Tag: Cardinal

Amtrak’s Hilltopper Ended In 1979. Federal Study Hints At A Revival

Far southern West Virginia has been without passenger rail service since 1979.

Far southern West Virginia has been without passenger rail service since 1979. A federal study hints at a potential revival.

The Federal Railroad Administration has been studying the potential of expanding Amtrak service in West Virginia, including making the Cardinal from New York and Chicago a daily train.

A PowerPoint presentation from the agency at least hints it might be considering the revival of a train that was discontinued more than 40 years ago: The Hilltopper.

That train once stopped in Bluefield, Welch and Williamson on its way from Boston and Washington, D.C., to Catlettsburg, Kentucky.

Despite the support of powerful lawmakers, including the late Sen. Robert C. Byrd, the train fell to sweeping Carter administration cuts on Oct. 1, 1979.

The Federal Railroad Administration study doesn’t commit to restoring the Hilltopper but could revisit the route in the future.

William Wong, an agency spokesman, said the study “underscores a widespread desire for restoring long-distance routes and exploring the creation of new ones.”

“The study is a first step in future passenger rail planning efforts, and we look forward to continuing to refine our vision and work with partners as we design and implement an equitable long-distance passenger rail network that will tie together local economies and communities through safe and reliable rail service,” he said.

The only daily Amtrak service in West Virginia is in the Eastern Panhandle, with the Capitol Limited stopping in Harpers Ferry and Martinsburg, as well as Cumberland, Maryland.

Grant Called ‘First Step’ Toward Making Cardinal A Daily Train

Amtrak will use a $500,000 grant from the Federal Railroad Administration to begin the planning process toward making the Cardinal a daily train.

A new federal grant could help restore daily Amtrak service to Huntington, Charleston and the New River Gorge.

Amtrak will use a $500,000 grant from the Federal Railroad Administration to begin the planning process toward making the Cardinal a daily train.

Currently, the train runs three days a week and connects West Virginia to Chicago, Washington, D.C. and New York. It stops in Huntington, Charleston, Montgomery, Prince, Thurmond, Hinton and White Sulfur Springs.

The route is among 69 corridors nationwide where Amtrak is looking to begin or expand service.

In the year that ended Sept. 30, the Cardinal posted a 3 percent increase in riders to 82,705. Only one other Amtrak route, the Sunset Limited, operates three days a week, from Los Angeles to New Orleans.

West Virginia has a daily Amtrak train, the Capitol Limited. It stops in Martinsburg and Harpers Ferry.

In a statement, U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin called the grant a first step.

“This is a great investment in further connecting West Virginia communities, bringing more visitors to our great state and creating new economic opportunities,” Manchin said.

Amtrak’s expansion plans are part of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, which became law in 2021.

Federal Funding Could Help Expand Amtrak’s Cardinal To Daily Service

Amtrak has submitted a request for Federal Railroad Administration funding that could expand existing long-distance trains or add new routes.

For years, Amtrak’s Cardinal has operated just three days a week. That could change.

Amtrak has submitted a request for Federal Railroad Administration funding that could expand existing long-distance trains or add new routes.

One of those included in the request: the Cardinal, which now stops in West Virginia on Sundays, Wednesdays and Fridays.

The funding could help the train operate daily from New York to Chicago via Huntington, Charleston, Montgomery, Prince, Thurmond and White Sulphur Springs.

The Cardinal carried 80,000 passengers in fiscal year 2022, up 16 percent from 2021.

“Amtrak’s long distance routes are vital mobility and economic links for communities around the country and we’re continually working to enhance them,” Amtrak Board Chair Tony Coscia said in a statement. “These grant applications reiterate our commitment to improving service for all Amtrak customers, from small, rural towns to major metropolitan areas.”

The Cardinal’s stops in Thurmond, Prince and Montgomery serve the New River Gorge National Park and Preserve, which gained national park status in 2020.

In the Eastern Panhandle, Amtrak’s Capitol Limited stops daily in Harpers Ferry and Martinsburg.

More W.Va. Towns, Counties Sue Over Opioid Crisis

Two West Virginia counties have joined numerous others in suing pharmaceutical companies, drugstores and the West Virginia Board of Pharmacy over the state’s opioid crisis.

The Exponent Telegram reports that Barbour and Taylor counties have hired lawyers from West Virginia and Florida to seek temporary and permanent restraining orders to curb practices they say are fueling the crisis, restitution, punitive damages and an insurance award from the Board of Pharmacy.

The lawsuits filed Tuesday says the defendants, including McKesson, AmerisourceBergen and Cardinal, knew opioids were addictive, yet still flooded the state with the drugs through unscrupulous practices.

The pharmaceutical companies have denied similar claims.

Eleven local West Virginia governments are also suing drug companies who they say failed to follow state and federal law to prevent the distribution and abuse of prescription pain medication that’s created the state’s opioid crisis.

The Charleston Gazette-Mail reports the lawsuits filed in the federal court this week come from governments around the state. The municipalities include Quinwood, Rupert, Rainelle, Milton, Smithers, Sutton, Logan, Summersville and Parkersburg, in addition to Nicholas and Braxton counties.

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