With freight train congestion ahead, a slick move by the BNSF dispatcher, at least for the passengers of Amtrak’s train 5, crossed the westbound California Zephyr over to the south track or Main 2, all the way from Montgomery to Galesburg, Illinois, on May 21, 2023. During that time, the Zephyr passed five westbound BNSF freights and met an eastbound BNSF Z train flying toward Chicago, all neatly orchestrated to keep the passenger train from losing time on the busy subdivision. We pass the fourth westbound at track speed zipping through Wataga as seen from Roomette 9 in the 531 car.
