Amtrak Acela train at 30th Street Station, Phila.

The derailment of two Metro-North Railroad commuter trains on Friday will continue to have a dramatic effect on rail service for Amtrak and the Metro-North commuter line in the nation’s busiest rail corridor well into the coming week.

Amtrak service is suspended between New York City and New Haven, Connecticut with limited service between New Haven and Boston.  The railroad said it is operating all trains as scheduled between New York, Philadelphia, and Washington.

Northeast Corridor trains service over 750,000 riders daily.  Metro-North Railroad carries over 125,000 passengers each day from New York City’s Pennsylvania Station to New Haven and points north.

Amtrak officials said that they had no estimate as to when service would be restored between New York and Boston, however.  On Sunday, Metro-North officials reported that the cleanup of the derailed trains has progressed and that the trains had been removed from the area of the accident.  The catenary wires that were damaged in the accident have been removed as well and work has begun to replace them.

Starting Monday, Metro-North will offer passengers train-bus-train service for those wishing to travel between Grand Central Terminal and New Haven.  Amtrak, which operates out of Pennsylvania Station, will allow passengers to use the Metro North service but passengers will have to find their own way from Penn Station to Grand Central Terminal.

Most Amtrak passengers who are travelling from New York or Washington to Boston who cannot postpone their trips are likely to switch to airline flights to avoid anticipated delays.

The accident occurred in Bridgeport, Connecticut in an area that was already under construction, which shut down two of the active train tracks.

(Photo: Accura Media Group)

Frontier aircraft in Denver

Frontier Airlines announced it has launched new daily service between Denver and Cincinnati, as well as three times a week service between Denver and both Eugene, Oregon  and Fresno/Yosemite, California.  Flights between Denver and Cincinnati operate using Airbus A320 aircraft, while flights between Denver and both Eugene and Fresno/Yosemite operate using Airbus A319 aircraft.

Flights from Denver to Cincinnati depart daily from Denver International Airport at 6:59 p.m. and arrive at Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport at 11:35 p.m.  Return flights depart at 6:15 a.m. and arrive at 7:15 a.m.

Flights between Denver and Eugene depart Denver at 12:15 p.m. and arrive at Eugene Airport at 1:55 p.m., on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Sundays.  Flights from Eugene to Denver depart at 2:35 p.m. and arrive at 6:05 p.m.

From Fresno Yosemite International Airport, flights depart at 2:50 p.m. on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, and arrive in Denver at 6:00 p.m.  Flights from Denver to Fresno/Yosemite depart at 12:45 p.m. and arrive at 2:05 p.m.

(Photo: AYKleinman)

A suite at the JW Mariott in San Antonio

Marriott announced that the JW Marriott Houston Downtown Hotel will open in spring of next year.  The hotel will open in the historic Samuel F. Carter Building, following an extensive renovation.

The hotel will have 323 guestrooms, as well as a restaurant and full-service bar.  Also within the hotel will be a spa, health club, executive lounge, 10,000 square feet (929 square meters) of meeting and event space, and a pool.

The hotel will be located across the street from the BG Group Building, the 15th tallest building in Houston.  It will also be located within walking distance of workplaces such as the Chase Tower, the Esperson Building, and Pennzoil Place.

There are currently 60 JW Marriott hotels in 24 countries.  By 2015, that number is expected to rise to 79 hotels in 28 countries.

(Photo: Accura Media Group)

Southwest Aircraft parked in Seattle

Starwood Hotels and Resorts announced the Get More (Perks Included) package for guests of Four Points by Sheraton hotels, available through August 31.  Starwood partnered with Southwest Airlines and Seagrams to offer the package to guests of the hotel brand.

Guests who book the package receive a complimentary breakfast, as well as a 20-ounce Seagrams Ginger Ale at check-in.  In addition, guests will receive a $25   Southwest Airlines Fare Saver to use toward a future flight.

Reservations for the package must be made before July 31.  Guests can book the package at Four Points by Sheraton’s website.

There are over 175 Four Points by Sheraton hotels in approximately 30 countries.

(Photo: Accura Media Group)

The Lobby Bar – A Weekly Summary of Frequent Business Traveler News and Views

I can’t get no satisfaction. How satisfied are you with your frequent flyer programs?  The Rolling Stones suitably preferred Flintstones cars over air travel, but their frequent rollers program wasn’t listed.

Jonathan Spira and the Three Wines. Jonathan flies in American’s first class Flagship Suite aboard a Boeing 777-300ER.  He even completed a wine tasting in the air. The two on the end were either too bitter or too sweet, but the one in the middle was just right.

Slow but steady wins the race.  Boeing Dreamliners are in the air once more, and now the aircraft manufacturer has resumed filling orders for the high tech plane.  It turns out that, interestingly enough, the speedy Dreamliner is the tortoise in this scenario.

Okay, but what about me? If you want to know when you’ll be flying on the Dreamliner again, just check out our complete guide to the aircraft’s re-launch.  It’s like a “for dummies” guide, but we know our readers are smarter than that.

But we’ve only just met.  Our sister publication, The Diesel Driver, finishes up an 18-month long relationship with the Mercedes-Benz E350 BlueTec.  It’s a bittersweet moment for all, but all good things must come to an end. Except chocolate cake; that’s a luxury we can continue to enjoy until the end of time.

Anything you want, you got it.  Ramsey Qubein stays at the Mandarin Oriental hotel in Washington, D.C. and raves about the overt hospitality he experienced.  Anything at all, you’ve got it; even if it involves the personal e-mail addresses of hotel staff.

You can get online in a box, with a fox, in a house, with a mouse, here and there and anywhere!  Jonathan Spira takes the XCom Global 4G LTE Mobile Hotspot to Japan and is the envy of Wi-Fi seekers everywhere.  Unlike Green Eggs and Ham, Mr. Spira never had a distaste for fast global Wi-Fi to begin with.

You say you want a revolution.  Jeremy Del Nero (hi) plays with the Elgato EyeTV Mobile and explains why it may not be the almighty solution for on-the-go TV watching.  It’s definitely no revolution if you can’t watch Mad Men wherever and whenever you want.

To infinity and beyond!  The FCC moves to introduce faster Wi-Fi for air passengers.  We’re quite sure this is what Buzz Lightyear had in mind for the future.

(Photo: Accura Media Group)

United’s terminal at JFK

United Airlines announced the launch of the MileagePlus Small Business Network, a program that allows business to earn and redeem miles.  Participating business can earn miles by purchasing goods and services from various vendor partners of the program, which include printing, shipping, credit card payment processing, office supplies, and computing services providers.

Business can use their miles on a variety of options, including purchasing travel awards and upgrades, bidding on experiences through the MileagePlus Headliners auction program, and shopping for merchandise, dining awards, and newspaper and magazine subscriptions.

In addition, businesses can also buy, transfer, or gift their miles, as well as donate their miles to a MileagePlus charity partner.

With the start of the MileagePlus Small Business Network, United is offering a bonus to participating businesses. New members that conduct transactions that earn a minimum of 100 miles will receive 1,000 bonus miles.

(Photo: Accura Media Group)

Using AmtrakConnect

Amtrak said it is upgrading its on-board internet service and improving overall reliability.  To accomplish this, the AmtrakConnect service has implemented 4G mobile data service from multiple mobile operators, giving passengers speedier Wi-Fi.

The faster service is now available on Acela Express, Capitol Corridor, Pacific Surfliner, and San Joaquin service trains.  Amtrak plans to make the AmtrakConnect upgraded service available on all Wi-Fi equipped trains by late summer.

The Wi-Fi service was and will continue to be complimentary for Amtrak passengers.  It is designed to support as many as 50% of the passengers on a given train.  Amtrak may throttle a user’s connection when downloading large files or attempting to use a large amount of bandwidth to ensure a high level of availability.

AmtrakConnect is currently available on trains that serve 75% of Amtrak passengers.

(Photo: Accura Media Group)

The EyeTV Mobile is a small dongle that fits devices with the 30-pin docking connector.  It requires an adapter to work with newer Apple devices equipped with the new Lighting port.

The dongle provides two antenna options. A portable antenna is intended for use on the go while a more sensitive antenna can be used in a more permanent installation. The latter utilizes a six-foot cable for ease in positioning and a magnetic docking station for the antenna that may be mounted via a suction cup to a window or other smooth surface.

The device can be charged via its micro-USB port to supply its own power, or it can draw from the power source of the Apple device. On its own power, Elgato claims that users can experience up to 9 hours of live TV viewing.

SETTING UP THE EYETV MOBILE

The setup process could not be simpler. Connect either antenna and plug the dongle into the Apple device which will prompt the user to download a free app that is required to watch live television.

Upon installation, the app will scan for available channels. The catch is that Elgato’s EyeTV products don’t actually tune in the over-the-air channels in your area. They instead retrieve data from Dyle Mobile TV’s database of channels, which unfortunately is far from all inclusive. Here in New York City, for example, the dongle picked up Fox and NBC but not CBS, ABC or PBS. The service is currently free, although it may become subscription based in the future.

USING THE EYETV MOBILE

The user interface of the app is clean and simple. The home menu offers three options: Live TV, to see available channels and start watching, Guide, to view any information included in the broadcast about upcoming programs, and Settings, to change channel, app and device settings or scan for additional stations.

Watching live television on my iPod Touch was an easy and enjoyable experience. While the device and app don’t allow for the recording of live TV, they do support pausing and rewinding.  During fast-paced scenes with a lot of motion, the screen became moderately pixelated, but beyond this exception the quality was clear and consistent.

I was pleased (but not surprised) to find that I could watch live TV with my device in airplane mode.  Neither the EyeTV nor my iPod Touch requires an active Internet connection, which is good news for iPhone users watching their data consumption and others who want to save precious battery life.

BOTTOM LINE

Elgato’s EyeTV Mobile accomplishes one task fairly well, and that is delivering hassle-free live, local television to portable Apple media devices. It’s not without drawbacks, however, such as being compatible (out of the box) with only older models of Apple’s mobile lineup as well as delivering just a handful of broadcast stations.  $83.98 at amazon.com.

(Photos: Accura Media Group)

Wyndham Grand Manama

Wyndham introduced a new benefit, Guaranteed Rewards, for members of Wyndham Rewards.  In addition, the company also introduced a tier for members of its loyalty program.

Guaranteed Rewards allows members to earn enough points on even a one-night stay to redeem various rewards, including music downloads, children’s books, magazine subscriptions, and travel accessories.  Rewards start at 50 points, with approximately 30 rewards options available at fewer than 1,000 points, and nearly 80 rewards available for less than 2,000 points.

Wyndham also added a new Gold Status tier.  Wyndham Rewards members reach gold after staying 20 qualified nights at a participating Wyndham property.  They also immediately receive one free night upon achieving that status.

Finally, Wyndham also modified its previously existing reward tier levels.  Now, members can earn a free night at select Wyndham properties for only 5,500 points, as opposed to the previous 6,000 points.

American’s terminal at JFK

American Airlines said it was implementing a new boarding process that allows passengers with little or no baggage to board earlier in the process.  Passengers traveling with one personal carry-on item that is able to fit under the seat in front of them are now allowed to board before Group 2.

The new process also allows passengers who wish to board early to gate-check a larger carry-on bag for free.

The process was tested earlier this year at American Airlines gates in Austin, Baltimore, Denver, Fort Lauderdale, Minneapolis-St. Paul, Washington-Dulles, and Kansas City, Missouri.  The tests received positive reviews from passengers, and the airline expects to see a notable reduction in average boarding time per flight with the new process.

American Airlines recently introduced new fare choices with perks including preferred seating, early boarding, and same-day flight changes, expanded its next-generation kiosks with self-tag capabilities for checked baggage, and introduced more power outlets onboard its aircraft.

(Photo: Accura Media Group)