1278i

INTERNATIONAL SUPPLEMENT TO BLN 1278 01 APRIL 2017

BRANCH LINE NEWS

INTERNATIONAL

This newsletter covers the World outside the British Isles from information
supplied by members.

Opinions expressed are not necessarily those of the Compilers or of the Society.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS TEAM:-
International Editor (to whom all email and postal contributions should be sent):
Paul Griffin, 7 School Bell Mews, Church Lane, Stoneleigh, COVENTRY,CV8 3ZZ
Email: [email protected]
Deputy International Editor: Derek Woodward, 68 Church Street, Matlock, DERBY, DE4 3BY

Darmstadt Hauptbahnhof is the third largest station in the state of Hesse. Built in a late art nouveau style, the station was
finished in 1912 as one of the major works of architect Friedrich Pützer. The station replaced two separate and increasingly
inadequate stations located at the Steubenplatz, around a kilometre closer to the city centre in the east. The greater distance
from the city centre was compensated for by providing a connecting tram. Damstadt’s tram network still operates, but to the
right of the photographer tram line 3 was blocked for engineering works at the time of his visit.

EUROPE

[116] Europe – Steam train to steam boat.
Medemblik in the Netherlands can be removed from the contenders as further investigation has
revealed that the MS Friesland is definitely NOT steam powered.

[117] Austria – Salzburg avoiding line has passenger service
On Saturdays, Sundays and holidays there is a single train pair from Wien Hbf to Wörgl and back which
takes the Salzburg avoiding line from Abzw. Hallwang-Elixhausen 3 (Kasem) through Salzburg Gnigl Vbf
to Parsch. The westbound train, IC942, leaves Wels at 09:18, and the eastbound train, IC947, leaves
Salzburg Süd at 17:34.

[118] Austria – The Graz Koralmbahn
Although far from complete, a section of the Koralmbahn (the Graz – Klagenfurt high-speed railway) is
in use between Werndorf, south of Graz, and Wettmanstätten, on the GKB branch to Wies-Eibiswald.
Trains between Graz and Wies-Eibiswald run alternately via Werndorf and via Lieboch. The diesel train
proceeds at fine speed along the single, non-electrified track down the Koralmbahn. Electrification
masts have been erected, but there is no wiring, and only very limited sections of the second track
have been laid. Beyond Wettmanstätten the Koralmbahn formation can be seen from the GKB train on
the opposite side of the valley, and it appears complete. The site of the planned Weststeiermark
station is in use as a construction depot. The GKB will follow a new formation in order to call at this
station. The embankments for this are in place, but no track has been laid. It is intended that the
Koralmbahn will run in a loop via Graz Airport, but work on that does not appear to have started.

[119] Austria – Observations on the Salzburger Lokalbahn
There appears to be regular freight from Salzburg as far as private sidings at Siggerwiesen, but not
beyond. There is a private narrow-gauge railway in a field adjacent to the line at St Georgenbei
Salzburg, and this comprises a loop around the field, with a triangular junction to a platform close to
the SLB halt. An enclosed carriage was stabled there and the motive power was probably in a shed on
the far side of the field. The Trimmelkam branch has been extended only a short distance to
Ostermeithing, but it runs through a substantial cutting. The scheduled journey time for the branch
shuttle is now 15 minutes so two trains are required to maintain a half-hourly service. The new station
at Ostermeithing is on the opposite side of a valley from the village, but has a bus interchange and a
park and ride facility. An afternoon service was lightly loaded and about forty cars were in the car park
at Ostermeithing.

[120] Austria – Diversions via Kledering and Gramatneusiedl
From 3 July to 3 September Wien to Sopron REX trains are diverted between Meidling and
Wampersdorf via the Gramatneusiedl to Wampersdorf freight line with a Wampersdorf stop replacing
the normal Ebreichsdorf stop.

[121] Denmark – A branch with an unusually named station
A member did his last piece of ordinary (as opposed to heritage) Danish track recently with the branch
to Thyborøn. He had travelled north from Germany on the Sunday night and spent the night in the

hotel Postgaarden in Fredericia, which was the station hotel once upon a time when the railways
arrived in the area, although a 15-minute walk away now. The old station is still opposite being used as
port and other shipping offices. There are various sidings still seemingly used down to the port. He
departed on the 07:47 (about 10 late off 07:51 arrival!!) with old MR Set 4054 to Holstebro, with a
generous connection into an Arriva service to Vemb and Skjern. At least 16 other MR sets seem to be
withdrawn in the yard at Fredericia whilst several other sets may still have been available for service.
The day had brightened up a little after Sunday's rain in northern Germany and Jutland, but was chilly
with a north-easterly breeze. Initial sunshine soon disappeared behind clouds though after Vemb.
Vemb was a little bleak on arrival and the two Arriva trains crossed and disappeared leaving the place
quiet with no other obvious passengers, although one other person did walk up. Our member had
been in contact with the Midtjyske railway beforehand. They do not accept InterRail but advised that
he could buy single tickets each way on the train (DKK50 each) or buy an all-day family ticket (at
DKK99, valid for two adults and also some children) from the shop in the station approach. As there
was another lengthy connection, the shop duly sold him the ticket (saving him DKK1) but also saving
time at Thyborøn. They did not mention that the Arriva ticket machine on Vemb station also sold
singles. A few minutes before his train arrived (a 5-minute turn round and a 65-minute journey gives a
service frequency of 1 hour and 20 minutes with two trains - but not ideal for connections) formed of
Ym16 and Ys16. A handful of locals alighted and the 10:55 departure was soon underway. They picked
up people at various wayside stops and soon were at Lemvig, the railway's depot and base, and the
site of the only toilet (there is not one available any longer on the train!!) where they reversed and
crossed the other train back towards Vemb, which seems to always use the platform nearest the
building and toilet, perhaps so as to facilitate punctual and parallel departures.The other train, passed
at Lemvig, was formed of Ym14 and Ys14.

Trailer Yp54 was at the back of the depot, looking slightly sad. Ym15, which is double ended, was in a
siding north of the station. The second half of the journey was rather busier, although they ran fast to
Harboøre, all intermediate stations being request stops. The stations in the Thyborøn area itself were
the main traffic destination, the town being a port and industrial location. Along the intermediate
section are small villages on or near the beach and probably some holiday homes, including the
delightfully named Victoria Street Station, immaculately announced by the driver in between his gruff
pronunciation of all the guttural Danish destinations. (Editor’s note: There is a street nearby called
Viktoriavej (Victoria way) named after a ship which had been wrecked nearby. The story goes that
there was a group of artists who were staying in the area, who, on a ‘cheerful and slightly damp
evening’, decided to rename the station by putting up a home-made sign. VLTJ removed the
homemade sign but another was promptly put up. Eventually VLTJ gave up and since 1991, the station
was officially renamed Victoria Street Station. It was previously called Vejlby Stoppested). Thyborøn, as
mentioned above, provided most of the traffic and a fair number joined the return working, which
certainly stopped slightly more, including picking up people at some of the halts before Lemvig. A fairly
large and noisy school party joined at Lemvig (splitting themselves between both coaches) but left a
few stations later, so silence resumed. Back at Vemb our member took a last couple of pictures as the
train headed out again, and then took Arriva DMU 2044 on the 13:32 to Holstebro, where a brief
wander into the town found a bookseller. They had a Danish atlas on special offer which joined some
other European timetables for the journey home.

[122] France – Chemin de Fer Historique de la VoieSacrée to start services in 2017
A 203km-long metre gauge system called the ‘Le Meusien’ served the Meuse department in Lorraine
between 1878 and 1936. All the rails were lifted soon after closure, however, a 4.2 km section
northwest of Bar-le- Duc is set to re-open as far as St. Christophe. The first train since 1936 (a
construction train) ran on 11 January 2016, and 20 and 28 August 2016 saw the first test rides with
passengers. The railway calls itself the Chemin de Fer Historique de la VoieSacrée and will start running
heritage services in 2017. Keep an eye on their website at http://www.cfhvs.fr/index.php/en/

[123] France – Preparatory work on line T6 starts in Lyon
Lyon Transport Authority, Sytral has started utility relocation works to enable full construction of Line
T6 to begin in September 2017. The 6.7km light rail line and its 14 stations is due to open at the end of
2019. Line T6 will form a semi-circle around the southeastern side of Lyon to connect several major
urban centres and avoid people having to travel through the city centre. The line will run from
Debourg, where it will connect with metro Line B and LRT lines T1 and T6, to Hospital East Pinel for
interchange with LRT Line T4. Line T6 will also connect with Line T4 at Professor Beauvisage-CISL,
Metro Line D at Mermoz-Pinel and lines T2 and T5 at Desgenettes.

[124] France – Rennes to Châteaubriant
A member recently visited this 60.7km branch. While (by rural France standards) there is a reasonable
service from Rennes to Janzé, trains through to Châteaubriant are much more sparse. On weekdays
there is one morning service from Rennes and one evening service from Châteaubriant. On Saturdays
there are three trains pairs that travel the length of the line, and on Sundays, two. Line speeds on
almost the whole line, especially the southernmost section beyond Le Theil de Bretagne, are very low
averaging 20 to 30 km/h. Rolling stock on the day of his visit was an elderly X2100 DMU, now getting

fairly rare and, like the line, due for replacement. The three car DMU was 15-20% full, so had plenty of
space. Our member speculates that lack of cash for asset replacement or a bad washout could easily
see the section south of Janzé or Retiers close. It cannot help that Châteaubriant is not in Bretagne,
but in neighbouring Pays de la Loire which will understandably be reluctant to pay for the lines upkeep

[125] Germany – DB information on Schwarzkopftunnel deviation misleads
BLNI1273.025 reported on this soon to be commissioned deviation through new tunnels. A member
found a DB pdf which, without giving exact details, suggests the new formation is around 900 metres
longer than the original route. Our member has identified that the DB pdf is wrong. The old line is to
close between km69+990 and km77+538 while the new line starts at km69+990 and ends at
km77+068 = km77+538. So the new line is 470 metres shorter than the old line.

[126] Germany – Strecke 6528 likely to be further truncated
East of Berlin, the middle section of the Wriezener Bahn from Werneuchen (km28.955) to Tiefensee
(km 36.1) is up for sale or closure. The latter is considered likely as there is no traffic. The local council
would like to build a cycle path from Werneuchen (the current end of S-Bahn services) to Tiefensee
and Wriezen. Since December 2003 the Museumseisenbahnverein Sternebeck e. V. has been working
to create a heritage railway on the Sternebeck to Vevais section, with a long-term objective of getting
to Wriezen.

[127] Germany – Another heritage railway for East Germany
Torgau is between Eilenburg and Falkenberg on the Leipzig – Cottbus line. Line 6830 used to run north
to Dommitzsch, Pretzsch and Lutherstadt Wittenberg, but only the Pretzsch to Lutherstadt Wittenberg
section is still in use. The Association Elblandbahn eV have leased the 23.5km Torgau to Pretzsch
section and plan to reopen it in sections as a heritage railway.

[128] Germany –Strecke 6945 (Pritzwalk West to Putlitz) up for sale or closure again
Passenger trains ceased on 31 July 2016 and the line speed has since reduced to only 20 kph. DB Netze
require any new operator to renew a level crossing next year, but with no traffic on the line finding
anyone wanting to take over the line could prove difficult.

[129] Greece – The situation on the Peloponnese railway
No special trains are running on the Peloponnese metre gauge system this year, though tour operators
would like to do so. The current situation is given in a communication from OSE as follows. “Special
train trip cannot be organized as requested due to problems in infrastructure, which cannot be solved
in short or medium term. The parts of the infrastructure in Peloponnese, which may be used for
travels, without any restrictions, are: The Diakopto – Kalavryta line with a diesel train. The special
steam train can only be organised between Kalavrita and Zachlorou (Mega Spileo) stations. The
Katakolo – Pirghos – Olympia line with Railbus rolling stock only.” Not a hopeful picture.

[130] Luxembourg – Progress on the Luxembourg tram system
According to the Luxtram website, the project was created in June 2005 with the creation of a working
group called the "extension of the rail network in the City of Luxembourg". The concept of the tram
was formally introduced to the Council of Government on 10 March 2006 and was favourably
received, as was its discussion at the Municipal Council of the City of Luxembourg. It was then
necessary for the Chamber of Deputies to confirm the project in April 2006 for everything to start.
However, the first public meeting took place only six years later at the Tramsschap in Luxembourg-
Ville. The long wait has nevertheless allowed voting of finance, the creation of Luxtram SA, much
preparatory work and finally the laying of the foundation stone of the NeienTramsschapp in
September 2015. The first rail was welded in August 2016 and according to the schedule published on
the site of the Ministry of Sustainable Development and Infrastructures, the commissioning of the line
between Luxexpo and the Pont Rouge (Red Bridge) should be at the end of 2017. A further four years
of work should see the project completed with the connection of Cloche d'Or to Findel via the Pont
Rouge and Luxexpo in 2021. Each tram will be able to transport up to 450 people with a frequency of
passage that will vary between 3 and 5 minutes. The tramway should be able to carry up to 10,000
people per hour and per direction.

There will be eight stations (Pont Rouge-Luxexpo) and the station names have already been
announced. They are Pafendall - Rout Bréck, Philharmonie - Mudam, Europaparlament/
Parlementeuropéen, Coque, Universitéit, Nationalbibliothéik/ BibliothèqueNationale, Alphonse
Weicker and Luxexpo. The three stations that will serve La place de l'Etoile and the Limpertsberg have

also been named and are; Stäreplatz/ Etoile, Faïencerie and Theater. The entire line will have nine
multimodal exchanges, and a massive park and ride facility is planned. 32 trainsets are to be provided
for the 16 km line.

[131] Poland– Line 141 closes again
Timetable PDFs for line 141 (Oświęcim to Skawina) have disappeared from the PKP website, so it has
presumably lost its local service again. An overnight train still passes over the route.

[132] Poland – Jełowa to Murów definitely reopening
Confirming the proposed reopening of this 10.5km section of line 301 north of Opole mentioned in
BLNI 1228.091, timber traffic will start this year after a 20 year gap in traffic.

[133] Poland – Part of freight line reopens in Wrocław
With effect from 10 April, 13 pairs of trains will operate Monday to Fridays between Wrocław
Nadodrze and Wrocław Wojnów which is 8km along a freight line to Jelcz Laskowice. Three of the 13
pairs will be through workings from/to Wrocław Glowny, but there is no service at weekends.

[134] Serbia – Trains restart running from Niš to Dimitrovgrad
Journeys between Beograd and Sofia are possible once again, albeit with a change of train at both Niš
and Dimitrovgrad. The trains depart Beograd at 06:20, Niš (10:38/11:15), Dimitrovgrad (14:47/17:18)
arriving at Sofia at 20:10. In reverse: Sofia depart 09:40, Dimitrovgrad (10:30/11:23), Niš (14:39/16:57)
and arriving Beograd at 21:13. It is understood that the direct train between Beograd and Sofia will run
during the summer period from 1 June until 17 September.

[135] Spain– A wet weekend in Mallorca in January
This was a weekend trip to Mallorca with a Ryanair flight from Stansted to Palma and concentrated on
the Palma Metro (single route) and TIB rail routes Palma to Manacor/Sa Pobla as the Soller Railway
was closed for maintenance from 7 November 2016 to 5 February 2017 inclusive.
Palma Estacio Intermodal at Placad'Espanya is now a large underground rail terminus (believed to be
the largest metre gauge station in Europe) with adjacent bus terminal, located beneath the former
surface station where three buildings remain, the former approach track converted to a linear park.
The Soller Railway station remains across the road on the north side, its single track exiting the gated
station compound to run down the central reservation of the road.
The underground Intermodal station comprises 10 platforms for metre-gauge Metro and FIB
(Transport de les Illes Balears) lines, the Metro using Vias (Tracks) 1 and 2 on the north (RH) side on
entering the station and the northern pair of tracks through the tunnel beyond the station throat. Vias
3 – 10, used by FIB, connect to the southern pair of tracks. There are connections between all 4 tracks
both west of first station Jacint Verdaguer, and also second station Son Costa-Son Fortessa, both
having two island platforms with faces on all tracks. The Metro track tunnel diverges and continues
with 4 further underground stations, ending after Cami dels Reis with a length of around 5.2km. At the
next station, Son Sardinha, the modern 2-platform Metro station is located adjacent to the 914mm
gauge Soller Railway station with its station building and loop. The metro then curves to the
northwest, crossing the Soller Railway single line and a road on a concrete viaduct at km6.9. Prior to

this single line operation is in force from crossovers at km6.3 with trains only using the Palma-bound
track, the second track appears not to be in use. Just after km7.5 the line enters a short shallow tunnel
to end in the sub-surface TIB station, where trains only use the Palma-bound Via 2 to reverse. The line
ends in a short train stabling section beyond the platform. The electrified TIB services use the southern
pair of tracks which continue in tunnel only a short distance beyond the Metro divergence, coming to
the surface 1.9 km from Palma. The line has been extensively rebuilt with new buildings and raised
platforms although many of the original station buildings remain in use. An extensive electric train
depot is located on the south side of the line between Son Fuster and Verge de Lluc stations. Bay
platforms intended for terminating services from Palma at Marratxi and Binissalem with associated
crossovers are not in use while that at Inca, Via 3 is used for the Mondays to Fridays local service from
Palma. The weekend/holiday Manacor and Sa Pobla services serve all stations. Electrification ends on
both the Manacor “main line” and Sa Pobla branch just beyond the junction at Enllac, with no sign of
any electrification work on either line. Enllac is basically a single island platform exchange station,
albeit with local access, completely devoid of any shelter! Here there is a quick transfer, completely
unannounced on the electric train, to a DMU shuttle service on each line, with general confusion of
passengers trying to transfer both ways between the two trains. The EMU then returns to Palma as the
DMU departs to either Manacor or Sa Pobla. When travelled on Saturday 21 January, the operation at
Enllac was as follows. The Manacor EMU from Palma after leaving Via 1 at Inca crossed over to Via 2 at
the east end of the station to arrive in Via 2 at Enllac. Here transfer was made to the DMU which
arrived and rapidly reversed from Via 1 to proceed to Manacor. Stations at Sineu and Petra have been
rebuilt with two raised platforms with shelters and loops, although the loops and associated platforms
are not in use. Raised platforms have been completed at the unopened intermediate station at Sant
Joan, but the loop track has not been installed. The line terminates at Manacor in a rebuilt 3 platform
station, only one track of which is in use, located on the northern side of the original station which
retains only the station building. The platforms end against a main road with the town beyond so a
new station and alignment would be required to extend the line to Arta, with no sign of any work on
the extension apparent. (However GoogleEarth shows a virtually complete restored trackbed to Arta
beyond the town of Manacor, which was clearly a closed railway, the former route through the town
to the current station having been converted to a road complete with trees. No sign of any railway
restoration here. See footnote from Wikipedia). Back at Enllac the transfer was made back to the
waiting EMU which was taken back to Inca due to the heavy rain and lack of shelter at the former. Inca
station also has a short overall roof as well as ticket machines, toilets and a coffee machine. The Sa
Pobla EMU from Inca continued on Via 1 to Enllac Via 1, with transfer to the DMU which arrived and
departed from Via 2. Of the intermediate stations, Llubi comprises an island platform with the north
face loop not being used while Muru is a single platform halt. At Sa Pobla a new station has been built
outside of the town on the west side of a road formerly crossed on the level. Here the station has basic
facilities and staff accommodation, the bay platform being not used. Rather than being extended as
shown on the Ball ERA maps, the line has been cut-back from the still extant single platform some
200m further into the town, the former track-bed having been paved as a walkway to the new station!
Monsoonal conditions prevented further exploration (the train sits here for over 30 minutes before
returning) but the track possibly extended beyond the relatively modern closed station with raised
platform and shelter across the road beyond to run down a now tree planted route between the
buildings into the town centre. Google Earth shows this station was the end of the line in July 2003 and
up to March 2012, the next edition photos are May 2016 showing the new station in use. The satellite

photos indicate there was a large town centre station which had been closed well before 2003, the rail
route ending just beyond. Now very wet, with water streaming through the roof of the 2005 vintage
CAF-built DMU, the return was made to Enllac for the reverse transfer to the thankfully not leaking
CAF 2011-built EMU back to Palma.
Footnote from Wikipedia:"In 2013 civil engineering work had started on the extension of the Manacor
line to Artà via Sant Llorenç des Cardassar and Son Servera, but work on the proposed extension of the
Sa Pobla branch to Alcudia had not commenced. By May 2014, there was no indication of any such
work within Manacor itself which now has a relocated terminal station (which makes it impossible to
extend further from there. Ed), adjacent to the main covered shopping centre. The track-bed of the
former line past Cala Millor to Artà was either removed or in the process of being converted to
sections of footpaths/cycleways. Most stations had been demolished although the one at Artà is now a
privately owned shed".

[136] Spain – Completion of SFM network electrification to start soon
Early 2017 should see the start of the electrification of the remaining diesel-worked sections of the
metre gauge SFM network on Mallorca. Electrification of the routes from Enllaç to Manacor and Sa
Pobla at 1.5 kV DC is now expected to be completed by the start of 2018, a year earlier than originally
planned. Electric services over the 34km line between Palma and Inca began in January 2012. The work
includes electrification of the 31 km of single track between Enllaç and Manacor and the 12 km of
single track between Enllaç and Sa Pobla. Through services from Palma should start in early 2018.

REST OF THE WORLD

[137] Azerbaijan – First train crosses Azerbaijan – Iran border bridge
The first test train ran across the recently-completed bridge over the River Astarachay which forms the
border between Azerbaijan and Iran at Astara on 3 March. Construction of the cross-border link was
approved on 7 December 2015, and a groundbreaking ceremony was held on 20 April 2016. The
project included the 82.5 m long, 8.0 m high and 11.8 m wide bridge, plus 16 track-km of new 1520
mm gauge track. The 8.3 km single-track extension of the ADY network to the border has now been
completed, while on the Iranian side the first 650 m has been completed of the 1.4 km route to the
site of the future 35 ha freight transhipment terminal. The terminal will eventually have gauge-
changing facilities to enable through running to the 167 km long 1435 mm gauge line which is being
built to connect Astara to the Iranian rail network at Rasht. This would complete the North–South
International Transport Corridor between northern Europe and the Indian Ocean. The first direct
freight service from India to Russia along the corridor ran in September and October 2016, with the
sea and rail journey between Mumbai and Moskva (Moscow) taking 23 days including road transport
from Rasht to Azerbaijan.

[138] Malaysia/Singapore – High speed rail link agreed
A bilateral agreement for the development of the 350 km Kuala Lumpur – Singapore high speed rail
project was signed on 13 December 2016. It has been agreed that Singapore and Malaysia will each
design, build, finance and maintain the civil works and stations within their own territory. Malaysia and
Singapore are to jointly call tenders in late 2017 for the appointment of AssetsCo, which would design,

build, finance and maintain the rolling stock and railway systems including track, power, signalling and
telecommunications. The double-track line would be designed to accommodate ‘all types of
conventional high speed rail trains and technology available in the market with a design speed of
350 km/h’. There would be eight stations, at Jurong East in Singapore and Bandar Malaysia, Putrajaya,
Seremban, Ayer Keroh, Muar, Batu Pahat and Iskandar Puteri in Malaysia. The planned bridge over the
Straits of Johor to the west of the Second Link would offer a clearance of 25 m above water level.
Malaysia and Singapore will also jointly call tenders for the OpCo International contract to operate the
Kuala Lumpur - Singapore non-stop Express Service with a journey time of 90 min, as well as a cross-
border Shuttle Service between Iskandar Puteri and Singapore. Direct Kuala Lumpur – Singapore HSR
Express Services are expected to begin by 31 December 2026. Co-located customs, immigration and
quarantine facilities will be provided at Singapore, Bandar Malaysia and Iskandar Puteri, with
international passengers clearing both countries’ checks at the point of departure.

[139] USA - AMTRAK long distance trains to end?
Donald Trump's proposed federal budget blueprint would cut the U.S. Department of Transportation's
budget by $2.4 billion. Regarding rail, the budget calls for terminating federal support for Amtrak's
long-distance service; eliminating the Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery
(TIGER) discretionary grant program; and limiting funding for the Federal Transit Administration's
Capital Investment Program (New Starts) to projects with existing full funding grant agreements only.
For Amtrak, the budget would restructure and reduce federal subsidies to the national intercity
passenger railroad to focus on services within regions. It eliminates federal support for long-distance
Amtrak services. The National Association of Rail Passengers said the proposed budgets would
threaten the following Amtrak long-distance daily-service routes: Silver Star and Silver Meteor (New
York to Miami), Empire Builder (Chicago to Seattle/Portland), Capitol Limited (Washington to Chicago),
California Zephyr (Chicago to San Francisco), Southwest Chief (Chicago to Los Angeles), City of New
Orleans (Chicago to New Orleans), Texas Eagle (Chicago to San Antonio), Coast Starlight (Los Angeles to
Seattle), Lake Shore Limited (New York to Chicago), Palmetto (New York to Savannah, Georgia),
Crescent (New York to New Orleans) and Auto Train (Lorton, Virginia to Sanford, Florida). Service
offering three trains a week would be affected on the Cardinal (New York to Chicago) and Sunset
Limited (New Orleans to Los Angeles) routes. The Gulf Coast line, now in development, would also be
affected. The budget would cut federal funding of Amtrak's Gateway Program, which calls for
rebuilding the deteriorating Hudson rail tunnels that allow trains to move between New York City and
New Jersey.