Empire Builder
Template:Short description {{#invoke:other uses|otheruses}} Template:Use mdy dates Template:Italic title Template:Infobox rail service
The Empire Builder is a daily long-distance passenger train operated by Amtrak between Chicago and either Seattle or Portland via two sections west of Spokane. Introduced in 1929, it was the flagship passenger train of the Great Northern Railway and was retained by Amtrak when it took over intercity rail service in 1971.
The end-to-end travel time of the route is 45–46 hours for an average speed of about Template:Cvt, though the train travels as fast as Template:Cvt over the majority of the route. It is Amtrak's busiest long-distance route.
During fiscal year 2023, the Empire Builder carried 338,993 passengers, an increase of 15.0% from FY2022<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> but 21.8% below pre-COVID-19 levels (433,372 passengers during FY2019<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>). During FY2022, the train had a total revenue of $49,600,000.
History
The Great Northern Railway inaugurated the Empire Builder on June 10, 1929. It was named in honor of the company's founder, James J. Hill, who had reorganized several failing railroads into the only successful attempt at a privately funded transcontinental railroad. It reached the Pacific Northwest in the late 19th century, and for this feat, he was nicknamed "The Empire Builder".<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> Following World War II, Great Northern placed new streamlined and diesel-powered trains in service that cut the scheduled 2,211-mile trip between Chicago and Seattle from 58.5 hours to 45 hours.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref>
The schedule allowed riders views of the Cascade Mountains and Glacier National Park, a park established through the lobbying efforts of the Great Northern. Re-equipped with domes in 1955, the Empire Builder offered passengers sweeping views of the route through three dome coaches and one full-length Great Dome car for first class passengers.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref>
In March 1970, the Great Northern, along with three other closely affiliated railroads (Chicago, Burlington & Quincy (CB&Q), Northern Pacific and Spokane, Portland & Seattle) merged to form Burlington Northern, which assumed operation of the Builder.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Amtrak took over the train when it began operating most intercity routes in May 1971. To improve its farebox recovery ratio, Amtrak shifted the Chicago–St. Paul leg to run through Milwaukee via the Milwaukee Road.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Before 1971, the Chicago–St. Paul leg used the CB&Q's mainline along the Mississippi River through Wisconsin. The service also used to operate west from the Twin Cities before turning northwest in Willmar, to reach Fargo. When Amtrak assumed operation of the service, it also rerouted the Builder over the route between Fargo and Minot via Grand Forks, which until that time was covered by the Builder's companion service, the Western Star.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref><ref>BN cancelled operation of the Western Star train on the same day it turned over operations to Amtrak, and the company, to avoid the loss of the Grand Forks, Devils Lake and Rugby stops, rerouted the Builder via Grand Forks to continue service to those stops.</ref> While the Builder running through the direct route between Fargo and Minot, the Western Star continued from Fargo north to Grand Forks, where it turning west to reach Minot.
Between 1971 and 1979, on the parallel route of the former Northern Pacific between Twin Cities and Spokane via Staples, Fargo, Bismarck, Missoula and Helena run the North Coast Hiawatha, descendant of NP's flagship service, the North Coast Limited, which also served stops such as St. Cloud, Staples and Detroit Lakes.<ref name="sanders158">Template:Harvnb</ref><ref name=Edmonson>Template:Cite book as mentioned in Template:Cite magazine</ref> Between Chicago and Minneapolis, and between Spokane and Seattle, the North Coast Hiawatha run combined with the Builder three days a week.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref><ref name="Amtrak-2009-9">Template:Harvnb</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
When Amtrak cancelled the North Coast Hiawatha, it rerouted the Builder over the former NP mainline between Minneapolis-St. Paul and Fargo to continue to serve St. Cloud, Staples and Detroit Lakes, which otherwise would have lost service when the North Coast Hiawatha was suspended.<ref name="sanders158" /> The realignment of the Builder from the former GN mainline to the NP mainline however resulted in the loss of the stops at Willmar, Breckenridge and Morris.
In October 1979, the Builder was the first of Amtrak's western long-distance services to receive the new Superliner I cars built by Pullman-Standard. Due to the harsh winter weather of the Upper Midwest plains, and the mountainous areas of Montana, Idaho and Washington, with blizzards and cold temperatures, traditional steam-heated equipment frequently broke down, often forcing Amtrak to cancel service. The Superliners, with their electrical head-end power, were far better suited for the conditions.<ref name="Sanders-2006-162">Template:Harvnb</ref> Amtrak's new national timetable depicted a Superliner coach on the front cover, and the listing for the Empire Builder carried a heading which read "Amtrak's Superliner is Template:Sic Special."<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Amtrak added a Portland section in 1981, with the train splitting in Spokane. This restored service to the line previously operated by the Spokane, Portland and Seattle Railway.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> It was not the first time that the train had operated Seattle and Portland sections; Great Northern had split the Builder in Spokane for much of the 1940s and 1950s.<ref>May 4, 1947, Great Northern timetable http://www.streamlinerschedules.com/concourse/track7/empbuilder194706.html Template:Webarchive</ref><ref>June 10, 1956, Great Northern timetable http://www.streamlinerschedules.com/concourse/track7/empbuilder195607.html Template:Webarchive</ref>
In 2005, Amtrak upgraded service to include a wine and cheese tasting in the dining car for sleeping car passengers and free newspapers in the morning.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Amtrak's inspector general eliminated some of these services in 2013 as part of a cost-saving measure.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
During summer months, on portions of the route, "Trails and Rails" volunteer tour guides in the lounge car give commentary on points of visual and historic interest that can be viewed from the train.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
After running daily for the better part of a century, the Empire Builder was cut back to tri-weekly operation along with most of Amtrak's other long-distance routes on OctoberTemplate:Nbsp12, 2020, as part of a round of service reductions due to the COVID-19 pandemic. For most of the fall and winter of 2020–21, trains departed Chicago on Mondays, Thursdays and Saturdays and departed Seattle or Portland on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> However, in March 2021, Amtrak announced the train would return to its pre-pandemic daily schedule on MayTemplate:Nbsp24, 2021.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Notable incidents
On MayTemplate:Nbsp27, 1931, the eastbound Empire Builder was struck by a tornado in Clay County, Minnesota.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> The train, carrying 117 passengers, had all of its cars, minus the locomotive and coal tender, thrown off the tracks by the tornado, with one car being thrown Template:Convert off the track. One passenger died, with 57 others injured.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Template:Main Due to heavy patronage during World War II the Empire Builder ran in two sections, known as First 1 and Second 1. On August 9, 1945, at Michigan, North Dakota, First 1 was stopped to address an overheated journal. It was struck from behind by Second 1 at a speed of 45 mph. The rear car of First 1, a “bobtail” – part observation car and part sleeping berths, was telescoped along practically its entire length by the engine of Second 1, and was demolished. It remains the worst rail disaster in both North Dakota and Great Northern Railway history.<ref name=GNS2>GN S-2 Class</ref> Thirty-four passengers died and 303 were injured.<ref name=ICC>ICC Investigation No.2921</ref>
Template:Main On March 7, 1966, the eastbound Empire Builder collided head-on with the Western Star mail and passenger train going in the opposite direction.<ref name="headon">Template:Cite news</ref> This occurred between Chester, Montana and Joplin, Montana, at the west end of the Buelow siding, while Great Northern's then-president John M. Budd was aboard.<ref name="book">Template:Cite book</ref><ref name="ICC_report">Template:Cite report</ref> The two engineers both died in the collision and 79 were injured; 29 of those were hospitalized in what came to be known at the Great Northern Buelow wreck.<ref name="GNA">Template:Cite web</ref>
Template:Main The westbound Empire Builder derailed between Joplin, Montana and Chester, Montana (at the east end of the Buelow siding) on SeptemberTemplate:Nbsp25, 2021, with three fatalities.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The train was at the east end of Buelow siding.<ref>Schmidt, Brian - Amtrak confirms three fatalities in Montana derailment Trains Magazine, September 26, 2021</ref>
Ridership
The Empire Builder is Amtrak's most popular long-distance train. Over fiscal years 2007–2016, Empire Builder annual ridership averaged 500,000, with a high of 554,266 in FY 2008. Revenue peaked in FY 2013 at $67,394,779.Template:Efn About 65% of the cost of operating the train is covered by fare revenue, a rate among Amtrak's long-distance trains second only to the specialized East Coast Auto Train.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Route
The current Amtrak Empire Builder passes through Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Montana, North Dakota, Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Illinois. It makes service stops in Spokane, Washington; Havre, Montana; Minot, North Dakota; and Saint Paul, Minnesota. Its other major stops include Vancouver, Washington; Whitefish, Montana; Williston, North Dakota; Fargo, North Dakota; and Milwaukee, Wisconsin. It uses BNSF Railway's Northern Transcon from Seattle to Minneapolis, Minnesota Commercial Railway from Minneapolis to St. Paul, Canadian Pacific Kansas City (former Milwaukee Road) from St. Paul to Rondout, Illinois, and Metra's Milwaukee District North Line (former Milwaukee Road) from Rondout to Chicago. The St. Paul to Chicago portion currently follows the route of the former Twin Cities Hiawatha, and beginning in May 2024 has been supplemented by the Borealis. In pre-Amtrak days it used the Twin Zephyrs routing.
.jpg){kind=link}
The Seattle section follows Puget Sound and uses the Cascade Tunnel and Stevens Pass as it traverses the Cascade Range to reach Spokane. The Portland section runs along the Washington side of the Columbia River Gorge. The cars from the two sections are combined at Spokane; the Seattle train has the dining car, while the Portland train has the observation car.<ref name="Seattle Times 2005">Template:Cite news</ref> The combined train then traverses the mountains of northeastern Washington, northern Idaho and northwestern Montana, arriving in Whitefish in the morning. The schedule is timed so that the train passes through the Rocky Mountains (and Glacier National Park) during daylightTemplate:Spaced ndashan occurrence that is more likely on the eastbound train during summer. Passengers can see sweeping views as the Builder travels along the middle fork of the Flathead River, crossing the Continental Divide at Marias Pass. After crossing Marias Pass, the Empire Builder leaves Glacier National Park and enters the Northern Plains of eastern Montana and North Dakota.
The land changes from prairie to forest as it travels through Minnesota. From Minneapolis-St. Paul, the Empire Builder crosses the Mississippi River at Hastings, Minnesota and passes through southeastern Minnesota cities on or near Lake Pepin before crossing the Mississippi again at La Crosse, Wisconsin. The service travels southeast through rural south-central Wisconsin, turns due south at Milwaukee, and ends at Chicago Union Station.
The westbound Empire Builder leaves Chicago in early afternoon, arriving in Milwaukee just before the afternoon rush and in St. Paul in the evening. After traveling overnight through Minnesota, it spends most of the following day traveling through North Dakota and Montana, arriving at Glacier National Park in the early evening and splitting late at night in Spokane. The Seattle section travels through the Cascades overnight, arriving in Seattle in mid-morning. The Portland section arrives in the Tri-Cities just before breakfast and in Portland in mid-morning. The eastbound Seattle and Portland sections leave within five minutes of each other just before the afternoon rush, combining in Spokane and traveling through Montana overnight before arriving at Glacier National Park in mid-morning and Williston at dinner time. After traveling overnight through North Dakota and Minnesota, it arrives in St. Paul at breakfast time, Columbus/Madison at lunch time, Milwaukee in early afternoon and Chicago just before the afternoon rush.
Stops at Milwaukee Airport and Sturtevant were added beginning MarchTemplate:Nbsp21, 2020, to replace Hiawatha trains suspended due to the COVID-19-related drastic drop in demand.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Additionally, local travel was allowed between Chicago and Milwaukee. These adjustments lasted until the train resumed its normal schedule in May 2021.
Flooding
The line has come under threat from flooding from the Missouri, Souris, Red, and Mississippi Rivers, and has occasionally had to suspend or alter service. Most service gets restored in days or weeks, but Devils Lake in North Dakota, which has no natural outlet, is a long-standing threat. The lowest top-of-rail elevation in the lake crossing is Template:Convert.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In spring 2011, the lake reached Template:Convert,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> causing service interruptions on windy days when high waves threatened the tracks.
BNSF, which owns the track, suspended freight operations through Devils Lake in 2009 and threatened to allow the rising waters to cover the line unless Amtrak could provide $100 million to raise the track. BNSF also offered Amtrak, during that time, to accommodate the Builder on the segment of the Transcon between Fargo and Minot, but that would have meant the loss of the Grand Forks, Devils Lake and Rugby station stops. To compensate for the loss of station stops at Grand Forks, Devils Lake, and Rugby that would have been caused by the shift, BNSF suggested that Amtrak add a station stop at New Rockford, North Dakota. However, Amtrak said that they would continue using the line by the lake. In 2010, analysts estimated that Amtrak would soon either have to rebuild the bridge that crosses the lake at Churchs Ferry, or reroute its passenger trains.<ref>Fred W. Frailey, "Minus its backbone, Amtrak makes a tempting target," Trains, August 2010, p. 18</ref> In June 2011 agreement was reached that Amtrak and BNSF would each cover 1/3 of the cost with the rest to come from the federal and state governments.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
In December 2011, North Dakota was awarded a $10 million TIGER grant from the US Department of Transportation to assist with the state portion of the cost.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Work began in June 2012, and the track is being raised in two stages: Template:Convert in 2012, and another 5 feet in 2013. Two bridges and their abutments are also being raised. When the track raise is complete, the top-of-rail elevation will be Template:Convert.<ref name=gfher0612>Template:Cite web</ref> This is 10 feet above the level at which the lake will naturally overflow and will thus be a permanent solution to the Devils Lake flooding.
In the spring and summer of 2011 flooding of the Souris River near Minot, North Dakota blocked the route in the latter part of June and for most of July. For some of that time the Empire Builder (with a typical consist of only four cars) ran from Chicago and terminated in Minneapolis/St Paul; to the west, the Empire Builder did not run east of Havre, Montana. (Other locations along the route also flooded, near Devils Lake, North Dakota and areas further west along the Missouri River.)
Freight train interference
An oil boom from the Bakken formation, combined with a robust fall 2013 harvest, led to a spike in the number of crude oil and grain trains using the Northern Transcon in Montana and North Dakota. The resulting congestion led to rampant delays for the Empire Builder, with the train running on time 44.5% in November 2013, the worst on-time performance of any Amtrak route and well below congressional standards. In some cases, the delays resulted in an imbalance of crew and equipment, forcing Amtrak to cancel runs of the Empire Builder.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> By May 2014, only 26% of Empire Builder trains had arrived within 30 minutes of their scheduled time, with delays averaging between 3 and 5 hours.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In some cases, freight congestion and severe weather resulted in delays as long as 11 to 12 hours.<ref name=EmpireBuilderIsBack>Template:Cite news</ref> This was a marked change from past years in which the Empire Builder was one of the best on-time performers in the entire Amtrak system, ahead of even the flagship Acela Express.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Due to the increasingly severe delays, Amtrak adjusted the route's schedule west of St. Paul on AprilTemplate:Nbsp15, 2014. Westbound trains left St. Paul later, while eastbound trains left Seattle/Portland approximately three hours earlier. Operating hours for affected stations were also officially adjusted accordingly. The Amtrak announcement also said that BNSF was working on adding track capacity, and it was anticipated that sometime in 2015 the Empire Builder could be returned to its former schedule. In January 2015, it was announced that the train would resume its normal schedule.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name=EmpireBuilderIsBack/>
Even during the worst of the delays, the train has seen frequent patronage from workers in the Bakken fields and their families who board and detrain in Williston. Passengers travel from as far as the Pacific Northwest.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Stations
Former stops
In 1970, the construction and filling of Lake Koocanusa necessitated the realignment of Template:Convert of track between Stryker, Montana, and Libby, Montana, and the construction of Flathead Tunnel, leading the Empire Builder to drop service to Eureka, Montana. The Empire Builder also served Troy, Montana, until FebruaryTemplate:Nbsp15, 1973.
On OctoberTemplate:Nbsp1, 1979, the Empire Builder was rerouted to operate over the North Coast HiawathaTemplate:'s old route between Minneapolis and Fargo, North Dakota. With this alignment change, the Empire Builder dropped Willmar, Minnesota; Morris, Minnesota; and Breckenridge, Minnesota, while adding St. Cloud, Minnesota; Staples, Minnesota; and Detroit Lakes, Minnesota.
Another alignment change came on OctoberTemplate:Nbsp25, 1981, when the Seattle section was rerouted from the old Northern Pacific (which had also become part of the BN in 1970) to the Burlington Northern Railroad's line through the Cascade Tunnel over Stevens Pass. This change eliminated service to Yakima, Washington; Ellensburg, Washington; and Auburn, Washington.<ref>Template:Harvnb</ref> This change also introduced the Portland section, which returned service to the former Spokane, Portland and Seattle Railroad line (which became part of BN in 1970) along the Washington shore of the Columbia River. The route kept Pasco, but added Wishram, Bingen-White Salmon, and Vancouver (all in Washington) to the route. From Vancouver, the Portland section of the Empire Builder uses the same route as the Coast Starlight and Cascades trains to Portland Union Station.
It has been proposed that the Empire Builder and Hiawatha trains servicing Glenview, Illinois have their station stop be shifted one station north to the Metra station at North Glenview, to eliminate stops which block traffic on Glenview Road. North Glenview would have to be modified to handle additional traffic, and the move depends on commitments from Glenview, the Illinois General Assembly, and Metra.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In Minnesota, the Empire Builder returned to Saint Paul Union Depot on MayTemplate:Nbsp7, 2014, 43 years after it last served the station the day before the start of Amtrak. Renovation of the 1917 Beaux Arts terminal was undertaken in 2011, continuing through 2013, resulting in a multi-mode terminal used by Jefferson Lines, Greyhound Lines, commuter bus and the Metro Green Line, providing a light rail connection to downtown Minneapolis.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The station replaced Midway Station which opened in 1978 after the initial abandonment of Saint Paul Union Depot in 1971 and the demolition of Minneapolis Great Northern Depot in 1978.
Equipment
Current equipment
Like all long-distance trains west of the Mississippi River, the Empire Builder uses bilevel Superliner passenger cars (except for the baggage car). The Empire Builder was the first train to be fully equipped with Superliners, with the first run occurring on OctoberTemplate:Nbsp28, 1979.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>
A typical Empire Builder consist includes:<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
- Two or three GE Genesis or Siemens Charger ALC-42 locomotives
- Viewliner baggage car
- Superliner transition sleeper car
- Two Superliner sleeper cars
- Superliner diner
- Superliner coach
- Superliner Sightseer Lounge/café
- Superliner coach
- Superliner coach/baggage car
- Superliner sleeper
In Spokane, the westbound train is split: the locomotives, baggage car, and first six passenger cars continue on to Seattle as train 7, while a single locomotive is used to take the remaining cars (including the lounge/cafe) to Portland as train 27. Eastbound the sections are combined in a reverse fashion, with the Seattle section numbered as train 8 and the Portland section as train 28. During peak travel periods, an additional coach is added to the rear of the train between Chicago and St. Paul. It is left overnight in St. Paul for the next day's return trip to pick up. This car is designated train 807 westbound and train 808 eastbound.
Amtrak’s Siemens Charger ALC-42 locomotives were first used in revenue service on the Empire Builder on FebruaryTemplate:Nbsp8, 2022.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Historical equipment
Template:Unreferenced section When first launched in 1929, the Great Northern provided new heavyweight consists. When the railway received five new streamlined trainsets in 1947, the old heavyweight sets were used to reintroduce the Oriental Limited. In 1951 the Empire Builder was re-equipped with six new streamlined trainsets; the 1947 cars were used to launch the Western Star, while the Oriental Limited was retired. When the GN acquired dome coaches in 1955, the 1951 coaches went to Western Star, while the 1947 coaches went to the pool of spare and extra-movement cars. Ownership of the cars on the Empire Builder was by-and-large split between the Great Northern and the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad (CB&Q), though a couple of cars in the original consists were owned by the Spokane, Portland and Seattle Railway (SP&S). In this consist, one of the 48-seat "chair" cars and one of the 4-section sleepers were used for the connection to Portland, while the rest of the consist connected to Seattle.
The Great Northern coaches eventually found their way into state-subsidized commuter service for the Central Railroad of New Jersey after the Burlington Northern merger and remained until 1987 when NJ Transit retired its last E8A locomotive. Some of these cars remain in New Jersey. Some coaches were acquired from the Union Pacific; these also went to New Jersey. One of the 28 seat coach-dinette cars also remains in New Jersey and is stored near Interstate 78 wearing tattered Amtrak colors.
Notes
References
Bibliography
- Template:Cite web
- Template:Hidy-Great Northern
- Template:Sanders-Heartland
- Template:Cite magazine
- Template:Wayner - Car names, numbers, consists
- Template:Cite book
Further reading
External links
- Pages with broken file links
- Pages using center with unknown parameters
- Amtrak routes
- Passenger trains of the Great Northern Railway (U.S.)
- North American streamliner trains
- Passenger rail transportation in Illinois
- Passenger rail transportation in Wisconsin
- Passenger rail transportation in Minnesota
- Passenger rail transportation in North Dakota
- Passenger rail transportation in Montana
- Passenger rail transportation in Idaho
- Passenger rail transportation in Oregon
- Passenger rail transportation in Washington (state)
- Railway services introduced in 1929
- Night trains of the United States
- Long-distance Amtrak routes