Silver Star (Amtrak train)

Silver Star

The Silver Star at Southern Pines, North Carolina in 2009
Overview
Service type	Inter-city rail
Locale	East Coast of the United States
First service	December 12, 1947
Current operator(s)	Amtrak (May 1, 1971 – present)
Former operator(s)	Seaboard Air Line Railroad (December 12, 1947 - June 30, 1967) Seaboard Coast Line Railroad (July 1, 1967 - April 30, 1971) Pennsylvania Railroad (December 12, 1947 - January 31, 1968, haulage agreement) Penn Central Transportation (February 1, 1968 - April 30, 1971, haulage agreement)
Annual ridership	351,732 (FY23) -19.1%
Route
Termini	New York City Miami
Stops	38
Distance travelled	1,522 miles (2,449 km)
Average journey time	31h 33m
Service frequency	Daily
Train number(s)	91, 92
On-board services
Class(es)	Coach Class Sleeper Service
Disabled access	All train cars, all stations
Sleeping arrangements	Roomette (2 beds) Bedroom (2 beds) Bedroom Suite (4 beds) Accessible Bedroom (2 beds)
Catering facilities	Dining car, Café
Baggage facilities	Overhead racks, checked baggage available at selected stations
Technical
Rolling stock	Amfleet, Viewliner, GE Genesis, ACS-64, GE Dash 8-32BWH
Track gauge	4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
Operating speed	125 mph (201 km/h) (top, NEC) 79 mph (127 km/h) (top)
Track owner(s)	Amtrak, CSXT, NS, CFRC, SFRTA
Route map Northeast Corridor to Boston 0 mi 0 km New York City Empire Corridor NY NJ North River Tunnels under Hudson River 10 mi 16 km Newark Penn 58 mi 93 km Trenton Delaware River NJ PA Keystone Service & Pennsylvanian 91 mi 146 km Philadelphia–30th Street PA DE 116 mi 187 km Wilmington DE MD 185 mi 298 km Baltimore Capitol Limited to Chicago MD DC 225 mi 362 km Washington, D.C. Potomac River DC VA 234 mi 377 km Alexandria Cardinal, Crescent, & Northeast Regional 334 mi 538 km Richmond Staples Mill Road Northeast Regional to Newport News 362 mi 583 km Petersburg Northeast Regional to Norfolk VA NC 460 mi 740 km Rocky Mount Silver Meteor 530 mi 853 km Raleigh 538 mi 866 km Cary Carolinian & Piedmont 598 mi 962 km Southern Pines 626 mi 1007 km Hamlet NC SC 700 mi 1127 km Camden 733 mi 1180 km Columbia 782 mi 1259 km Denmark Savannah River SC GA Silver Meteor 870 mi 1400 km Savannah St. Marys River GA FL 1018 mi 1638 km Jacksonville 1076 mi 1732 km Palatka 1128 mi 1815 km DeLand 1160 mi 1867 km Winter Park 1165 mi 1875 km Orlando 1183 mi 1904 km Kissimmee 1233 mi 1984 km Lakeland 1264 mi 2034 km Tampa 1312 mi 2111 km Winter Haven 1353 mi 2177 km Sebring 1395 mi 2245 km Okeechobee 1456 mi 2343 km West Palm Beach 1474 mi 2372 km Delray Beach 1484 mi 2388 km Deerfield Beach 1498 mi 2411 km Fort Lauderdale 1506 mi 2424 km Hollywood 1389 mi 2235 km Miami 1393 mi 2242 km Miami Intermodal Center Planned All stations are accessible

The Silver Star is a long-distance passenger train operated by Amtrak on a 1,522-mile (2,449 km) route between New York City and Miami via Washington, D.C., Richmond, Virginia, Raleigh, North Carolina, Columbia, South Carolina, Savannah, Georgia, Jacksonville, Florida, and Tampa, Florida. The Silver Star and its sister train in the Silver Service brand, the Silver Meteor, are the descendants of numerous long-distance trains that operated between Florida and New York for most of the 20th century.

During fiscal year 2019, the Silver Star carried nearly 389,995 passengers, an increase of 5.9% from FY2018. In FY16, it earned a total revenue of $29,261,496, an 11.6% decrease from FY2010.

History

The Silver Star was originally a service of the Seaboard Air Line Railroad (SAL), running from New York to Miami and later also St. Petersburg (beyond Tampa). It was previously known as the Advance Silver Meteor, and was renamed on December 12, 1947, after the name was chosen by SAL in a contest. From 1947 to 1948, it was winter-only and did not appear in summer timetables. By 1949, however, it was a year-round train. Its main Miami-bound route went through the interior of Florida, via Ocala and Winter Haven. In peak winter service in the mid-1950s it had a section that went to St. Petersburg via Tampa. Another section went to Port Boca Grande via Tampa. The Pennsylvania Railroad (PRR) carried the train between New York and Washington, D.C. under a haulage agreement, similar to the arrangement with its sister train, the Silver Meteor. The agreement was maintained when the PRR was folded into Penn Central Transportation in 1968, a year after SAL merged with the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad (ACL) to form the Seaboard Coast Line Railroad (SCL). Between Washington and Richmond, Virginia, the train operated on RF&P rails. Amtrak took over the train in 1971.

Amtrak era

Except for a brief period from 1994 to 1995 and from 1996 to 2004, when service to Tampa was provided by the Palmetto (known as the Silver Palm from 1996 to 2002), the Silver Star has served both Tampa and Miami during the Amtrak era. Originally, Amtrak operated the Silver Star with Tampa and Miami sections that split in Jacksonville, with the Tampa section continuing on the old Atlantic Coast Line route through Orlando, and the Miami section traveling through Ocala and Wildwood over most of what was the original Seaboard route to Miami. After November 1, 2004, the Silver Star resumed service to Tampa, and now travels intact all of the way, backing out of Tampa and retracing its route 40 miles (64 km) east to Auburndale, where it heads south to Miami or north to New York. The detour occurs at Lakeland; the train stops there to discharge passengers before going to Tampa and to receive passengers after it returns from Tampa.

In the January 2011 issue of Trains magazine, this route was listed as one of five routes to be looked at by Amtrak in FY 2011 as the previous five routes (the Sunset Limited, Texas Eagle, California Zephyr, Capitol Limited, and Cardinal) were examined in FY 2010. With the discontinuation of the Silver Meteor's former Tampa section (a descendant of the Champion, a longtime rival of the Silver Star and Silver Meteor) in 1988, the Silver Star is now the only passenger train serving Tampa.

On July 1, 2015, the Silver Star's dining car was completely removed from the train's consist, a controversial decision that Amtrak rationalized with the idea that sleeping car passengers could obtain meals from the train's café-lounge car. However, on May 1, 2020, the Silver Star's dining car was returned, and Amtrak introduced the “flexible dining” system to the train, which consists of pre-prepared meals which are then heated in either a convection oven or a microwave oven at the time of purchase. In a Rail Passengers Association webinar that took place on November 16, 2022, Amtrak's vice president of long-distance service revealed that traditional dining service was planned to be reintroduced on the Silver Meteor and the Silver Star "in early 2023." Following this announcement, beginning on northbound train 92 on March 15, 2023, traditional dining was reintroduced to the Silver Star for the first time since 2015. However, this was not a permanent rollout and was instead in the form of a 3-month pilot program gauged to test the success of the service. Southbound train 91 received the pilot on March 17. On June 24, 2023, traditional dining service was formally launched on the Silver Star, as well as on northbound Silver Meteor train 98, and the Silver Star pilot program was replaced by permanent service. Southbound train 97 received traditional dining on June 26. Unlike on Amtrak's western long-distance trains that feature traditional dining, neither the Silver Meteor or Silver Star allow Coach Class passengers access to the dining car as of July 2023. Shortly after the formal rollout, however, in another interview with the Rail Passengers Association, Amtrak's vice president of long-distance service stated that Coach Class access to the dining car is planned to be allowed by the end of 2023.

On February 4, 2018, Silver Star train number 91 collided with a CSX freight train in Cayce, South Carolina; the engineer and a conductor of the Silver Star were killed, and 116 passengers were injured.

In 2021, Amtrak reached out to FDOT to begin negotiations again for utilization of the Miami Intermodal Center. This comes after years of disagreement over the platform length at the MIC, as Amtrak normally adds cars to the Silver Meteor and Silver Star during the winter season to accommodate increased demand. In February 2022, negotiations restarted between FDOT and Amtrak. Later in March 2022, a test train operated into and out of the station and proved that the platforms are sufficient in length to hold a standard 10 car train. However, the platforms are not long enough to accommodate an 11 to 12 car train, which could be possible in the winter months. In September 2022, Amtrak management announced that it had restarted lease negotiations with FDOT regarding use and maintenance of the terminal. One issue however, is the deadheading move that will need to take place between the MIC and Hialeah. Amtrak CEO Stephen Gardner has stated that "the company is evaluating technical and operational aspects of the move." In an Amtrak Public Board Meeting Q&A on December 1, 2022, it was revealed that Amtrak is in the final stages of its preparations for relocating from their current Miami station, and plans to officially relocate to the MIC in 2023.

COVID-19 pandemic

On July 6, 2020, Amtrak reduced the frequency of this train to three times per week as opposed to daily. Southbound Silver Star trains departed New York Friday through Sunday, while Silver Meteor trains departed Monday through Thursday. Similarly, northbound Silver Star trains departed Miami on Thursday through Saturday, while Silver Meteor trains departed Sunday through Wednesday. Both trains resumed daily services on June 7, 2021, after additional Amtrak funding was included in the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021.

Between January 24 and October 14, 2022, the Silver Star temporarily added a station stop in Jesup, Georgia due to the suspension of its sister train, the Silver Meteor, which is normally the only train that stops at that station. This was due to a resurgence of the Omicron variant of COVID-19 as well as a further delay caused by Hurricane Ian. During this period the Silver Star provided a single once daily service between New York and Miami.

Ridership

Ridership by Fiscal Year (October–September)

	Ridership	Change over previous year	Notes
2010	393,586	-	-
2011	424,394	07.82%	-
2012	425,794	00.37%	-
2013	414,077	02.79%	-
2014	405,695	02.02%	-
2015	383,347	05.50%	-
2016	364,271	04.97%	-
2017	373,372	02.49%	-
2018	368,518	01.30%	-
2019	377,342	02.39%	-
2020	218,514	042.09%	-
2021	187,152	014.35%	Tri-weekly October 2020 - June 2021
2022	434,779	0132.31%	-
2023	351,732	019.1%	-

Rolling stock

The Silver Star uses Amtrak's standard long-distance single-level equipment: Viewliner baggage cars, Viewliner sleeping cars, Viewliner dining cars, Amfleet café-lounges and Amfleet coaches. An ACS-64 electric locomotive is used between New York City and Washington, D.C, while two GE P42DC or Siemens ALC-42 diesel electric locomotives are used for power south of Washington, D.C.

A typical Silver Star consist as of October 2023 is made up of:

• ACS-64 locomotive (New York–Washington)
• P42DC or ALC-42 locomotive (Washington–Miami)
• P42DC or ALC-42 locomotive (Washington–Miami)
• Amfleet II Coach
• Amfleet II Coach
• Amfleet II Coach
• Amfleet II Café/Lounge Car
• Viewliner II Dining Car
• Viewliner I Sleeping Car
• Viewliner II Sleeping Car
• Viewliner II Baggage Car

During the 2022 suspension of the Silver Meteor, some coach and sleeping cars usually on the Silver Meteor were combined into the Silver Star, creating a train with up to six coaches and five sleepers, in addition to the café-lounge, diner, and baggage car.

The train began using rebuilt Heritage Fleet equipment on March 10, 1982.

Route details

The Silver Star operates over a combination of Amtrak, CSX Transportation (CSXT), and Norfolk Southern Railway (NS) trackage:

• New York – Washington D.C. (Amtrak)
  • Northeast Corridor:
• Washington D.C. – Selma, North Carolina (CSXT)
  • RF&P Subdivision
  • Richmond Terminal Subdivision
  • North End Subdivision
  • South End Subdivision:
• Selma – Raleigh, North Carolina (NS)
  • Goldsboro to Greensboro District
• Raleigh – DeLand, Florida (CSXT)
  • Aberdeen Subdivision
  • Hamlet Terminal Subdivision
  • Hamlet Subdivision
  • Columbia Subdivision
  • Savannah Subdivision
  • Nahunta Subdivision
  • Jacksonville Terminal Subdivision
  • Sanford Subdivision
• DeLand – Poinciana, Florida (SunRail)
  • Central Florida Rail Corridor
• Poinciana – Tampa, Florida – Mangonia Park, Florida (CSXT)
  • Carters Subdivision
  • Lakeland Subdivision
  • Tampa Terminal Subdivision
  • Auburndale Subdivision
  • Miami Subdivision
• Mangonia Park – Miami, Florida (Tri-Rail)
  • South Florida Rail Corridor

The Silver Star uses the same route as the Silver Meteor – the other train in the Silver Service brand – excluding two segments: Selma, North Carolina – Savannah, Georgia, and Kissimmee, Florida – Winter Haven, Florida. Between Selma and Savannah, the Silver Star takes an inland route over the CSX S-Line to serve the Carolinas' state capitals of Raleigh and Columbia, while the Silver Meteor stays closer to the coast on the CSX A-Line and serves Fayetteville, North Carolina and Charleston, South Carolina. Between Kissimmee and Winter Haven, the Silver Meteor turns south to go directly to Miami at Auburndale, Florida, while the Silver Star continues west to Lakeland, Florida and Tampa, before coming back to Auburndale and turning south to Miami. In addition to these diversions, between Sebring, Florida and West Palm Beach, Florida, the Silver Meteor makes no intermediate stops, while the Silver Star makes an additional stop at Okeechobee, Florida. Inversely, between Savannah and Jacksonville, Florida, the Silver Meteor makes an additional stop at Jesup, Georgia, while the Silver Star makes no intermediate stops. However, during the 2022 suspension of the Silver Meteor, the Silver Star temporarily served Jesup.

Prior to October 1986, the Silver Star operated between Petersburg, Virginia, and Raleigh via the CSX Norlina Subdivision, stopping only in Henderson, North Carolina. CSX abandoned the Norlina Subdivision between Norlina, North Carolina and Collier Yard (just south of Petersburg) in October 1986, which required the Silver Star to be rerouted over the CSX A-Line between Petersburg and Selma, then over the North Carolina Railroad between Selma and Raleigh. The Silver Star is to be rerouted via its former routing when tracks between Petersburg and Norlina are rebuilt as part of the Southeast High Speed Rail Corridor project, and reinstate its stop at Henderson, as well as adding a stop in La Crosse, Virginia.

Like other long-distance trains operating on the Northeast Corridor, local travel between NEC stations is not allowed on the Silver Star. Northbound trains only stop to discharge passengers from Alexandria, Virginia northward, and southbound trains only stop to receive passengers from Newark, New Jersey to Washington. This policy is in place to keep seats available for passengers making longer trips. Passengers wanting to travel locally must use the more frequent Northeast Regional or Acela trains. Additionally, the Silver Star, like the Silver Meteor, does not allow local travel between West Palm Beach and Miami. Southbound trains only stop to discharge passengers, while northbound trains only stop to receive passengers bound for points beyond West Palm Beach. This is due to the availability of Tri-Rail, South Florida's commuter rail system.

Since Amtrak ended passenger rail service over the CSX Clearwater Subdivision between Tampa and St. Petersburg, Florida in February 1984,Amtrak Thruway bus service has been provided at Tampa Union Station for trainside transfer of passengers and their baggage to and from Clearwater, Florida and St. Petersburg. Other points on Florida's west coast, such as Bradenton, Florida, Sarasota, Florida, Port Charlotte, Florida and Fort Myers, Florida, are also served by Amtrak Thruway service connecting with the Silver Star at Tampa. Similarly, Amtrak has provided Amtrak Thruway bus service between the former stations along the CSX Wildwood Subdivision in North-Central Florida since November 2004 after passenger rail service ended, as well as Gainesville, Florida and The Villages-Lady Lake, Florida. The former stations that are now served by Amtrak Thruway buses are: Waldo, Florida, Ocala, Florida, Wildwood, Florida, and Dade City, Florida. These buses connect with the Silver Star at Jacksonville and Lakeland.

Station stops

State	Town/City	Station	Connections
NY	New York City	Penn Station	Amtrak (long-distance): Adirondack, Cardinal, Crescent, Lake Shore Limited, Palmetto, Pennsylvanian, Silver Meteor Amtrak (intercity): Acela, Berkshire Flyer, Carolinian, Empire Service, Ethan Allen Express, Keystone Service, Maple Leaf, Northeast Regional, Vermonter LIRR: ■ Main Line, ■ Port Washington Branch NJ Transit: ■ North Jersey Coast Line, ■ Northeast Corridor Line, ■ Gladstone Branch, ■ Montclair-Boonton Line, ■ Morristown Line NYC Subway: ​​​​ PATH: HOB-33 JSQ-33 JSQ-33 (via HOB) NYC Transit Bus
NJ	Newark	Newark Penn Station	Amtrak: Acela, Cardinal, Carolinian, Crescent, Keystone Service, Northeast Regional, Palmetto, Pennsylvanian, Silver Meteor, Vermonter NJ Transit: ■ North Jersey Coast Line, ■ Northeast Corridor Line, ■ Raritan Valley Line PATH: NWK-WTC Newark Light Rail NJ Transit Bus
	Trenton	Trenton	Amtrak: Cardinal, Carolinian, Crescent, Keystone Service, Northeast Regional, Palmetto, Pennsylvanian, Silver Meteor, Vermonter NJ Transit: ■ Northeast Corridor Line, ■ River Line SEPTA Regional Rail: ■ Trenton Line NJ Transit Bus, SEPTA Suburban Bus
PA	Philadelphia	30th Street Station	Amtrak: Acela, Cardinal, Carolinian, Crescent, Keystone Service, Northeast Regional, Palmetto, Pennsylvanian, Silver Meteor, Vermonter SEPTA Regional Rail: all routes NJ Transit: ■ Atlantic City Line SEPTA City Transit: Market-Frankford Subway-Surface SEPTA City Bus, SEPTA Suburban Bus
DE	Wilmington	Wilmington	Amtrak: Acela, Cardinal, Carolinian, Crescent, Northeast Regional, Palmetto, Silver Meteor, Vermonter SEPTA Regional Rail: ■ Wilmington/​Newark Line DART First State Greyhound Lines
MD	Baltimore	Penn Station	Amtrak: Acela, Cardinal, Carolinian, Crescent, Northeast Regional, Palmetto, Silver Meteor, Vermonter MARC: ■ Penn Line Light RailLink MTA Maryland, Charm City Circulator
DC	Washington	Washington Union Station	Amtrak: Acela, Capitol Limited, Cardinal, Carolinian, Crescent, Northeast Regional, Palmetto, Silver Meteor, Vermonter, Amtrak Thruway to Charlottesville, Virginia MARC: ■ Brunswick Line, ■ Camden Line, ■ Penn Line VRE: ■ Manassas Line, ■ Fredericksburg Line Metro: Red Line DC Streetcar: H Street/Benning Road Line Metrobus, DC Circulator, MTA Maryland, Loudoun County Transit, OmniRide Intercity bus: Greyhound, Megabus, BoltBus, BestBus, Peter Pan, OurBus
VA	Alexandria	Alexandria	Amtrak: Cardinal, Carolinian, Crescent, Northeast Regional, Palmetto, Silver Meteor VRE: ■ Manassas Line, ■ Fredericksburg Line Metro: Blue Line, Yellow Line Metrobus, DASH
	Richmond	Richmond Staples Mill Road	Amtrak: Carolinian, Northeast Regional, Palmetto, Silver Meteor, Amtrak Thruway to Charlottesville, Virginia Greater Richmond Transit Company
	Ettrick	Petersburg	Amtrak: Carolinian, Northeast Regional, Palmetto, Silver Meteor
NC	Rocky Mount	Rocky Mount	Amtrak: Carolinian, Palmetto, Silver Meteor Tar River Transit Greyhound Lines
	Raleigh	Raleigh Union Station	Amtrak: Carolinian, Piedmont GoRaleigh, GoTriangle
	Cary	Cary	Amtrak: Carolinian, Piedmont GoCary, GoTriangle
	Southern Pines	Southern Pines
	Hamlet	Hamlet
SC	Camden	Camden
	Columbia	Columbia	The Comet
	Denmark	Denmark
GA	Savannah	Savannah	Amtrak: Palmetto, Silver Meteor
FL	Jacksonville	Jacksonville	Amtrak: Silver Meteor, Amtrak Thruway to Waldo, Ocala, Gainesville, The Villages, Wildwood, Dade City, Lakeland Jacksonville Transportation Authority
	Palatka	Palatka	Amtrak: Silver Meteor The Ride Solution
	DeLand	DeLand	Amtrak: Silver Meteor, Amtrak Thruway to Daytona Beach
	Winter Park	Winter Park	Amtrak: Silver Meteor SunRail LYNX Bus
	Orlando	Orlando	Amtrak: Silver Meteor, Amtrak Thruway to Lakeland, Tampa, St. Petersburg, Bradenton, Sarasota, Port Charlotte, Fort Myers SunRail LYNX Bus
	Kissimmee	Kissimmee	Amtrak: Silver Meteor SunRail LYNX Bus Greyhound Lines
	Lakeland	Lakeland	Amtrak Thruway to Dade City, Wildwood, The Villages, Gainesville, Ocala, Waldo Jacksonville, Orlando, Tampa, St. Petersburg, Bradenton, Sarasota, Port Charlotte, Fort Myers Citrus Connection Greyhound Lines
	Tampa	Tampa	Amtrak Thruway to Dade City, Wildwood, The Villages, Gainesville, Ocala, Waldo, Jacksonville, Lakeland, Orlando, St. Petersburg, Bradenton, Sarasota, Port Charlotte, Fort Myers Hillsborough Area Regional Transit
	Winter Haven	Winter Haven	Amtrak: Silver Meteor
	Sebring	Sebring	Amtrak: Silver Meteor
	Okeechobee	Okeechobee
	West Palm Beach	West Palm Beach	Amtrak: Silver Meteor Tri-Rail Brightline (at West Palm Beach) Palm Tran, Tri-Rail Commuter Connector, West Palm Beach Downtown Trolley Greyhound Lines
	Delray Beach	Delray Beach	Amtrak: Silver Meteor Tri-Rail Palm Tran, Downtown Connector
	Deerfield Beach	Deerfield Beach	Amtrak: Silver Meteor Tri-Rail Broward County Transit, Tri-Rail Commuter Connector
	Fort Lauderdale	Fort Lauderdale	Amtrak: Silver Meteor Tri-Rail Broward County Transit, Metrobus, Sun Trolley, Tri-Rail Commuter Connector
	Hollywood	Hollywood	Amtrak: Silver Meteor Tri-Rail Broward County Transit, Hallandale Beach Community Bus
	Miami	Miami	Amtrak: Silver Meteor Metrobus