C ustomers of Amtrak whose tickets were canceled because of the train crash which occurred northeast of Philadelphia on Tuesday, May 12, 2015 can fly as passengers between Washington, D.C., Boston and New York on the shuttle service operated by Delta Air Lines through Tuesday, May 19, 2015, as Delta Air Lines will honor canceled Amtrak tickets for stranded passengers.
Additionally, seat capacity will be increased on affected markets using a larger aircraft type — such as Boeing 717 airplanes versus Embraer SA 175 airplanes. The affected markets are between the following airports:
- Boston and New York – LaGuardia Airport
- Boston and New York – John F. Kennedy International Airport
- New York – LaGuardia Airport and Washington National Airport
- New York – John F. Kennedy International Airport and Washington Dulles International Airport
- New York – John F. Kennedy International Airport and Washington National Airport
Change fees will be waived; and one-way fares at or below $315.00 for new tickets for Shuttle flights between Washington, D.C., Boston and New York will be offered.
Amtrak customers may contact the reservations call centers of Delta Air Lines to be booked and ticketed; and Delta Air Lines will not be seeking any compensation from Amtrak.
Eight people were killed and at least 65 people were injured after all seven cars of a train which operated as Amtrak Northeast Regional Train 188 — which was carrying 238 passengers and five crew members along what is known as the Northeast Corridor line — derailed and rolled onto its side in a train crash northeast of Philadelphia shortly after 9:00 in the evening on Tuesday, May 12, 2015.
Joe Boardman — the president and chief executive officer of Amtrak — issued the following statement on Thursday, May 14, 2015:
The derailment of Northeast Regional Train 188 was a terrible tragedy that we are responding to with every resource we have available. The National Transportation Safety Board is leading the investigation to determine the cause of the incident, and Amtrak is providing full cooperation.
With truly heavy hearts, we mourn those who died. Their loss leaves holes in the lives of their families and communities. On behalf of the entire Amtrak family, I offer our sincere sympathies and prayers for them and their loved ones. Amtrak takes full responsibility and deeply apologizes for our role in this tragic event.
We recognize that for everyone onboard the train, including those who suffered injuries, the healing process may be long. Within 24 hours of the incident, Amtrak set up a Family Assistance Center in Philadelphia to work closely with the family of passengers and crew on the train. We are also working with the individuals and families affected by this event to help them with transportation, lodging, and of course, medical bills and funeral expenses.
Amtrak is ever grateful to the City of Philadelphia—its first responders who bravely worked in difficult conditions, including the dark of night, to rescue and provide aid to hundreds; its hospital personnel who went into full alert as patients arrived at emergency rooms; its officials who quickly implemented a response plan; and its citizens who opened their doors to offer assistance.
Although our current focus is on the passengers and employees affected by this incident and the resulting service disruption along the Northeast Corridor, we must also take time to learn from this event. Passenger railroading is at its core about people; the safety of our passengers and employees was, is and always will be our number one priority. Our goal is to fully understand what happened and how we can prevent a similar tragedy from occurring in the future. We will also continue to focus on completing Positive Train Control implementation in the Northeast Corridor by December of 2015.
Thank you for your support of America’s Railroad during this difficult time.
Although initial reports from a plethora of media sources claimed that the train was traveling at approximately twice the speed that it should have been traveling, a projectile might have struck the windshield of the train before it derailed, according to the official Twitter Internet web site of the National Transportation Safety Board of the United States; and the Federal Bureau of Investigation of the United States is now involved in the investigation to provide technical assistance.
In the meantime, terms and conditions apply to the offer — subject to availability — which was released from Delta Air Lines.
Photograph ©2015 by Brian Cohen.
