53 replies to this topic

[Sam Damon]

From the Strib in MSP:

By the time the last Amtrak passenger trains ran between the Twin Cities and Duluth in 1985, the 150-mile trip took four hours, trains were often late, public subsidies were draining and ridership was falling.

Now 22 years later, county officials along the old route -- with the blessing of Jim Oberstar, the influential Minnesota congressman -- are trying to revive the rail line because they say times have changed. But the project is already raising concerns that its sudden emergence is competing for money with other, more advanced rail initiatives. The proposal also is forcing one county commissioner to explain whether his support is linked to any personal land holdings.

More here.

[AmtrakFan]

I hope it happens but what would be nice if MN, WI and IL could get the $$$ to team up and have a Chicago-Minneapolis Service like leave Chicago like at 8:00AM and leave Minneapolis like at 2:45PM would require 2 sets but it would be worth it.

[Sloan]

In June of 2006, the expectation was to have the service up and running by 2010. Maybe fans of Duluth's native son, Bob Dylan, can lobby for a special train so they can view their idol's boyhood home. Sloan

[WICT106]

It would be realy nice to get the Duluth trains to have more than one frequency of service, be competitive with drive time from the Twin Cities, and go all the way into Chicago, a la the 1970s - early 1980s North Star. this assumes that there is funding for this and the other trains.

[KevinKorell]

At various times, the North Star was either a separate CHI-Duluth train, or a section off the Empire Builder. It also ran at one point as a shuttle connecting with the Empire Builder in MSP.

[jphjaxfl]

I lived in the Twin Cities when the North Star was running. It originally just ran to Superior Wisconsin and was later extended into Duluth. It usually left the Minneapolis and later the St Paul Midway Station about 8:00AM and arrived in Duluth around 11:30AM and left Duluth around 5:30 PM arriving back in the Twin Cities around 9:00PM. When it operated as a separate train, the timekeeping was fairly dependable. When the Northcoast Hiawatha was discountinued west of the Twin Cities, the Northstar became an overnight train from Duluth to the Twin Cities to Chicago. It was on about the same schedule from Twin Cities to Duluth and return and then overnight from the Twin Cities to Chicago. It carried a heritage sleeper, Amdinette and Amfleet coaches. It was a great alternative to the Empire Builder between the Twin Cities and Chicago. The problem with the through Chicago-Duluth operation was that the train was frequently late arriving in the Twin Cities from Chicago, thus local passengers headed for Duluth were delayed. As a local Twin Cities to Duluth operation, the train was very popular for weekend trips from the Twin Cities to Duluth. Hotels in downtown Duluth offered special weekend packages. With the frequent lateness, some of the local Twin Cities to Duluth patronage went away. The state of Minnesota did away with the financial support in one of their budget cutting years and that was the end. To make the route succesful, two daily round trips are needed and that can be done with one set of equipment if the tracks are improved so that the train can travel at higher speeds.

[Sam Damon]

This update courtesy of the ABC Newspapers, Coon Rapids, MN:

Passenger rail bound for Duluth is authority’s goal

Passenger rail service could be running between Minneapolis and Duluth through Anoka County within four years.

That’s the goal of the Anoka County Regional Rail Authority, which is spearheading an effort to restore passenger trains on the single-line tracks of the Burlington-Northern Santa Fe Railroad. Amtrak service ended in 1985.

[Sloan]

http://www.duluthnew...mp;section=None

[WICT106]

I think one smart move would be to extend the train route so that it acts as a second frequency of service between Saint Paul and Chicago. There is some support for an additional train over the Empire Builder's route between Saint Paul and Chicago. This would meet two objectives with one train. One reason the "Arrowhead" failed was that it did not connect with any other trains when arrived or departed from Saint Paul during the early 1980s. I'm curious as to where the money is going to come from to upgrade the existing route to support 79 mph operation, and eliminate what slow orders exist.

[KevinKorell]

One reason the "Arrowhead" failed was that it did not connect with any other trains when arrived or departed from Saint Paul during the early 1980s.

Wasn't it called the North Star in the Amtrak era?

I remember when the North Star (Trains 9 & 10) ran as a "shuttle" connecting with the Empire Builder at MSP, and I think before that it was combined with the Builder and ran as one train all the way to Chicago. I'm not sure if it ever provided another frequency between CHI and MSP.

Whatever they get up and running by 2010 or 2012, if at all, it won't be the "High-speed rail" denoted in the headline, and it also won't be the "commuter rail" they call it towards the end of the article.

Edited by KevinKorell, 15 November 2007 - 03:24 PM.