Thanks Amtrak, for fast thinking and quick action

It’s been said, “There are two sayings that are familiar in every news room across the country: ‘sex sells’ and ‘if it bleeds it leads.’” Bad news and controversy definitely peak readers’ interest.

Sorry, I have no sex or blood in my column today. I’m going to tell an Amtrak story, which occurred this past Saturday, when I traveled from Philadelphia to New York City, in the midst of the big snowstorm. Amtrak employees saved our day.My wife, younger adult son and I enjoy opera. Don’t snicker. Great opera is great theater, and at the Metropolitan Opera, its quality, and that of its performers is second to none, the world over.

We chose our current season subscription, specifically for Saturday’s opera, Simon Boccanegra, mostly because Plácido Domingo was set to perform the lead role, in this opera, for his first time. In our opinion, he is the world’s greatest living active male opera star. His voice is amazing, and his acting wonderful.

As Saturday approached, with its forecast of an impending “blizzard of the century,” you can imagine our consternation. Were we going to miss this major event, this very special performance? Any time you have the opportunity to see a star of this magnitude perform, it’s a special occasion.

Saturday morning came with a foot of snow on the ground, and 3 foot drifts, and while Philadelphia International was essentially closed, Amtrak was running close to normal, from Philadelphia, north. We had tickets on the “Keystoner.”

We walked through the snow and 30 mph winds to Amtrak’s 30th Street Station, Philadelphia. I went to print the tickets, purchased on the Internet, at one of the kiosks. I usually have no problems with them, but on Saturday, none of them worked. I tried several before I gave up. With the bad weather outside, the station wasn’t as busy as normal for a Saturday morning. I went right to a ticket window and the clerk quickly cleared up the problem and printed our tickets.

Amtrak sent us down to the train platform a few minutes early, and the train, which originated in Harrisburg, Pa., was already there. We boarded and settled in for the hour and 26 minute ride. We left right on time, and even in the snow, we were quickly up to speed.

We remained on-time until about 20 minutes south of New York City, then the lights went out, and the train slowed, then stopped. The conductor reported we had a problem with the engine’s pantograph, the device which collects the electric current from the overhead lines to power the train. For the next 15 minutes, it was stop and start, crawling along at slow speeds.

We were then informed the actual problem was the main electric motor for the train, and that it had nothing to do with the weather. It was about this time we phoned Café Fiorello to tell them we’d probably miss brunch.

After attempting to fix the motor, at about 2 miles from Rahway, NJ, 20 miles south of New York City, our Amtrak engineer, in concert with the conductor made a tough decision, strictly to help their passengers. They decided to abandon the train.

It’s at this point that Amtrak, due to a fast thinking conductor, and the folks at the Amtrak communications center earned tremendous kudos, and sincere thanks from our train load of grateful passengers.

The conductor, a regular on the Keystoner, in concert and in contact with the Amtrak  communications center knew that a New Jersey Transit (NJT) train would be coming up a parallel track past our train soon. They spoke to NJT, and a few minutes later the NJT train pulled along side of us and parked. The 15 minute transfer to the NJT train commenced. It was snowing lightly, very cold, and windy. We all went out on to the track bed, some with big suitcases, others with smaller bags, and climbed up on to the NJT train. The conductors and trainmen from both companies were great. They helped everyone, carried luggage for anyone who needed help, and made sure everyone transferred safely.

At 11:59 am we arrived at New York’s Penn Station, an hour and 10 minutes late. Equipment does break-down at times, notwithstanding an organization’s best efforts. Without Amtrak’s concern for their passengers, as expressed through the conductor and his quick, decisive action, we would have been far, far later, with our day and subscription season ruined.

We took a quick subway ride to Lincoln Center. There was no time for brunch, but were able to grab a sandwich and eat it at the Met, prior to the opera. We bought dessert in the Met’s Belmont Room at intermission.

The ordeal was worth it. The opera was superb. Domingo was glorious, as were each of the principles. When it was over, the applause, the curtain calls, the bravos and bravos went on forever.

Amtrak’s Northeast Regional was on-time taking us home.

Thanks to Amtrak and our conductor, for caring about their passengers and working out a way to solve a tough problem in far less than ideal conditions.