With tentative deal to avert strike, here’s latest on impact to Capitol Corridor Amtrak service
The Capitol Corridor Amtrak commuter trains that run from Sacramento to the Bay Area will operate on their normal schedule Thursday, as a tentative deal reached overnight averted a nationwide railroad strike.
Amtrak earlier on Wednesday said it would be offering partial service Thursday on Capitol Corridor due to the looming strike. But Amtrak in an update just before 7:45 a.m. announced it “will run regularly scheduled train service today with no modifications.”
Regular train service is also expected Friday.
President Joe Biden early Thursday announced a tentative deal had been reached between unions and rail companies.
Earlier this week, Capitol Corridor officials had advised riders to plan on using alternate transportation starting Thursday, if the labor strike commenced.
Capitol Corridor posted an online list of the trains available Thursday, along with some train trips that have been canceled. If the railroad workers strike, all Capitol Corridor train service will be suspended Friday until further notice. Bus bridges during suspended service will not be available.
“We will reintroduce service as quickly as possible after the labor dispute is resolved,” Capitol Corridor officials said in Wednesday’s update. “We will continue to provide updates to this situation as we learn more.”
The potential railroad worker strike had threatened shutdown service Friday for riders on the Amtrak San Joaquins and the Altamont Corridor Express as both share tracks with freight railroads, The Modesto Bee reported. Amtrak has five daily round trips between Bakersfield and Oakland, including stations in Modesto and Denair, along with a sixth trip that branches north to Sacramento.
CNBC reported that two of the largest railroad unions, which represent half of railroad union workers, were in negotiations with railroad carriers and demanding more quality-of-life provisions in their contracts, including covering attendance policies, vacation and sick days.
Reuters reported that U.S. passenger railroad Amtrak would temporarily cancel all of its long-distance trains starting Thursday because of the potential freight rail work stoppage that could start Friday. Amtrak workers are not involved in the labor dispute.
The nation’s Class I freight carriers, including Union Pacific Railroad, are in negotiations with their labor unions, according to Capitol Corridor officials. If a strike is called, freight and passenger operations on corridors managed by freight railroads would cease, including the UPRR lines on which Capitol Corridor commuter trains operate.
The commuter service asked riders to share this information with fellow riders and to check its website capitolcorridor.org and its social media accounts for updates, including Facebook and Twitter.
This story was originally published September 14, 2022 at 3:25 PM.
