CC Rail Mail – August 3, 2012

Linsey Ettlin CC Rail Mail & Newsletters

IN THIS ISSUE

August 3, 2012


  • Service Advisory: Weekend Bus Bridge between Sacramento and Davis stations
  • New train schedule will go into effect August 13, 2012
  • New passenger platforms open at Sacramento station August 13, 2012
  • San Jose Jazz Summer Fest
  • Station Advisory: Temporary closure of Davis station August 25 – 27, 2012
  • Golden STAR Award – Call for Nominations

Service Advisory: Weekend Bus Bridge between Sacramento and Davis stations

Union Pacific Railroad (UPRR), in conjunction with the City of Sacramento will be relocating tracks at the Sacramento Station as part of the Sacramento Railyards project the weekends of August 4-5, 2012 and August 11-12, 2012.
This relocation work will affect all weekend trains traveling between the Sacramento and Davis stations. For bus bridge details, please view the full service advisory on the Corridor website.

New train schedule will go into effect August 13, 2012

Starting August 13, 2012 Capitol Corridor will implement a new train schedule. Below is an overview of what you can expect to see in the new schedule:
Eastbound changes:
  • Train 518 discontinued. This decision took months of careful consideration, but like other public transit systems, the CCJPA was faced with cost-effectiveness decisions that lead to this action. We outlined our intention to reduce service in the CCJPA’s Business Plan published in February 2012.
  • To accommodate Train 518 riders, effective Monday, August 13 2012, an existing Davis to Sacramento Amtrak Thruway bus will be scheduled to begin its trip at Martinez. The bus will serve the Martinez and Suisun/Fairfield stations, as well as the current Davis and Sacramento stations and provide connections to San Joaquin train #702 to Bakersfield.
  • Train 520 will operate 10 minutes earlier.
Westbound changes:
  • Train 531 will operate 10 minutes earlier.
  • Train 549 will operate 30 minutes later.
  • Train 551 will operate 90 minutes later (taking over slot currently used by train 553).
  • Train 553 discontinued.
There will be no changes to weekend Capitol Corridor service (trains 720-751).

New passenger platforms open at Sacramento station August 13, 2012

Beginning August 13, 2012 all Amtrak passengers (including Capitol Corridor passengers) who use the Sacramento station will begin using new platforms to access trains. These new platforms were constructed as part of the Sacramento station track relocation project, which relocated the railroad tracks 500 feet north to improve rail operations, safety and make room for the planned Intermodal facilities.
All passengers traveling through the Sacramento station should allow extra time for their trip, as access to the new train platforms will require walking an additional 1.5 blocks along a newly constructed pathway. We encourage you to arrive at the station approximately 20 minutes prior to your train’s departure until you are familiar with the new walkway. Amtrak and Capitol Corridor staff will be available at the station the week of August 13th to assist passengers with this transition.
View the City of Sacramento’s website for this new pathway

San Jose Jazz Summer Fest

Summer Jazz Festival

Looking for a weekend getaway? Take the train to the San Jose Jazz Summer Fest – heating up downtown San Jose with stellar lineup of international stars, emerging artists and regional favorites playing straight-ahead jazz, blues, salsa, Latin, R&B, and more from August 10-12, 2012. It’s not just the biggest live music event in Silicon Valley–it’s the perfect summer experience featuring tasty food, wine and micro-brews; family fun and jazz for kids; and a Club Crawl and other after-hours events for the grown ups.
With a long list of featured performers, a special barrel-aged beer and artisan food pairing program offered by Gordon Biersch and fun for the whole family, you’ll definitely want to stay over. Check out the hotel deals page for special accommodations right in the middle of the action. Visit the San Jose Jazz Summer Fest website for the festival line-up and all the weekend’s activities.

Station Advisory: Temporary closure of Davis station August 25 – 27, 2012

The City of Davis will temporarily close the Davis Amtrak station from August 25 – 27, 2012 to perform maintenance on the building. Amtrak will have a staff member outside the station during normal station business hours to help answer questions and direct passengers.
Please note that during this temporary closure, there will be no access to the waiting room, lobby or restrooms. Additionally, ticketing and baggage service for all trains traveling through the station will be suspended. This means passengers will need to pick-up their train tickets in advance or utilize the eTicketing option to print their train tickets at home.
Thank you in advance for your patience during this temporary station closure.

Golden STAR Award – Call for Nominations

Representatives from Amtrak, the Capitol Corridor Joint Powers Authority, and Caltrans created California’s Golden State Advocate of Rail (STAR) award to honor passenger rail advocates from California and help build awareness about rail travel throughout the state. Former honorees include Doras Briggs (2008), Art Lloyd (2009), Art Brown (2010) and James Spering (2011).
We invite you to submit a nominee for this prestigious honor. Please feel free to forward the nominating form to others who might be interested.
The deadline for submission is August 30, 2012.