Ethan Allen Express

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Ethan Allen Express
Ethan Allen enters Croton Harmon 08 12 08.jpg
Rutland-bound train #291 entering Croton Harmon
Station, August 12, 2008
Overview
Service type Inter-city rail
Locale Vermont
First service December 1996
Current operator(s) Amtrak
Ridership
  • 145 average daily
  • 52,755 total (2014)[1]
Route
Start New York
End Rutland, Vermont
Distance travelled 241 miles (388 km)
Service frequency Daily
Train number(s) 290-293, 296
On-board services
Class(es)
  • Business class
  • Reserved coach
Catering facilities On-board cafe
Baggage facilities Carry-on only
Technical
Rolling stock Amfleet coaches
Track gauge 4 ft 8 12 in (1,435 mm)
Track owner(s) Clarendon & Pittsford Railroad
Canadian Pacific Railway
CSX Transportation
Metro-North Railroad
Amtrak
Route map
Dist. Station
Burlington
Vergennes
Middlebury
proposed extension
0 mi 
0 km 
Rutland
US 4
9 mi 
14 km 
Castleton
14 mi 
23 km 
Fair HavenDodgerBlue flag waving.svg
Vermont
New York
border
Adirondack to Montreal
44 mi 
71 km 
Fort Edward-Glens Falls
I-87
63 mi 
101 km 
Saratoga Springs
Mohawk River
Empire Corridor
82 mi 
132 km 
Schenectady
Hudson River
100 mi 
161 km 
Albany–Rensselaer
Lake Shore Limited
to Boston
128 mi 
206 km 
Hudson
153 mi 
246 km 
Rhinecliff-Kingston
169 mi 
272 km 
Poughkeepsie MTA NYC logo.svg
209 mi 
336 km 
Croton – Harmon MTA NYC logo.svg
227 mi 
365 km 
Yonkers MTA NYC logo.svg
Hudson Line
to Grand Central Terminal
241 mi 
388 km 
New York New Jersey Transit MTA NYC logo.svg

The Ethan Allen Express is a 241-mile (388 km) passenger train service operated by Amtrak between New York City and Rutland, Vermont, via Albany, New York. The scheduled total trip time is 5.5 hours. Operations are subsidized by the state of Vermont, and the train is popular among vacationers travelling to the ski resort area of Killington, Vermont. The Ethan Allen Express is named for the American Revolutionary War hero Ethan Allen.

History

The Ethan Allen Express at Rutland in 2001

In April 1995, the Montrealer was shifted to daytime operation and cut back to St. Albans as the Vermonter, providing daytime service to eastern and central Vermont for the first time since 1966.[2] The western part of the state then advocated for rail service to Rutland as well. $4.7 million in federal funds was secured to upgrade the former Delaware and Hudson Railway line between Whitehall and Rutland for passenger speeds.[3] Service was initiated in December 2, 1996.[4] This was the first passenger service between Fort Edward and Whitehall since 1953, and the first between Whitehall and Rutland since 1936.[3]

The Ethan Allen Express began with stops in Rutland, Fort Edward-Glens Falls, Saratoga Springs, Schenectady, Albany-Rensselaer, Hudson, Rhinecliff-Kingston, Poughkeepsie, Croton-Harmon, Yonkers and New York City (Penn Station).[5] A stop at Fair Haven was added in November 1997.[6]

Until May 2002, the train included a baggage car for skis and unboxed bicycles as well as checked baggage.[citation needed]

In October 2008, the Vermont Agency of Transportation (VTrans) proposed eliminating the Ethan Allen Express and replacing it with a bus citing budgetary restrictions. The proposal was rejected by the appropriate legislative committee.[7] VTrans again proposed ending service in January 2009. Two hundred people rallied at Rutland station against the proposed cut.[8] Rail advocates, led by the Vermont Rail Action Network[9] and local political leaders[10] organized to fight the cut and plans to drop the service were abandoned.[11]

On January 2, 2010, the Ethan Allen Express began stopping at Castleton station (Vermont). Service to Fair Haven ended on January 9.[12]

On February 23, 2011, VTrans began an investigation into the Vermont Rail System's (VRS) handling of the Ethan Allen Express between Whitehall, New York and Rutland after Amtrak notified the state that track conditions meant the train was frequently delayed. Amtrak evaluated the line as the worst in the nation.[13] During the summer of 2011, VRS conducted work to improve the track in question, planned to result in an eighteen-minute reduction in travel time by the end of the year, with additional work planned for the summer of 2012.[14] The project was funded by both the railroad and the state of New York at a cost of $3.25 million, and involved rebuilding about 8 miles (13 km) of track and eight grade crossings.[14] By February 2012, the trackwork had resulted in a 15-minute southbound and 25-minute northbound reduction in travel time between Rutland and Whitehall, while the total time the Ethan Allen Express operated behind schedule fell to 135 minutes in December 2011, from 11,068 minutes a year earlier.[15]

Proposed extension to Burlington

Union Station in Burlington, Vermont will be the northern terminus of the Ethan Allen Express beginning around 2018

Plans have existed to extend the Ethan Allen to Burlington from at least 2000.[16] A $30 million earmark was obtained by Senator Jim Jeffords in 2005, partially to fund the work, of which $19 million remained by 2011, the remainder having been used for other projects such as a new spur for freight traffic.[16][17]

Advocates, led by Chambers of Commerce and the Vermont Rail Action Network renewed the push for an extension to Burlington.[18] They believed that service to Burlington would secure the long-term sustainability of the service by generating much more ridership than Rutland is capable of.[19]

The Vermont Agency of Transportation applied for American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 funds to rebuild the tracks to passenger standards (59 mph) which would enable the extension.[20] While the initial application was not approved, the state subsequently entered a second US$70 million application for similar grants,[21] and later a third, all of which were rejected.[17]

In 2013, the extension received additional funding via a $9 million TIGER V (fifth round of Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery) grant. The money will pay for the replacement of jointed rail with continuously welded rail.[22]

In October 2015, the Vermont Agency of Transportation was awarded a $10 million TIGER 2015 grant to rehabilitate 11 miles of track, add a wye in Rutland, add crossovers and passing sidings, and install passenger platforms in Middlebury, Vergennes, and Burlington. These improvements will result in increased speeds of up to 40 miles per hour (64 km/h) for freight and 60 miles per hour (97 km/h) for passenger trains between Rutland and Burlington.[23] Service to Burlington is to begin in 2018 or 2019 - the first passenger service between the cities since 1953.[24][2]

Route details

The Ethan Allen Express operates over trackage owned by the following railroads:

Equipment

In the 2010s a typical Ethan Allen Express had three-four Amfleet passenger cars, an Amfleet business class car, and an Amfleet cafe car, with the train being pulled by a GE P32AC-DM dual-mode locomotive.[25]

Station stops

State/Province Town/City Station Connections
Vermont Rutland Rutland
Castleton Castleton MVRTD "The Bus": Fair Haven-Rutland Connector
New York Fort Edward Fort Edward-Glens Falls Amtrak: Adirondack
GGFT: 4, Train-Catcher Service
Saratoga Springs Saratoga Springs Amtrak: Adirondack
CDTA: NX Northway Xpress, 471, 472
Saratoga and North Creek Railroad: to North Creek, NY
Schenectady Schenectady Amtrak: Adirondack, Empire Service, Lake Shore Limited, Maple Leaf
Rensselaer Albany-Rensselaer Amtrak: Adirondack, Empire Service, Lake Shore Limited, Maple Leaf
CDTA: 214, 24
Hudson Hudson Amtrak: Adirondack, Empire Service, Maple Leaf
Rhinecliff Rhinecliff-Kingston Amtrak: Adirondack, Empire Service, Maple Leaf
Poughkeepsie Poughkeepsie Amtrak: Adirondack, Empire Service, Maple Leaf
City of Poughkeepsie Transit: Main Street
Dutchess County LOOP: Poughkeepsie RailLink
Metro-North Railroad: Hudson Line
Croton-on-Hudson Croton–Harmon Amtrak: Adirondack, Empire Service, Lake Shore Limited, Maple Leaf
Bee-Line: 10, 11, 14
Metro-North Railroad: Hudson Line
Yonkers Yonkers Amtrak: Adirondack, Empire Service, Maple Leaf
Bee-Line: 6, 9, 25, 32, 91 (seasonal service)
Metro-North Railroad: Hudson Line
New York City Penn Station Amtrak: Acela Express, Adirondack, Cardinal, Carolinian, Crescent, Empire Service, Keystone Service, Lake Shore Limited, Maple Leaf, Northeast Regional, Palmetto, Pennsylvanian, Silver Meteor, Silver Star, Vermonter
LIRR: Main Line, Port Washington Branch
NJ Transit: North Jersey Coast Line, Northeast Corridor Line, Raritan Valley Line, Gladstone Branch, Montclair-Boonton Line, Morristown Line
NYC Subway: 1 2 3 A C E trains
NYC Transit buses: M4, M7, M20, M34 / M34A Select Bus Service, Q32

References

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  7. Ethan Allen Safe . . . Until January Posted Thursday, 18 December 2008
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  9. Vermont Rail Action Network 2009 Accomplishments January 5, 2010
  10. [1] Rutland Herald: State panel, county delegation speak against Amtrak bus service]January 10, 2009
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  18. Rutland Herald: Chambers push for revitalized rail system March 26, 2009
  19. Vermont Rail Action Network: Extending the Ethan Allen To Burington April 6, 2008
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  22. Tiger V grants awarded, NARP News, September 2013, National Association of Rail Passengers, p.3
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External links