Phoenix Union Station Days ’93

Participants and Sponsors: Amtrak, Princess Tours, Metrolink, Operation Lifesaver, General Motors Electro-Motive Division, SantaFe, Southern Pacific,Verde Canyon Railway, Grand Canyon Railway, Sierra Madre Express

Nancy Crosby’s Report

From the March 1993 ARPA newsletter

Several months have passed since Phoenix Union Station Days. Now the fond memory of the event holds a brighter candle to the bumps and bruises my colleagues and I endured in order to see the weekend off to a welcome by the public.

Saturday morning the event started a bit late because of the eastbound train beeing late out of Phoenix. Once the Amtrak Superliners and The Princess Observation car was spotted on the tracks south of the station, lines formed to board the train for a look.

I took a position in the deluxe sleeping room with an adjoining bedroom to answer questions and direct the crowd in one door and out the other. Questions most often asked was, how much does it cost? Is your meals included? How many people will each room sleep and where is the shower? The only thing that hooks you in more than looking is taking a relaxing, stress free trip on Amtrak Superliners to make you never want to go by automobile or plane again.

Many booths were present for the display of our current regional rail proposal presently being reviewed in the legislature. Amtrak, of course was there to answer questions, give out hats for the children, travel planners and price information. They also gave away several free trips.

The Santa Fe Museum car, Grand Canyon Railway, Arizona Central Railroad, The Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers, Operation Lifesaver, T-Shirt sales and two local authors joined our event to bring railroading alive once again in Phoenix. We were also fortunate to have the city of Phoenix give us the Barkley bus [with a whole-vehicle decal depicting Charles Barkley of the Phoenix Suns] and a small bus as well as staff to help explain how important it is for all modes of public transportation can work successfully together.

Rain began Saturday evening and rained continuously through Sunday afternoon. This did not stop the crowds. Sunday our line continued down the trainset, across the platform, through the building and out to Fourth Avenue. Families and fans stood patiently in line under umbrellas for an experience many had never known existed.

The weekend was a great victory for A.R.P.A. My special thanks to Amtrak, Marci Larson, Princess Tours and the Santa Fe Railroad for their participation. I am still hearing people talk!

– Nancy Crosby


(from left) George Loulan in grey jacket talking to Ken Heaton (Legislative aide to Rep. Lela Steffey). Mike Garey, Lela Steffey, Rob Wright of General Motors EMD. Sam Morse is in blue jacket, right rear.


Representative Lela Steffey (left) talking with Mike Garey (right).


George and Betty Loulan at the ARPA Information Booth.

Phoenix Union Station Days

Bob Katz, March ’93

If there is anybody in Phoenix who is unaware that Amtrak provides train service to this city, they must have been out of town Saturday and Sunday, February 13th and 14th, the weekend of the second Phoenix Union Station Days. When this event was held two years ago, it made headlines above the report of the start of the ground war in Iraq. This year thirty thousand people came to Phoenix Union Station to see an Amtrak trainset (sleeper, lounge-cafe and coach) and Princess Tours’ luxurious dome car, even braving the half-hour wait in the cold and rain on Sunday.

Children attending the event were delighted with the fans and engineer caps that were handed out in the Santa Fe museum car. Attendees were able to purchase rail books and tapes or view tapes, such as those of the Grand Canyon Railway. Operation Lifesaver was there to deliver its message of grade-crossing safety. Amtrak brochures were available for those who wanted to learn more about train travel in the USA, and, of course, ARPA had a booth as well.

ARPA’s treasury was increased through the sale of soda and popcorn and especially through the efforts of Marylouise Barns with her silent auction.

The event was sponsored by Amtrak, Bombardier Corporation, General Motors’ Electro-Motive Division, Princess Tours, Santa Fe Railroad, and Southern Pacific Railroad. EMD endured the major disappointment of the weekend: the planned appearance of a Metrolink train from Los Angeles was aborted due to the derailment of a freight train near Indio, which halted all of Southern Pacific’s traffic into Arizona.

That unfortunate incident also delayed the arrival of the Amtrak equipment for Saturday’s display, and it prevented the use of Metrolink equipment for Friday’s demonstration of regional rail.

An event like Phoenix Union Station Days does not just happen by itself. The event organizers, headed by Michael Garey and Nancy Crosby, included George and Betty Loulan, Marylouise Barns, Elizabeth Garey, Sam Morse, Jay Meyers, John Gale, and others, all of whom worked tirelessly to overcome every obstacle that threatened the event. Thanks also to the sponsors, Rob Wright of EMD, Marci Larson of Amtrak, Cathy Westphal of Santa Fe, and the Station Agents — Clay Gilliland, Frank Petrone, and Richie Caristo — for their generous and essential support. Also to Maryann Kowalski and Gary Hallman of Bombardier Corp. (manufacturers of Metrolink and other railcars.)