Amtrak sets debut for second daily trip of Pennsylvanian train
Added Pennsylvanian route scheduled to start in November
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A second daily round-trip passenger train between Pittsburgh and New York City will begin operation in mid-November, according to a news release Monday from Gov. Josh Shapiro's office.
Amtrak's board had previously announced the addition of the second Pennsylvanian at a meeting July 29.
The addition of a second round-trip train through Altoona is the result of cooperation in recent years between Amtrak, PennDOT and Norfolk Southern, with state and federal money paying for station upgrades and right-of-way improvements like bypass tracks, crossover switches and elimination of choke points along the NS-owned line between Harrisburg and Pittsburgh, so the additional passenger service doesn't interfere with freight operations, according to a governor's office news release.
The second Pennsylvanian will enable residents of the Altoona area to go to and from Pittsburgh and Harrisburg for tourism, recreation, medical appointments, shows and events on a schedule more convenient than is currently possible by train, although it won't enable daily commuting from Altoona to Pittsburgh, according to Mark Spada, president of Western Pennsylvanians for Passenger Rail.
It might enable Altoonans to go to Harrisburg to conduct some business and return the same day, according to Spada.
It might take an additional two daily round trips to provide true commuter service between Altoona and Pittsburgh, Altoona and Harrisburg and between Johnstown and those two larger cities -- fulfilling the wish that "we can take the train out in the morning and back at night," said Rob Gleason of Johnstown, an Amtrak board member.
As the chairman of a new Amtrak committee for rail expansion, it's his goal to get there eventually, Gleason said.
Gleason studied at the University of Pennsylvania in the 1960s, and would go back and forth between Philadelphia and
Johnstown routinely by train, as there were 24 passenger trains per day that stopped in Johnstown -- and Altoona -- at that time, he said.
The right of way improvements, coupled with the addition of the second train, will help with reliability, which is key to earning customer loyalty, according to Steve McKnight, CEO of the Altoona Blair County Development Corp.
Prior to those improvements, there were frequent delays due to the priority given to freight service, officials said previously.
The resulting unreliability pushed people to use their cars or to fly, even though all else being equal, track-based railroading ought to be highly reliable, according to McKnight.
The ultimate gold standard for passenger rail service is the high-speed intercity system in Europe, where there are 10 to 20 departures from any given location daily, according to McKnight.
While the addition of the second Pennsylvanian still leaves passenger service far short of that ideal, it's nevertheless "a step in the right direction," Gleason said.
"This is the beginning," Gleason said.
The ridership that the second Pennsylvanian draws will be key to any further service advances, according to Spada.
Even with a single additional round-trip train, scheduling flexibility is limited by the need of Norfolk Southern to slot passenger trains in a way that doesn't impinge on freight scheduling, according to Spada.
There is also Amtrak's reluctance to schedule arrivals in New York City or Pittsburgh in the middle of the night, according to Gleason.
Passenger rail is making a comeback, especially with young people, according to Gleason and Altoona Mayor Matt Pacifico.
This year has been a record one for Amtrak, with 37 million riders, Gleason said.
Recently, 70 people boarded a passenger train at Johnstown, he said.
On a train, you can work or read or relax in a way that's impossible if you're driving, and train travel is inherently less dependent on the weather than flying -- while also being free of the boarding hassles of air travel, Gleason said.
Monday's announcement from the governor's office was "really exciting," said state Sen. Judy Ward, R-Blair, chairwoman of the State Senate Transportation Committee.
"It's great news for Altoona and for our region," Pacifico said.
The Shapiro administration has invested $80 million in the infrastructure improvements, while the federal government has contributed $143 million, according to the governor's office news release.
The Altoona Amtrak station is slated for accessibility upgrades next year, Ward said.
"The expansion of Pennsylvanian service demonstrates what is possible when public and private partners work together toward a shared vision," said Norfolk Southern Senior Vice President and Chief Strategy Officer Mike McClellan in an email provided by NS spokeswoman Heather Garcia.
Mirror Staff Writer William Kibler is at 814-949-7038.