Railfanning.org News Wire

CHICAGO — Amtrak schedules on the Chicago-St. Louis corridor, served by Lincoln Service trains and the Texas Eagle, will undergo temporary changes throughout this month, while Union Pacific Railroad carries out the second of two phases of track improvements at Springfield, Ill. Amtrak, which operates Lincoln Service Trains 300-302 & 305-307 under a contract with the Illinois Department of Transportation (Ill. DOT), regrets any inconvenience. Lincoln Service Changes From June 16 through June 24, Train 300, the early morning departure from St. Louis to Chicago and Train 307, the evening departure from Chicago to St. Louis, will only operate between

WASHINGTON — The House was today expected to discuss a bill to reauthorize Amtrak and improve intercity passenger rail. Last month, the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure approved HR 6003, the Passenger Rail Investment and Improvement Act of 2008. The bill authorizes $14.4 billion for Amtrak capital and operating grants, state intercity passenger grants, and high-speed rail over the next five years. Even if the house approves the bill, it faces a tough road since President Bush has said he supports a self-sufficient Amtrak. Major provisions of the bill include: – Authorizing $4.2 billion (an average of $840 million per

ELMWOOD PARK, Ill. — The National Transportation Safety Board determined that the probable cause of an accident that occurred at a highway-railroad grade crossing in Elmwood Park, Ill., was a combination of factors including the intersection angle, the heavy holiday traffic and the complex street and rail pattern and related signal interactions at the intersection. “Despite the efforts of state and local authorities to address the safety concerns at this large and complicated grade crossing with a variety of signage and technology improvements, this accident occurred because these changes still failed to prevent vehicles from being trapped inside the crossing