cities and various intermediate
   points.  On the way back, you need to take an early morning train in order
   to be back in Chicago in time for the train back to Pittsburgh.  From
   Kansas City, take the Southwest Chief.  From St. Louis or Springfield,
   take the Texas Eagle.  Both trains require reservations.

  Omaha:  The California Zephyr and the Pioneer leave Chicago at 3:05,
   arriving in Omaha at 11:36 pm.  Reservations are required, and the train
   does not run every day of the week.

  Minneapolis/St. Paul:  The Empire Builder leaves Chicago at 3:15, arriving
   in St. Paul at 11:23 pm.  Reservations are required.  

  There are also several long-distance trains leaving daily from Chicago.
   They all require reservations, and have sleepers, full service dining
   cars, double-decker Superliner cars, and domed lounge cars with hospitality
   hours and movies.  Depending on which train you pick, you can go to
   Seattle, Portland, Glacier Park, Denver, Salt Lake, San Francisco,
   Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Albuquerque, Flagstaff, Little Rock, Dallas/Ft. 
   Worth, Houston, San Antonio, Phoenix, or any of dozens of intermediate
   locations.  Call Amtrak for more details.

GENERAL INFORMATION

    The best round-trip fares are generally the excursion fares, which can
  cost as little as $1 more than the undiscounted one-way fare.  They're
  pretty easy to get on unreserved trains, but on all-reserved trains like
  the Capitol Limited, you do sometimes have to call well ahead of time to
  get them, especially if you're traveling at a busy time.  Unlike the
  airlines, there are no fixed advance times for buying discounted tickets,
  but on reserved trains, once the cheapest seats sell out, they're gone
  for good.
    Most Amtrak tickets are fully refundable if you use no segments,
  and cancel in advance in the case of reserved tickets.  If you've used
  part of an Amtrak ticket, the remainder may be partially refundable, but
  this varies depending on the fare plan.  You can also, in most cases,
  change the departure times on reserved ticket segments without penalty,
  if you call before your originally-scheduled train departs, and if
  seats are available on the new train in your fare class.

    If you're traveling long-distance, or want to visit several cities,
  you may want to get an "All Aboard America" ticket.  This lets you visit
  up to three cities in various regions for a single fixed price, if you
  reserve far enough ahead to get the discount seats.  If you're willing to
  buy your tickets nonrefundable, you might get an extra break on the price.
    You can get a ticket for anywhere east of the Mississippi, for anywhere
  east of the Rockies, or for anywhere Amtrak goes.  A recent fare for
  the "east of Mississippi" option is $179.  The whole-country option
  is somewhere around $259, but it can vary depending on time of year.

    If you want to sleep en route, you can usually do so in your coach seat,
  since the overnight trains have lots of leg room, raised leg-rests, and
  curtains.  Amtrak will provide pillows; bring your own blanket, or buy
  one on board.
    If you'd prefer, you can also get a sleeper on the long-distance trains.
  The cheapest arrangement is the one-person Slumbercoach, which gives you
  a small compartment with a chair, a fold-out bed (with bedding), a
  toilet and sink, and luggage space.  Unfortunately, these compartments
  were not available on the Capitol Limited when I rode it last; I'm not
  sure if the new Superliners have them. Slumbercoaches *are* available on
  at least some of the Florida trains.  In any case, the overnight trains have 
  compartments of various sizes, with the price varying depending on the
  size and on how far you're going.  The price for anything larger than a
  Slumbercoach also covers all your meals.

    Meals do cost extra unless you're traveling in one of the non-Slumbercoach
  sleepers.  You get table service meals on most of the reserved
  trains, and the meals are actually quite good (not as good as a nice
  restaurant, but much better than airline or fast food), and not too
  expensive.  A snack bar, serving sandwiches, drinks, and snacks, is
  on nearly all Amtrak trains.
    Smoking policies were in flux last I checked.  The Capitol Limited,
  and many short-haul trains (including many Northeast Corridor trains)
  prohibit smoking altogether.  I'm told that all other trains that travel
  through Pittsburgh now do the same. Those trains that allow smoking only
  permit it in a designated smoking car, in a sleeping compartment,
  or in sections of the lounges.

    The number for Amtrak reservations and information is (800) USA-RAIL.
  (That's 800-872-7245, if you don't have a phone-pad with letters.)
  You should double-check your itinerary with them, even if you're not
  getting reservations.  (This information might have gone out of date
  when you want to travel.)  Some of the operators are quite good at
  finding information and checking things for you, so if you happen to
  get a clueless operator the first time (it happens occasionally) you
  may want to try calling again a little later on.

    Much of the information in this file is taken from the Amtrak System
  Timetables.  They come out twice a year (the Fall/Winter 1995-6 timetable
  should be out in October), and they're quite handy things to have if you
  use the train a lot.  You should be able to get them from the Amtrak station
  downtown, if you ask nicely.  They're also available by mail from Amtrak.
  If you call, make sure you get the full "system" timetables, for both
  the northeastern routes and for the "national" routes.

    If you have any questions, corrections, or are confused about anything
  said here, send me email.

				John Ockerbloom (ockerbloom@cs.cmu.edu)