All aboard the coast-to-coast train Trump has derailed: Stunning images show what passengers see on the 2,438-mile Amtrak trip from Chicago to California - but budget cuts mean it's the final call
- The California Zephyr train runs daily from Chicago to California for just $213
- It can be taken to New York if passengers transfer in Chicago, with breathtaking sights along the way
- The services are set to be suspended as a result of President Trump's transportation budget cuts
What was once the most luxurious and coveted way to travel across the United States has been deemed unnecessary by President Trump, and are set to become a fatality of his transportation budget cuts.
The Amtrak trains which shuttle passengers across the country for the mere price of $213 will be discontinued - and passengers won't have much longer to see the breathtaking sights the journey offers.
Beautiful images have surfaced documenting the California Zephyr cross-country route, which in of themselves, tell the story of this once-revered method of transportation.
Once the most luxurious way to travel across the United States - the California Zephyr train has been deemed frivolous by President Trump under his new budget proposals
Marking 34 years of service this year, the Amtrak train leaves Emeryville, California every morning. The Zephyr's ultimate destination, 51 hours later, is Chicago.
Service with a smile: Between Sacramento and Reno, a five-hour trip, it follows the same course as the historic Transcontinental Railroad, according to the California State Railroad Museum in Sacramento
The rail path through the mountains was a 19th century engineering feat that bolstered the nation's western expansion.
Despite many of the gorgeous vistas, the route along the tracks showcases the all facets of American life
A hundred and forty-four years after the Transcontinental Railroad's completion, train-loving children and picture-happy tourists pack the train's observation car to take in the Sierra Nevada and the mountain passage known as Donner Pass
Prior to federally subsidized Amtrak taking over the route in 1983, the California Zephyr was privately run by three train corporations
Every day, the California Zephyr runs the 2,438-mile trip to Emeryville/San Francisco from Chicago that takes roughly 52 hours.
The route can also be taken cross-country to New York City if passengers transfer at the Chicago station.
When originating in San Francisco, the train's first stop travels the three hours to Salt Lake City, Utah.
En route in that direction, passengers can enjoy the beautiful mountain views and lush forests.
From 1949 to 1970, the so-called 'Silver Lady' boasted five sightseeing cars topped by semi-circular glass domes, with fine china and real silver in the dining cars.
It also featured young hostesses in uniform, known as Zephyrettes, tasked with making the trip between Chicago and California more pleasant
The route can also be taken cross-country to New York City if passengers transfer at the Chicago station
The original train traveled a different eastward route through California and Nevada on its way to Salt Lake City called the Feather River Route, which did not offer views of the bays north of San Francisco
From Salt Lake City to Chicago, the routes of the original Zephyr and the modern Amtrak trains remain the same
One passenger who took the route all the way across the country said in a blog post that when the train reached Sacramento, an expert from the California State Railroad museum came aboard to give passengers live information about the scenery they were viewing.
The train passes by Donner Lake, which is the scene of the historic Donner party, where a group of new American pioneers became stranded in the winter of 1846.
Having set off in the popular method of travel at the time, a wagon train, they became off-route and got lost.
The construction of the Transcontinental Railroad over Donner Pass got under way after President Abraham Lincoln signed the Pacific Railway Act of 1862
The train passes by Donner Lake, which is the scene of the historic Donner party, where a group of new American pioneers became stranded in the winter of 1846
Of the group of 87 people, many resorted to cannibalism to make it through the winter, and only 48 survived
As the train chugs along across the country, it offers a unique experience to witness a broad range of environments
It took six years and the labor of more than 12,000 Chinese workers who laid track eastward from Sacramento, according to the Harvard University Library
Of the group of 87 people, many resorted to cannibalism to make it through the winter, and only 48 survived.
As the train chugs along throughout the Midwest, it offers a unique experience to witness a broad range of environments.
Lakes turn to forests and become plains, which give way to mountains - and passengers aboard the Zephyr get to see them all up close and personal.
The Transportation Department budget Trump is proposing would shave $2.4 billion from existing, successfully cutting the funding for the beloved Zephyr route, which weaves its way from Chicago to California
The steep cuts come as a Trump-created task force is identifying projects and looking for ways to fund $1 trillion in new infrastructure spending
Trump's new budget 'limits funding for the Federal Transit Administration's Capital Investment Program' to projects with 'existing full funding grant agreements only'
Open Collections Program. The Central Pacific Railroad blasted 15 tunnels through the Sierra Nevada, and the Union Pacific Railroad laid rails heading west from Omaha
The Transportation Department budget Trump is proposing would shave $2.4 billion from existing, successfully cutting the funding for the beloved Zephyr route, which weaves its way from Chicago to California.
The steep cuts come as a Trump-created task force is identifying projects and looking for was to fund $1 trillion in new infrastructure spending. The White House has said it wants to rely on 'public-private partnerships' to provide funds.
Trump's new budget 'limits funding for the Federal Transit Administration's Capital Investment Program' to projects with 'existing full funding grant agreements only.'
Finally in 1869, the 1,776 miles (2,858 kilometers) of track, one from the east and the other from the west, joined together in Promontory Summit, Utah, and the Transcontinental Railroad was born
The budget 'restructures and reduces Federal subsidies to Amtrak to focus resources on the parts of the passenger rail system that provide meaningful transportation options within regions'
Another section states that the budget kills funding for the 'Essential Air Service' program, which subsidizes commercial air service to rural airports
Though many of the views are breathtaking, the journey is deemed too long by many who opt simply to get the plane
Some of the cuts are to focus on national programs rather than those with regional benefits, Yahoo News reported.
Amtrak funds would be directed toward the more profitable Northeast Corridor.
The budget 'restructures and reduces Federal subsidies to Amtrak to focus resources on the parts of the passenger rail system that provide meaningful transportation options within regions,' it says.
Close quarters are a staple in the overnight trains, which provide cots for passengers aboard
The trains also employ communal lunch, as there are not enough seats for all passengers to have their own table
Elk are seen as Amtrak's California Zephyr passes by on its daily 2,438-mile trip to Emeryville/San Francisco from Chicago that takes roughly 52 hours on March 24, 2017 in Denver, United States
The Zephyr is seen aerially here on its route as it passes through Truckee, California
Amtrak's California Zephyr rolls along the rails during its daily 2,438-mile trip to Emeryville/San Francisco from Chicago that takes roughly 52 hours on March 24, 2017 in Glenwood Springs, United States
'The Budget terminates Federal support for Amtrak's long distance train services, which have long been inefficient and incur the vast majority of Amtrak's operating losses.
'This would allow Amtrak to focus on better managing its State-supported and Northeast Corridor train services,' it says.
Another section states that the budget kills funding for the 'Essential Air Service' program, which subsidizes commercial air service to rural airports.
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