Hurricane Turn Train at Talkeetna, AK in June 2015. Click to enlarge.
(Kolmkolm, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons)
HURRICANE TURN
The Hurricane, or Hurricane Turn, is a passenger train operated by the Alaska Railroad between Talkeetna and Hurricane Gulch in Alaska. This train is unique in that rather than making scheduled station stops, it is a flag stop train meaning that passengers between Talkeetna and Hurricane can wave a white cloth anywhere along the route and the train will stop to pick them up. The train runs daily Thursday through Sunday between the months of May and September and the first Thursday of every month the rest of the year (between Hurricane Gulch and Anchorage). The Hurricane Turn is one of the last true flag-stop trains in the United States.
By 2009, the Budd Rail Diesel Cars were removed from service on the Hurricane Turn. Current configuration is two locomotives, two passenger cars and one baggage car. In 2020, summer services began in July in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Hurricane Turn Route Map.
(Wikipedia, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0)
Alaska Railroad route. Click to enlarge.
(Jkan997, CC BY-SA 3.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0>, via Wikimedia Commons)
Overview
Service type: Flag stop
Status: Operating
Locale: Matanuska-Susitna Borough, Alaska, USA
Current operator(s) Alaska Railroad
Route Termini: Talkeetna / Hurricane Gulch
Distance traveled: 57.6 mi (92.7 km)
Average journey time: 2 hours 30 minutes each way; 5 hours 45 minutes round trip
Service frequency: Thursday through Sunday (May through September)
On-board services
Seating arrangements: Coach
Catering facilities: None
Technical
Track gauge: 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
Operating speed: 59 mph (95 km/h)
Track owners: Alaska Railroad