Texas Eagle dodges suspension of service

It was near miss after an announcement that Amtrak was suspending service on the Texas Eagle, but restored train service in East Texas, as negotiations appeared to have avoided a possible railroad workers' strike.

Union Pacific, which has operations in Texas, announced the probable resolution of union negotiations means its operations have returned to normal. 'We had issued an embargo against sensitive shipments that we wouldn't want to leave out on the rail lines, “ said Amtrak spokesman Mike Jaixen on the possibility of a railroad strike.

Thirty percent of all the items transported in the U.S. is shipped by train, carrying everything from food, appliances, clothing, construction material, coal, and other necessities. A national freight strike could create massive issues with the supply chain as well as shut down commuter trains.

The threatened strike was due to two unions – SMART and the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET) – who were at odds with the railroad over attendance policies that workers claimed are being used to fire and discipline railroad crews for absences due to medical or bereavement.

While Amtrak employees were not a part of the potential strike, the company doesn't own the tracks its long-haul trains run on. Amtrak wanted to avoid having trains on the tracks at the time that a strike might start.

The Texas Eagle travels between Chicago and San Antonio, through Dallas and Austin.

The Sunset Limited which also connects between San Antonio and Los Angeles, also suspended service on Wednesday.

Amtrak released a statement last week, before strike negotiations pointed to resolution: “Amtrak is closely monitoring the ongoing freight rail – rail labor contract negotiations. The negotiations do not involve Amtrak or the Amtrak workforce. While we are hopeful that parties will reach a resolution, Amtrak has now begun phased adjustments to our service in preparation for a possible freight rail service interruption later this week.

“Such an interruption could significantly impact intercity passenger rail service, as Amtrak operates almost all of our 21,000 route miles outside the Northeast Corridor (NEC) on track owned, maintained, and dispatched by freight railroads.

“These initial adjustments include canceling all longdistance trains and could be followed by impacts to most State-Supported routes. These adjustments are necessary to ensure trains can reach their terminals before freight railroad service interruption if a resolution in negotiations is not reached.”

Amtrak listed suspended services starting Tuesday Sept. 13: Southwest Chief; Empire Builder; California Zephyr; and Train #421 portion of the Texas Eagle (Los Angeles-San Antonio) Suspended services starting Wednesday, Sept. 14: City of New Orleans; Coast Starlight; Crescent; Lake Shore Limited; Silver Star, Sunset Limited; and Texas Eagle.