Implementation

Annual Highlights

Annual highlights of the Amtrak 90 plan are itemized as follows:

1983

• Tampa-Miami double daily service starts.
• San Francisco-Los Angeles through service is inaugurated by new sections of the Coast Starlight and Spirit of California.
• Service frequencies are increased in the New York-Albany-Buffalo-Niagara Falls corridor and between Chicago and Indianapolis.
• Design work begins on a 4,500-horsepower, double-ended diesel passenger locomotive with preliminary designation X-90.
• Orders are placed for an initial batch of bi-level Superliner II and low-level Amfleet III cars.
• Amtrak approaches states of Iowa and Illinois for joint development of former Rock Island line between Joliet, Quad Cities, Des Moines, and Omaha.
• Discussions begin between Amtrak and Conrail for restoration of Dayton-Indianapolis line.
• Site selection and preliminary architectural and engineering work begin on new stations in Oakland, Louisville, Atlanta, Columbus, and Syracuse.
• Cardinal becomes daily.
• Property is acquired in San Jose for new heavy repair car shop.

1984

• Sunset and Eagle become daily as first Superliner II cars are received.
• Los Angeles-Phoenix-Tucson day train is inaugurated.
• International service to Mexico is restored as Amtrak and Nacionales de Mexico begin joint service, San Antonio-Laredo-Monterrey-Mexico City.
• Service frequency is increased between Chicago and Detroit to five trains a day.
• Chicago radial corridor development begins with day trains to Pittsburgh, Cleveland, Toledo, Kansas City, and Topeka.
• St. Louis to New Orleans through service begins via connection to City of New Orleans at Carbondale.
• Work commences on Atlanta station and service center.
• Amtrak returns to Cincinnati Union Station. Work begins on Cincinnati service center.
• Seattle-Vancouver service is restored with two trains daily in each direction.
• Construction starts on Albany and Los Angeles locomotive maintenance facilities and on San Jose car shops.
• Club service is extended to San Diegans, San Joaquins, New York-Albany-Buffalo-Niagara Falls trains, Chicago-Detroit and Chicago-St. Louis trains.

1985

• Amtrak revenue exceeds $l billion; subsidy begins to decline.
• Amfleet III cars begin to be received in quantity, including economy and deluxe sleeping cars.
• Chicago-Milwaukee service is rerouted to Northwestern line via Racine and Kenosha. Frequency is increased by seven additional trains in each direction.
• Chicago radial corridor development continues with additional day and overnight trains to Cleveland, Buffalo-Niagara Falls, Pittsburgh, Memphis, Kansas City-Topeka, and Minneapolis/St. Paul.
• New overnight trains are inaugurated from New York to Pittsburgh, Raleigh, and Columbia.
• Albany locomotive shop opens.
• Station rehabilitation is completed at Kansas City, Cincinnati, and Cleveland.
• Amtrak returns to Cleveland Union Terminal.
• Pittsburgh-Cleveland service starts with three trains daily in each direction.
• Chicago-Texas service via Kansas City is restored with revival of Lone Star and new Kansas City-Oklahoma City-Ft. Worth-Dallas day train.
• San Jose becomes western terminus of San Francisco Zephyr and San Joaquins following upgrading of Oakland-San Jose track.
• Conrail completes restoration of Dayton-Indianapolis track. National Limited returns.
• New stations open in Columbus, Syracuse, and Altoona.
• Cincinnati-Columbus-Cleveland service is inaugurated with three trains daily in each direction.
• Amtrak inaugurates operations at North Station, Boston, with trains to Portland and Montreal.
• Inland route New York-Springfield-Boston service begins.
• X-90 prototype locomotive undergoes testing.

1986

• Corporate revenues exceed $1.5 billion and cover 69 percent of costs.
• Chicago-Omaha service shifts to former Rock Island line serving an additional population of 800,000. Day and overnight trains inaugurated.
• Chicago radial corridor service intensifies with additions to Omaha-Lincoln, Grand Rapids, Indianapolis, Louisville, Cincinnati, and Dayton-Columbus.
• Chicago-Cincinnati service is rerouted via Indianapolis.
• Crescent is rerouted via Montgomery and Mobile. Atlanta-Birmingham section is added.
• New York/Boston-Albany-Buffalo-Niagara Falls-Toronto services are increased.
• Cincinnati-Nashville-Birmingham-Mobile-New Orleans route opens with one through train and day services on intermediate segments.
• Club service is extended to all Chicago radial corridor day trains and New York/Boston-Great Lakes day trains.
• San Antonio-Houston-New Orleans day and overnight trains are inaugurated.
• Additional long-distance trains are inaugurated between New York-Miami, Chicago-Denver, St. Louis-Denver, and Seattle-Sacramento-Fresno-Los Angeles.
• Production model X-90 locomotives enter service.
• Long Island car repair shop and Los Angeles locomotive shop open.
• Fixed interval and/or memory-sensitive timetables are instituted in all corridors.
• Two-class sleeping car service is extended to all long-distance and overnight trains.

1987

• Subsidy requirements drop to less than $550 million as revenues approach $2 billion and cover nearly 80 percent of costs.
• New station and service center open in Atlanta.
• Atlanta radial corridor development begins with services to Chattanooga, Macon, Savannah, Montgomery, and Birmingham.
• International services begin to Canadian prairies with daytime and overnight services between Minneapolis/St. Paul and Winnipeg.
• Midwest-Florida long-distance train is inaugurated, providing service from Chicago, Detroit, Cleveland, Indianapolis, Columbus, Dayton, and Cincinnati to Miami and Tampa-St. Petersburg via Nashville, Atlanta, and Savannah.
• Two-class day service is extended to all corridor trains.
• Atlantic City-Philadelphia route is inaugurated with through service to New York and Washington.
• Northeast Corridor is restructured to fixed interval service with Amtrak providing express and semifast trains between major centers and connecting local services sponsored by commuter authorities.
• Through trains are established between Washington and Detroit or Cleveland via Pittsburgh.
• Chicago-Toronto day and overnight service begins in collaboration with Via Rail.
• First bi-level push-pull cars are delivered and services inaugurated on high-density lines out of Los Angeles and Chicago.
• Complete range of food and beverage services is extended system-wide.
• Service frequencies are increased on many short- and medium distance routes.
• New Haven-Boston electrification is completed.
• San Jose car repair facility opens.

1988

• Revenues exceed $2.5 billion and subsidy requirements drop below $400 million.
• Direct services begin between points in southern California and Arizona and cities along the west coast of Mexico in collaboration with Nacionales de Mexico.
• New stations open in Tulsa and Jacksonville.
• St. Louis-Tulsa-Oklahoma City and Omaha-Kansas City-Tulsa routes are inaugurated.
• A new long-distance train is placed in service linking Minneapolis/St. Paul with Ft. Worth, Dallas, Houston, and San Antonio.
• Philadelphia-Scranton-Binghamton-Syracuse route is opened, permitting more direct service between Washington, Philadelphia, and upstate New York points.
• Texas Triangle service commences with multiple-frequency operations linking Ft. Worth, Dallas, Austin, San Antonio, and Houston. A new 44-mile line between Waco and Bremond is included.
• Service begins on a new route between Carolina Piedmont cities and coastal Georgia and northern Florida.
• Jacksonville and Denver service centers are brought into operation.
• Containerized package express and mail service is inaugurated at more than 300 stations system-wide.

1989

• Amtrak becomes a truly for-profit corporation as revenues exceed costs for the first time. Operating subsidy is no longer needed.
• A new long-distance train is inaugurated between Chicago and Los Angeles via Amarillo, El Paso, Tucson, and Phoenix.
• Ft. Worth and Dallas are linked directly to New Orleans with day and overnight trains via Shreveport.
• Service is revived on the former Gulf Wind route between New Orleans and Jacksonville through Mobile and Pensacola.
• Norfolk becomService is revived on the former Gulf Wind route between New Orleans and Jacksonville through Mobile and Pensacola.es a new East Coast terminal with trains providing direct service to Cincinnati, Raleigh, Charlotte, Atlanta, Savannah, and Jacksonville.
• A Washington-Knoxville-Chattanooga-Nashville route is established.
• Memphis-Nashville service is inaugurated.
• Additional trains are placed on several short- and medium-distance routes.
• Studies are begun to evaluate benefits of possible electrification of Northeast Corridor extensions to Albany, Springfield, Richmond, and Pittsburgh and on heavily trafficked corridors radiating from Chicago.
• New station opens in Houston.

1990

• Amtrak attains a profit of $348 million, completely eliminating the need for federal capital assistance beginning in FY 1991.
• New long-distance trains are inaugurated linking Salt Lake City and Denver with Calgary.
• International services in collaboration with Via Rail Canada provide new rail links between New England cities and points in Quebec and New Brunswick.
• A daytime train is inaugurated between San Jose, Oakland, and Portland.
• The former North Coast Hiawatha route is revived with a new long-distance train connecting Minneapolis/St. Paul with Billings, Spokane, Portland, and Seattle.
• Direct Buffalo-Detroit service is reestablished across southern Ontario.
• A Denver-Albuquerque-Phoenix-Tucson train is placed in service.
• Denver, Colorado Springs, Pueblo are linked to Ft. Worth and Dallas on a new long-distance route.
• Service frequencies are increased in several corridors.
• Oldest life-expired Heritage Fleet cars are retired.