ACES Train Comes to a Halt … Till May
Thursday, January 6th, 2011
The two-year old ACES train, which was developed before the economic downturn brought on catastrophic waves throughout the world, will be staying at the station until May, as the Philly Inquirer reports today.
Originally developed with the intent to provide high-class direct service between New York City and Atlantic City — an obviously important connect in terms of bringing high rollers into the resort’s casinos — the ACES service hasn’t been as popular as those behind the project had anticipated.
First rates were slashed, and now the service is officially on hold until the traditional tourism season begins in the Atlantic City region in May.
According to the report, the train will not run between Jan. 14-May 13.
Hoping to lure Wall Street-type New Yorkers right before the big crash (talk about bad timing), three Atlantic City casinos — the Borgata, Caesars and Harrah’s Resort — partnered on the project and most of the costs.
The train service started in February 2009.
The New York Times reported that the three casinos spent close to $20 million on the luxury trains. Additionally, and the Casino Reinvestment Development Authority (CRDA) spent $2 million on the project during 2009 to cover the millions of dollars in losses, as the service was not used as much as the casinos had hoped. The CRDA reportedly will no longer help fund the service.
Click here to watch video from the maiden voyage for the ACES train, filmed two years ago.
Members of Atlantic City’s Indian community and the 