What’s it like to take an Amtrak train to Altoona? Soon, even better

A once-prominent shared ride service is set to receive major improvements backed by $143 million in federal dollars.

This is no Uber — Amtrak is calling “All aboard!”

The $143 million — which comes through the Federal Railroad Administration and Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act — will update rail infrastructure along the Keystone West Corridor, allowing the addition of a second daily Pennsylvanian train, which carries passengers to New York with stops in Harrisburg, Philadelphia and other cities en route.

The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation and Norfolk Southern Corp. agreed to a second daily train in September, pending the financial commitment, which came on Dec. 6.

“It’s welcome for travelers in Western Pennsylvania,” says Mark Spada, president of the nonprofit advocacy group Western Pennsylvanians for Passenger Rail. “We’ve seen the benefits of increasing frequency east of Harrisburg with the economic development and downtown revitalization for some of the smaller towns between Harrisburg and Philadelphia, so hopefully some of that will translate over to the Western part of the state as well.”

Western Pennsylvanians for Passenger Rail has advocated for additional service for over a decade, says Spada.

“One of the biggest points that our group has always tried to make is that there’s a real lack of connectivity in Western Pennsylvania — connectivity in terms of transportation alternatives,” Spada says. 

“There’s very little bus service in the intermediate points between Pittsburgh and Harrisburg … and a lot of these smaller towns have very limited air service, so it’s really difficult to get to some of these places if you don’t have a car.”

In the September release announcing the second daily train, PennDOT said the state would invest more than $200 million in improvements that would be constructed and maintained by Norfolk Southern.

The federal grant, which was announced on Dec. 6, will cover the lion’s share of the improvements, with PennDOT matching 20% of the project’s total cost. PennDOT’s estimated project total in its submission to the Federal Railroad Administration was $180 million, says Alexis Campbell, PennDOT’s press secretary.

Campbell says PennDOT’s remaining portion of the budget will be paid using funds that were previously set aside for rail equipment, which Amtrak is now covering with the backing of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.

Western Pennsylvanians for Passenger Rail wants the second train operational as soon as possible, Spada says.

“Norfolk Southern’s already begun their design work — they started earlier this year,” Spada says. “This funding just solidifies that work, and if the money allows more flexibility for the state to do other passenger rail-related projects, or to enhance what’s going on with the second Pennsylvanian … then all the better.”

The second daily Pennsylvanian’s maiden voyage is beholden to the completion of the rail improvements but is expected to come in 2026.

The nonprofit advocacy group says demand for rail service beyond two daily trains already exists.

“Elsewhere in the country where Amtrak has added frequency on state-supported routes, there have been significant increases in ridership, and that’s because frequency of service gives travelers more choices,” Spada says. “It will allow travelers to — once the second train is running — go to Harrisburg, spend the afternoon conducting whatever business they need to in Harrisburg and come back the same day.”

Amtrak’s 2023 fiscal year report notes that September 2023 ridership was 100% of the same month in 2019 — before the Covid-19 pandemic. Additionally, ridership in the Northeast Corridor was 8% higher than pre-pandemic in the company’s fourth quarter.

One commuter, private chef Brandon Melvin, often rides between client homes in Pittsburgh and the East Coast.

“I love the train more than the plane,” Melvin says. “It’s much more relaxing and you get to see a little bit more land, ambience.”

Currently, an eastbound train departs from Pittsburgh’s Union Station at 7:30 a.m., and a westbound train returns at about 8 p.m. A Norfolk Southern feasibility report on the additional service preliminarily shows that trains would depart at 7 a.m. and noon, and arrive at 3 p.m. and 10 p.m.

Although Melvin often travels along the Keystone corridors, he is unsure whether the second line will positively affect his commute.

“I just buy the train tickets and enjoy the ride,” Melvin says. “I would hope it does, but if it doesn’t, then I don’t see why they would be doing it.”

Day tripping on the tracks

When the second Pennsylvanian train rolls onto the rails in a few years, the trains will improve a day-cation option for rail fans or passengers like Melvin looking to enjoy the ride.

Through the window are some of the Keystone West’s best vistas: U.S. Steel’s Edgar Thomson Works bathed in golden hour rays with The Phantom’s Revenge looming behind, the gabled roof and ornamental chimney of the Johnstown station peeking onto the tracks from the street below and the Kittanning Reservoir’s still water beneath the world-famous Horseshoe Curve.

The two-and-a-half-hour trip to Altoona, which disembarks right after the Horseshoe Curve, costs about $20 to $30 for coach class seats and about $35 to $55 for business, depending on how far in advance they are booked.

Business class travelers get free nonalcoholic beverages and disembark closer to the platform’s exit (which may have been happenstance, as a more experienced traveler told me he preferred when the business car was at the back of the train. It gave better views of Horseshoe Curve, he said).

Altoona itself is steeped in railroad history. The city was incorporated in 1868 — 12 years after the Horseshoe Curve was built to connect Eastern and Western Pennsylvania. From around 1900 to World War II, Altoona’s economy was driven by iron, locomotives and other rail equipment.

One of the city’s claims to fame is that Horseshoe Curve was marked for destruction by Nazi saboteurs, who thought the attack would disrupt supply lines to Europe.

Railroad crossover bridges make the Railroaders Memorial Museum — which hosts more information on the sabotage attempt and all things Altoona — a five-minute walk from the Amtrak station.

The museum offers joint admission to Horseshoe Curve, which is 6 miles out of town, so be sure to budget for an Uber.

Another notorious claim to fame is Altoona Sicilian Pizza: fluffy Sicilian crust, tomato sauce, green bell pepper, genoa salami and yellow American cheese. Although The Altoona Hotel — its original home — burned down in 2013, 29th Street Pizza, Subs & More maintains the recipe. Think of it as an open-faced sandwich, and don’t mind the cheese when it sticks to the roof of your mouth.

Currently, a day trip to Altoona will depart from Pittsburgh at 7:30 a.m. and arrive in Altoona close to 10 a.m. The return trip departs around 5:15 p.m. and arrives a little after 8.

If eight hours in Altoona is too much for you, wait for the second daily Pennsylvanian to start up in a few years. The two Pittsburgh departures will put you in Pennsylvania’s railroad capital at 9:30 a.m. or 12:30 p.m., with trips back at 2:30 p.m. and 7 p.m.

Don’t worry — the Altoona Sicilian will still be waiting for you.