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Okay, I'm wondering how many cars were ordered (and are still in service) for each type of car, including Amfleets, Superliners, and any equipment Amtrak or state agencies are looking into buying. So, currently, there are the: (Future cars in parentheses) (* indicates car can go to NYC)...

Sometimes there's some sort of delay or rerouting that sends an Amtrak train onto "rare milage". There's actually a forum for this. Sometimes though, delays can make odd catches possible. For example, back sometime in mid-June, Texas Eagle #21 was delayed some 10 hours due to a derailment in...

Well this is interesting... The eastbound Empire Builder (#8) is running again! According to the Amtrak Status Maps, it just left Libby, MT and it is ON TIME.

Mmmkay, so lets say that Amtrak gets a big new equipment order for their LD/overnight trains, which would lead to an expansion of LD services (more routes, longer trains, multiple frequines/day). Of course getting such expansion to happen is another story, so dont give me the old "amtrak doesnt...

The Empire Builder is scheduled to do its splitting/joining in Spokane during the middle of the night (of course when it actually arrives in SPK is a different story... :lol: ). However, the time it does the switching is after midnight, when almost everyone is asleep. Is the switching loud or...

Remember how GML described rail advocates? Well, that's the impression I get from the United Rail Passenger Alliance. They do say some good things, and they do have some good plans for LD trains, but they REALLY don't like corridor trains or the NEC. That position I disagree with...

Okay, so Amtrak's LD trains aren't as long/don't have as many sleepers as the old LD trains did before Amtrak. Blah blah blah declining demand and equipment shortages. But Amtrak is seeing rising demand, so it would be wise to expand the number of sleepers and coaches on Amtrak's trains (once...

In my language arts class, my last assignment (before the final exam) is to write a multi-page thesis paper. The subject I choose was about Amtrak, and more specifically it's future. My main point is that Amtrak will need a dedicated funding source (such as trust-fund) to fund their operations...

Okay, this sounds odd, but something is causing delays for the Texas Eagle between Mcgregor and Cleburne on the BNSF line for several days now. Well, more accurately, every other day, the Texas Eagle is snagged by a one hour delay in that area. Sometimes there's no delay, and one day it was...

If Amtrak/State Subsidiary was to bring back passenger service to a freight-only line or had to do a reroute, commonly this requires refurbishing the tracks, ballast, signals, etc to make it suitable for 79 mph or higher passenger operations. Why is this? 1) Safety and track maintenance...

If I looked back at the old Sunset Limited schedules from the Amtrak era (not SP), the train had a early morning arrival and late night departure at Los Angeles, CA. Similar to what Amtrak proposed in their Sunset Limited plan. Before the Sunset Limited went on its super-padding schedule in...

I will say that improving the Sunset Limited to daily status and other improvements along the route should be a priority for Amtrak. I agree with most of Amtrak's plan for the Sunset Limited, but there are some details I'd change, like the arrival and departure times into Los Angeles and the...

I'm riding on the northbound Texas Eagle on June 17th between Austin and Fort Worth. I'll be getting a ride back with my dad. BUT I'M SO EXCITED!!! This would be my first real ride on Amtrak since I was like 4 when my school took my class on a ride between Austin and Taylor. Sometime though...

Often when proposals are made for HSR in America, there is usually a comparison to one of the existing HSR networks around the world. Sometimes this works, sometimes it doesn't. Usually, this is done to show that HSR can work in such a region, and to find designers and operators who are...

Okay, so I did a little math on the Canadian's route, and I found out that the average speed of the train is about 33 mph. GML wasn't lying... But why so slow? Long layovers, slow track? It can't be blamed on the Rockies, as the California Zephyr gets 47 mph average and Empire Builder 50 mph...

I'm pretty sure that the Cardinal won't be able to go up to daily status until Amtrak can get their full Viewliner II order. But considering budget cuts, it also might be the one route Amtrak would be most likely to cut, due to the tri-weekly frequency, limited equipment, its redundant...

A K5LA type horn. I'm serious. But I am an American, so yeah... For all the Acela's shortcomings (limited tilt, speeds limited by old infrastructure, etc), I'm really really glad it uses a K5LA horn in comparison to train horns common on some European (especially French) trains...

Okay, I'm hungry! But it's too late for me to jump on the southbound Texas Eagle at Taylor and eat dinner on the way into Austin! :giggle: So I'll have dinner at home. :D I'm wondering what's people's favorite food on Amtrak, including things for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Probably would...

Once apon a time, this one guy talked about extending the City of New Orleans to Houston. Cool idea, except that require bringing the Sunset Limited's route up to daily status. He also included extending the Sunset back to florida... SOOOOO.... The issue of bringing the Sunset Limited up to...

One thing I was wondering is that the proposed new tunnels under Baltimore are planned to be able to fit Double-stack container trains under electrified lines. And if the tunnels can fit doublestacks, they can definitely fit superliners, or any other type of double-decker cars. As part of...