Amtrak is canceling its nonstop Acela service between D.C. and New York as the line experiences reduced demand amid the spread of the coronavirus in the U.S.
“The safety of Amtrak’s customers and employees is our top priority. We are closely monitoring the coronavirus and are taking action based on guidance from public health experts,” the company said in a statement announcing the cut.
The cut starts on Tuesday March 10, and extends through Tuesday May 26, according to WTOP. It affects trains 2401, 2402, and 2403, per the company’s statement. The regular Acela service, which has stops in D.C., New York, and Boston, will still run normally.
There are no travel restrictions currently on Amtrak, and the reductions between D.C. and New York are due to reduced travel demand, per the company. The U.S. travel industry as a whole is bracing itself for a slowdown as the novel coronavirus continues its global spread.
New York is in the midst of an outbreak of the new coronavirus that is proving hard to contain. The governor of New York, Andrew Cuomo, announced a state of emergency over the weekend, and said on Monday that the state had confirmed 142 cases of COVID-19, the disease caused by the new coronavirus, including 19 in New York City.
As of Saturday, there are now also two confirmed cases of COVID-19 in D.C. One is the rector of Christ Church Georgetown, Timothy Cole, and the other is a traveler from Nigeria who stayed in D.C. before eventually becoming hospitalized in Maryland.
In addition to cutting the nonstop Acela service between D.C. and New York, Amtrak is also waiving change fees on all reservations before April 30 of this year. The company has announced that its trains are now being cleaned multiple times per day, sometimes every hour. There are also hand sanitizers and disinfectant wipes available for riders throughout trains and stations, the company said.
On Monday, Amtrak received word that a man who traveled on a train from Chicago to St. Louis on March 4 later tested positive for the new coronavirus. The company is notifying people who may have been on that train, and has taken the train out of service for disinfection.
Amtrak saw a record number of passengers last year at 32.5 million, and was expected to break even this year after operating at a loss for several years, WTOP reports. The nonstop Acela service between D.C. and New York launched in September of last year.
Natalie Delgadillo