Colonial (Amtrak train)

The ''Colonial'' was an Amtrak intercity passenger train that operated between Boston, Massachusetts, and Newport News, Virginia, from 1976 to 1992. It was introduced on June 15, 1976, to replace the lightly-used Charlottesville-Newport News section of the ''James Whitcomb Riley''. Certain trips were known as the ''Senator'' and ''Tidewater'' beginning in the late 1970s. The Richmond-New York City ''Virginian'' was added in 1984, with some trips called ''Potomac'' from 1985 to 1988.

The ''Colonial'' was renamed ''Old Dominion'' on October 24, 1992, as part of a series of service changes. Several name changes of Virginia service over the next three years created the ''Chesapeake'', ''Gotham Limited'', ''James River'', ''New England Express'', ''Tidewater Express'', and ''Manhattan Express'', and added a second Richmond trip. Virginia service was merged into the ''NortheastDirect'' brand in 1995. A second daily round trip was added as the '' Twilight Shoreliner'' in 1997. After subsequent service changes, Amtrak service to Newport News continues as part of the ''Northeast Regional'' brand.

History

Previous service

By the time Amtrak took over intercity passenger service in the United States on May 1, 1971, the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway (C&O) served Newport News with three daily round trips: the Charlottesville–Newport News sections of the ''George Washington'' and ''Fast Flying Virginian'' / '' Sportsman'', plus a Newport News–Richmond trip. Amtrak kept only one daily round trip to Newport News — a section of the Washington–Cincinnati ''George Washington''. The ''George Washington'' was combined with the ''James Whitcomb Riley'' on July 12, 1971, to provide through service to Chicago.

The Newport News section was lightly used — usually not filling a single coach—and passengers between the Tidewater region and the Northeast had to transfer at Charlottesville. The March 25, 1975 introduction of the Chicago–Norfolk ''Mountaineer'' satisfied a federal mandate for Amtrak to provide service between Cincinnati and the Tidewater. Following studies that indicated a market for direct service between the Tidewater and the Northeast, Amtrak replaced the ''Riley'' section with the New York City–Newport News ''Colonial'' on June 15, 1976. The ''Colonial'' served as an extension of the southbound ''Mount Vernon'' (which was already called ''Colonial'' on Saturdays) and the northbound ''Betsy Ross''. It used new Amfleet coaches, unlike the aging ex-C&O passenger cars used on the ''Riley''.

Service changes

Initially, the ''Colonial'' ran between Newport News and New York City, except for the Saturday southbound train which originated in Boston. On February 15, 1977, all ''Colonial'' service was extended to Boston. Northbound Sunday service changed on May 1, 1977: the ''Colonial'' began to originate at Richmond, while the several-hours-later ''Senator'' originated at Newport News. A stop at Lee Hall was added on October 30, 1977. Beginning on July 30, 1978, northbound Sunday service became the Newport News-New York City ''Tidewater'', and the ''Senator'' returned to its previous schedule. On January 4, 1987, the northbound ''Colonial'' collided with Conrail locomotives in Maryland, killing fourteen passengers and two Amtrak employees.

By the early 1980s, Richmond was served by the ''Colonial''/''Tidewater'' plus three long-distance trains—the '' Palmetto'', ''Silver Meteor'', and ''Silver Star''. Because the long-distance trains frequently ran late, only the ''Colonial''/''Tidewater'' provided reliable northbound service from Richmond, Fredericksburg, and Quantico. On October 28, 1984, Amtrak added the daily Richmond–New York ''Virginian'', which was timed to allow commuting to Washington. On April 28, 1985, the northbound Sunday ''Virginian'' was moved two hours later as the ''Potomac''. The ''Potomac'' was discontinued on September 15, 1988; the ''Colonial'' began running from Richmond to Boston on Sundays, with the ''Tidewater'' continuing to provide Sunday northbound service from Newport News. The April 1990 extension of one '' Atlantic City Express'' train to Richmond and the April 1991 separation of the New York–Charlotte '' Carolinian'' from the ''Palmetto'' increased Washington-Richmond service to seven daily round trips.

Later service

Amtrak made a series of changes to corridor service in Virginia beginning on 1992. On October 25, 1992, both the ''Virginian'' and ''Colonial'' were cut back from Boston to New York City, and the latter was renamed ''Old Dominion''. A Friday ''Tidewater'' round trip was also added. May 2, 1993 saw the additional of ''Tidewater'' round trips on Thursday and Saturday southbound / Sunday northbound, plus a southbound-only Sunday trip from Richmond to Newport News. A station stop was added at Williamsburg Pottery Factory. Service levels of the added weekend round trips were adjusted the next February. The southbound weekend ''Virginian'' became the ''Chesapeake'' on May 1, 1994, with the northbound weekend ''Old Dominion'' in turn renamed ''Virginian''. On October 30, 1994, the Sunday Richmond–Newport News trip and a late Friday Newport News-Richmond move (a former deadhead move) were called the ''James River''.

Amtrak began showing Virginia services as part of Northeast Corridor timetables on April 2, 1995. The ''Old Dominion'' and ''Virginian'' were renamed ''New England Express'' and the Lee Hall stop was dropped. A daily Richmond–New York City round trip — the southbound ''Chesapeake'' made daily and a new northbound ''Old Dominion'' — was added to replace the discontinued ''Amtrak City Express''. On September 10, 1995, the northbound ''New England Express'' was renamed ''Tidewater Express'' (except for a single Sunday trip from Springfield, which became the ''Old Dominion''), and the northbound ''Old Dominion'' was replaced with the ''Manhattan Express''. On October 28, 1995, most of Amtrak's Northeast Corridor services (except for the premium '' Metroliners'' and commuter-based '' Clockers''), including the Richmond and Newport News trains, were rebranded as ''NortheastDirect'' and lost their individual names.

Train names were re-added under the ''NortheastDirect'' brand the next year. The daily Newport News train became the ''Old Dominion'', with ''Tidewater'', ''Virginian'', ''James River'', and ''Potomac'' assigned to other trips. The daily Richmond trains became the ''Virginian'' and the '' Bay State'', the latter of which ran to Boston via Springfield and the Inland Route. The Williamsburg Pottery Factory stop was also discontinued in 1996. On July 10, 1997, the Washington–Boston '' Night Owl'' was replaced by the Newport News–Boston '' Twilight Shoreliner'', providing a second daily round trip to Newport News. The ''Bay State'' was cut back to Washington and replaced by the Springfield–Richmond ''Charter Oak'', and the ''Potomac'' was renamed ''Gotham Limited''. On October 26, 1997, the ''Chesapeake'' was cut to New York and renamed ''Colonial''. ''NortheastDirect'' trains except for the ''Twilight Shoreliner'' again lost their individual names on May 16, 1999. The ''NortheastDirect'' brand — including the Virginia trains — was renamed ''Acela Regional'' in 2000–2001, ''Regional'' in 2003, and finally ''Northeast Regional'' in 2008. Virginia began funding further expansion of ''Northeast Regional'' service in 2009.

References

External links

{{Former Amtrak routes

Former Amtrak routes
Passenger rail transportation in Virginia
Railway services introduced in 1976
Railway services discontinued in 1992
Railway services introduced in 1997
Railway services discontinued in 1999