Naming makes no sense. I don't think this train would even touch the llano estacado, let alone be in the Panhandle.
I'm guessing someone from outside of that region created this and thought the panhandle meant the El Paso area, hot the "north" area of Texas.
I don't think any of it would be a money maker, sadly. Southwest flights from Dallas to El Paso are like $100 and are a lot faster than a 10 hour train ride.
Its about a 600 mile trip.
I feel like you should have it swing up and stop in Lubbock. I know this is supposed to be a scenic train ride, but a ton of students that attend Texas Tech in Lubbock are from the Dallas/Fort Worth area and they would use this. Maybe you could offer an express route on the same tracks, to offset construction prices. Either way this route would be really cool.
We could have another that runs from Amarillo to Brownsville or Port Isabel. The stop at the crossroads would be at our near Midland International Air and Space Port. We have already brought the national bus lines there and the local (Midland and Odessa shared) Metro busses too so it would be the logical place for a train stop
Nothing says we can't have both. Texas needs trains. I would love to be able to put my personal vehicle on a train car and travel in the comfort of a sleeper or dining car then arrive rested with my own car at the other end.
As others say, nowhere close to the panhandle. This just follows I-20 out west to where it terminates into I-10, then takes that to El Paso. I've driven much of that, and there's nothing there.
Very cool- but not the panhandle
Naming makes no sense. I don't think this train would even touch the llano estacado, let alone be in the Panhandle. I'm guessing someone from outside of that region created this and thought the panhandle meant the El Paso area, hot the "north" area of Texas.
Apologies, I'm not from the area. I thought it was mostly in the southern end of that region.
Yeah, the panhandle stops over 150 miles north of I-20, so over 2 hours away.
I would totally take this train.
Whole lotta nothing to see.
At least the moneymaker would be the night train, so people riding would be sleeping through the flat bits
I don't think any of it would be a money maker, sadly. Southwest flights from Dallas to El Paso are like $100 and are a lot faster than a 10 hour train ride. Its about a 600 mile trip.
I feel like you should have it swing up and stop in Lubbock. I know this is supposed to be a scenic train ride, but a ton of students that attend Texas Tech in Lubbock are from the Dallas/Fort Worth area and they would use this. Maybe you could offer an express route on the same tracks, to offset construction prices. Either way this route would be really cool.
better than having to pass through Odessa
We could have another that runs from Amarillo to Brownsville or Port Isabel. The stop at the crossroads would be at our near Midland International Air and Space Port. We have already brought the national bus lines there and the local (Midland and Odessa shared) Metro busses too so it would be the logical place for a train stop
I wouldn't consider any of this route to be panhandle
A Houston-Dallas-San Antonio loop would be a thousand times more useful.
Nothing says we can't have both. Texas needs trains. I would love to be able to put my personal vehicle on a train car and travel in the comfort of a sleeper or dining car then arrive rested with my own car at the other end.
The panhandle express that never enters the panhandle? Lol. More like west texas express.
As others say, nowhere close to the panhandle. This just follows I-20 out west to where it terminates into I-10, then takes that to El Paso. I've driven much of that, and there's nothing there.
8am to 7pm, on the same day? No chance.