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Last night's eastbound Empire Builder arrived 1 hour late to Minot, ND, but did not depart Minot until 8 hours late. What happened?
I'm going to assume it had something to do with the extreme cold last night. The air temperature (without wind) was over 30 below zero in many places along its route. I know the EB has had issues in the past when it gets that incredibly cold.Last night's eastbound Empire Builder arrived 1 hour late to Minot, ND, but did not depart Minot until 8 hours late. What happened?
How have P42s performed in the past in cold weather? How about other Amtrak (or other passenger rail) locomotives, such as the F40PH or F59PH?The P42 fleet is not behaving well in cold weather this year.
Shown as departing Minot 17 hours and 48 minutes late. The sooner you lot let the Swiss run your railways the better!Reported to be a problem with the power. The P42 fleet is not behaving well in cold weather this year.
The train, which arrived last night (1/1) at about 11pm, is still in Minot as this is written. Ouch.
...or Congress decides to properly fund a railroad. My goodness, some of the equipment that is running on Amtrak is older than the stuff they inherited from the original RRs in the early 1970s. After 35 years, stuff wears out.Shown as departing Minot 17 hours and 48 minutes late. The sooner you lot let the Swiss run your railways the better!Reported to be a problem with the power. The P42 fleet is not behaving well in cold weather this year.
The train, which arrived last night (1/1) at about 11pm, is still in Minot as this is written. Ouch.
What did Amtrak do with all that "stimulus" money they were just given? Spend it on all HSR studies?...or Congress decides to properly fund a railroad.
It sure seems like the P42's are having a much tougher time of it this year than in the past. I have no idea why. Winter tends to be cold, so the temperature alone would not seem to the the problem....How have P42s performed in the past in cold weather? How about other Amtrak (or other passenger rail) locomotives, such as the F40PH or F59PH?
Except that the equipment with the problems is not that old. The P42's are not nearly as old as the F40's were when they were retired. Funding cannot be blamed for all, or even most of Amtrak's ills....or Congress decides to properly fund a railroad. My goodness, some of the equipment that is running on Amtrak is older than the stuff they inherited from the original RRs in the early 1970s. After 35 years, stuff wears out.
Switzerland is so different from North Dakota it might as well be on another planet. Come to think of it, isn't North Dakota bigger in area than Switzerland? I would be very interested to see how they performed after playing for a year with the same deck that has been handed to BNSF and Amtrak. I have a sneaky feeling that it would be unlikley to be better, and could well be much worse, given the distances, available resources, and climate.Shown as departing Minot 17 hours and 48 minutes late. The sooner you lot let the Swiss run your railways the better!Reported to be a problem with the power. The P42 fleet is not behaving well in cold weather this year.
The train, which arrived last night (1/1) at about 11pm, is still in Minot as this is written. Ouch.
Even if they did let the passengers go into the station, what would you chose of these 2 choices:What do they do with passengers if a train sits in a station for 16 hours? ... Did Amtrak at least let passengers go into the station?
Oh sure, Amtrak's ills are mixture of things, but was this particular problem with the locomotive itself? The posts just said "power problems" - that could mean HEP somewhere along the entire train, unless "power" meant locomotive traction issues. Regardless, Amtrak is in need of new equipment.Except that the equipment with the problems is not that old. The P42's are not nearly as old as the F40's were when they were retired. Funding cannot be blamed for all, or even most of Amtrak's ills....or Congress decides to properly fund a railroad. My goodness, some of the equipment that is running on Amtrak is older than the stuff they inherited from the original RRs in the early 1970s. After 35 years, stuff wears out.
Although it wasn't overnight, that almost happened to my about 10 years ago.Imagine this scenario. You just finished dinner as you were sitting at Minot. Your room is made-up, and you turn in for the night. You sleep soundly on what you assume is the smoothest rail in the country. You wake up, peak out the window, and what do you see? Minot. Now, that would be funny.
It was a P42 issue.Power could also mean signal and switch power - the train could have been just fine.
Based on?It was a P42 issue.Power could also mean signal and switch power - the train could have been just fine.
It is based on postings from a Minot resident on another rail discussion site. Living in Minot all you would need is a scanner to know all the gory details.Based on?It was a P42 issue.Power could also mean signal and switch power - the train could have been just fine.
Care to share a link, since I don't live in Minot? Sounds interesting.It is based on postings from a Minot resident on another rail discussion site. Living in Minot all you would need is a scanner to know all the gory details.Based on?It was a P42 issue.Power could also mean signal and switch power - the train could have been just fine.
Not many details, but here's the link.Care to share a link, since I don't live in Minot? Sounds interesting.
Thanks for the link, interesting reading!Not many details, but here's the link.Care to share a link, since I don't live in Minot? Sounds interesting.
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