TEXARKANA, Arkansas – Amtrak’s Texas Eagle Route has now restored daily service to southwest Arkansas, which was disrupted during the pandemic emergency.

Due to COVID relief funding, Amtrak will maintain and restore operations and recall the more than 1,200 employees on leave during the remainder of fiscal 2021 and through fiscal 2022.

“Since May 24, the roads have been fully restored,” said Marc Magliari, spokesperson for Amtrak. “This is due to President Biden’s US bailout, of which Amtrak is a part.

“Providing daily long distance service is a vital step on our road to recovery,” said Bill Flynn, CEO of Amtrak.

The restoration of this part of the Texas Eagle Route is part of the first wave of three waves of restoration of Amtrak services nationwide.

Amtrak always follows CDC guidelines, as passengers are required to wear masks at stations as well as on board the train, except when they are “actively eating.”

Restoring schedules is a critical part of Amtrak’s strategy for investing in long distance service. The other ingredients include:

the launch of the new Viewliner II sleeping cars on Silver Service, the first addition to the Amtrak sleeper fleet in more than two decades;

upgraded bedding, towels and linens in private rooms aboard the automatic train, with additional routes starting in the summer;

fully refreshed Amfleet II cars for coach class routes along the East Coast, including new seat cushions, carpets, curtains and LED reading lights;

multi-year interior refresh program for Superliner and Viewliner I equipment – including new seat cushions, rugs and curtains – starting to enter service this summer; and

new Amtrak ALC-42 diesel-electric locomotives with superior performance and reduced emissions to replace the current long-haul engine fleet starting this year.