Amtrak train service between Boston and New York was restored late Saturday after a power outage on the tracks led the train service to cancel trains on the busy Northeast Corridor most days.
Amtrak said An upgrade A lightning strike caused a power outage around 10:30 pm but did not say where the strike took place. Earlier Saturday, the train service said the disruption was caused by a “defective breaker that caused a power outage on all tracks” between New York’s Penn Station and New Haven Union Station in Connecticut.
“Amtrak is contacting customers affected by these adjustments directly and offering them options to rebook their travel plans,” the company said in an update Saturday night. “Amtrak apologizes for any inconvenience caused by the disruption.”
Amtrak’s social media posts indicated that train service had been experiencing electrical problems since 9:20 a.m. Friday, causing multiple delays and cancellations.
Amtrak said two trains were running at their scheduled times Saturday night: the 65 train from Boston to Newport News, Va., and the 66 train from Roanoke, Va., to Boston.
Amtrak said most trains will run on a regular schedule Sunday, but trains 143, 162 and 150 are canceled “due to equipment locations at the time of the service disruption.” Amtrak said trains 54 and 157 will operate on modified schedules.
The railway service said it will waive the additional fare for passengers who wish to change their bookings.
“Customers booked on the affected trains will normally be accommodated on trains with similar departure times or on another day” Amtrak said in a warning Saturday at 9:50 am
Messages were sent to Amtrak seeking more information.
About 4.6 million people are expected to travel by bus, train or cruise ship for the Fourth of July holiday, a 9 percent increase from 2023 and a return to pre-pandemic levels, AAA said.
Nick Stoico can be reached at [email protected].
