Silver Star (Amtrak train)

The northbound Silver Star passing through Seabrook, Maryland in 1969

The Star was originally a service of the Seaboard Air Line Railroad, running from New York to Miami and later also St. Petersburg (beyond Tampa). It was inaugurated December 12, 1947, to replace the Advance Silver Meteor. In early years it was winter-only and did not appear in summer timetables.[5] By 1949, however, it was a year-round train.[6] 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.[7] The Pennsylvania Railroad 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 Pennsy was folded into Penn Central in 1968, a year after SAL merged with the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad as the Seaboard Coast Line. Between Washington and Richmond, Virginia, the train operated on RF&P rails. Amtrak took over the train in 1971.

A Richmond, Fredericksburg and Potomac Railroad locomotive pulls the Silver Star at Alexandria, VA on March 23, 1969

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.[8][9] 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.[10] 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 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.[11][12]

On July 6, 2020, Amtrak reduced the frequency of this train to three times per week as opposed to daily.[13] 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.[14] Both trains resumed daily services on June 7, 2021, after additional Amtrak funding was included in the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021.[15]

Like Amtrak's other long-distance routes that operate to and from New York City, the Silver Star is restricted to single-level Amfleet and Viewliner cars due to low tunnel clearances in Baltimore and New York. Between New York Penn Station and Washington Union Station, the Silver Star is pulled by one Siemens ACS-64 electric locomotive. South of Washington, one or two GE P42 diesel locomotives pull the train. Since July 2015, the Silver Star has operated without a dining car.[16] Passengers must buy their meals from the lounge car, which serves hot and cold food, albeit from a more limited menu.

A typical Silver Star consist as of June 2021 is:

• 1 ACS-64 engine (New York–Washington)
• 2 P42DC engines (Washington–Miami)
• 2-4 Amfleet II coaches
• Amfleet II Cafe
• 1 Viewliner Diner
• 2-3 Viewliner sleepers
• Viewliner Baggage car

During the winter months, additional cars are sometimes added to the Silver Star to accommodate increased demand; these longer trains have delayed Amtrak's long-planned move to a larger station in Miami.[17]

Amtrak Silver Service (interactive map)

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

• Amtrak Northeast Corridor: New York–Washington
• CSX RF&P Subdivision, Richmond Terminal Subdivision, North End Subdivision, and South End Subdivision: Washington–Selma
• NS Piedmont Division, East Carolina Business Unit, Goldsboro to Greensboro district: Selma–Raleigh
• CSX Aberdeen Subdivision, Hamlet Terminal Subdivision, Hamlet Subdivision, Columbia Subdivision, Savannah Subdivision, Nahunta Subdivision, Jacksonville Terminal Subdivision, Sanford Subdivision, Lakeland Subdivision, and Tampa Terminal Subdivision: Raleigh– Tampa
• Central Florida Rail Corridor: DeLand–Poinciana.
• CSX Auburndale Subdivision and Miami Subdivision: Auburndale–Mangonia Park
• South Florida Rail Corridor: Mangonia Park–Miami

The Silver Star uses the same route as the Silver Meteor – the other train in the Silver Service brand – excepting two segments, Selma–Savannah and Kissimmee–Winter Haven.[18][2] Between Selma and Savannah, the Silver Star takes an inland route to serve the Carolinas' state capitals of Raleigh and Columbia, while the Silver Meteor stays closer to the coast and services Fayetteville, North Carolina and Charleston, South Carolina. Between Kissimmee and Winter Haven, the Meteor takes a direct route with no intermediate stops, while the Star takes a detour through Lakeland and Tampa. In addition to these diversions, between Sebring and West Palm Beach, Florida, the Meteor makes no intermediate stops, while the Star makes an additional stop at Okeechobee.[18][2]

Prior to October 1986, the Silver Star ran between Petersburg, Virginia, and Raleigh via the CSX (Seaboard Coast Line) Norlina Subdivision, stopping only in Henderson. CSX abandoned the Norlina Sub between Norlina and Collier Yard in Petersburg in 1986, and the Silver Star was shifted to the "A Line" between Petersburg and Selma, then to NS's "H Line" between Selma and Raleigh. The train is expected to resume operating via its former route when tracks between Collier Yard and Norlina are restored as part of the Southeast High Speed Rail Corridor project.[19]

Like other long-distance trains, passengers are not allowed to travel only between stations on the Northeast Corridor on the Silver Star. Northbound trains only stop to discharge passengers from Alexandria northward, and southbound trains only stop to receive passengers from Newark to Washington.[2] 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 rail passenger service over the CSX Clearwater Subdivision between Tampa and St. Petersburg in 1984,[20] it has provided dedicated Amtrak Thruway bus service at Tampa Union Station for trainside transfer of passengers and their baggage to/from Clearwater and St. Petersburg. Other points on Florida's west coast, such as Bradenton, Sarasota, Port Charlotte and Fort Myers, are also served by Amtrak Thruway service connecting with the Star at Tampa.[21]

• Media related to Silver Star (Amtrak train) at Wikimedia Commons
• Silver Service / Palmetto – Amtrak