Amtrak Guest Rewards - Amtrak trims lengthy CA/OR Thruway segment

Amtrak California will stop direct bus service Sunday between Redding and Ashland and Medford, Ore.

The canceled route is part of Amtrak California's Thruway bus service, which originates in Sacramento and is an extension of its train service. The bus also made stops in Dunsmuir, Mount Shasta, Weed and Yreka.

http://www.redding.com/news/2009/oct/24/amtrak-shuts-down-direct-bus-service-between-and/

What this article neglects to mention -- and someone correct me if I'm wrong -- is that a major reason this segment drew so few riders is that you could only purchase it in connection with a train ticket. So, no local riders between OR and northern CA, for instance. In fact, you couldn't even ride all the way from Medford to Sacramento unless you were connecting to a train in Sacramento. Or to put it another way, a northbound bus departing Sacramento could not take on additional riders along the course of its several-hundred mile route. :(

Those are part of the rules that were set up (by CA DOT?, ICC?) so as not to interfere with Greyhound/Trailways etc.

Thruway has to be with a train segment.

I think there are two standalone thruway routes approved now in CA; one I think is Frasier Park to LA and not sure about the other one.

Not that this helps the financial viability of the CA/OR bus connection, but you could get from Oregon to southern California for 1,000 AGR points when it ran.

I think it may have been the best mileage per points use in the AGR award inventory.

I think there are two standalone thruway routes approved now in CA; one I think is Frasier Park to LA and not sure about the other one.

I believe the other one that can be purchased without a rail segment is the Thruway route between Sacramento and South Lake Tahoe.

This service will be sorely missed. I used it last summer, in conjunction with a backpacking trip. Who wants to arrive Dunsmuir at 5:00 a.m. on an expensive Starlight, with no other Siskiyou County stops?

I believe the other one that can be purchased without a rail segment is the Thruway route between Sacramento and South Lake Tahoe.Some of the thruway services in California aren't dedicated, and can be purchased without a rail segment -- just not through Amtrak.

Some of the thruway services in California aren't dedicated, and can be purchased without a rail segment -- just not through Amtrak.
I just tested booking SAC-SLT on amtrak.com. I did not see the note about needing to purchase it with a rail segment.

Is it possible that because this bus route continues on into NV (to SLN and CCN), it is exempt from the California state law regulating buses? Or perhaps that law only applies to Amtrak California-operated Thruway lines, and this one isn't an Amtrak California route? (I don't know if it is or isn't--just guessing.)

The law only applies to state-supported routes. If a thruway is part of the national system and paid solely by Amtrak, the law shouldn't apply.

That said, folks in the past have been able to buy just the thruway, even though it requires a train segment to technically be valid. Many of the drivers could care less, along as your ticket for their service is good. For example, you're unlikely to find the driver for the Highway 17 (thruway to Santa Cruz) check that your Amtrak ticket has a rail segment.

Those are part of the rules that were set up (by CA DOT?, ICC?) so as not to interfere with Greyhound/Trailways etc.

Thruway has to be with a train segment.

I think there are two standalone thruway routes approved now in CA; one I think is Frasier Park to LA and not sure about the other one.

The rules were not set up by Caltrans, the sponsor of the service, but rather by the California Legislature by statute, in direct response to a Greyhound lobbyist. The recent exceptions were created (South Lake Tahoe route, and Frazier Park) by enactment of 2 additional laws.

Essentially, people were asleep at the switch when the original law was passed. Caltrans, of course, is a paper tiger on matters like this, failing to fight for their own interests.

Interestingly, Greyhound first sought relief at the federal level, leading to a law precluding Amtrak from spending federal funds for bus connections that did not relate to a train connection. After that passed, it was discovered that it would not apply to the CA buses, as those are funded entirely by the state. Hence, the later state law.

The rules were not set up by Caltrans, the sponsor of the service, but rather by the California Legislature by statute, in direct response to a Greyhound lobbyist. The recent exceptions were created (South Lake Tahoe route, and Frazier Park) by enactment of 2 additional laws.

Essentially, people were asleep at the switch when the original law was passed. Caltrans, of course, is a paper tiger on matters like this, failing to fight for their own interests.

Interestingly, Greyhound first sought relief at the federal level, leading to a law precluding Amtrak from spending federal funds for bus connections that did not relate to a train connection. After that passed, it was discovered that it would not apply to the CA buses, as those are funded entirely by the state. Hence, the later state law.

Thanks for the info and clarification.