That is a good point about the remaining big NEC gains being the very expensive ones. I was thinking more of the non owned track, but there are many other forces at play there also.
Has to be maintenance, because they were designed to be good for 125 and are still tested and certified for 110. Probably bad maintenance of the suspension system, which IIRC is pretty complex.Many of them start shaking and vibrating badly at 90 MPH. Have to reduce speed from 110 MPH. Don't know if it is poor maintanence or the design. Will be interesting to see how they do at 125 MPH.
I suspect it is maintenance. Years ago when Metroliner Amfleets ran at 125 MPH and Northeast Amfleets ran at 110, every now and then they substituted a Northeast Amfleet if there was an equipment shortage. Those cars would ride rough and vibrate because the suspension had not been tuned.Has to be maintenance, because they were designed to be good for 125 and are still tested and certified for 110. Probably bad maintenance of the suspension system, which IIRC is pretty complex.Many of them start shaking and vibrating badly at 90 MPH. Have to reduce speed from 110 MPH. Don't know if it is poor maintanence or the design. Will be interesting to see how they do at 125 MPH.
I don't know how much of a modification this incurs but they changed the wheel profile from an industry standard to better match operating on the corridor, which brings me to the post below:Awesome. I've been wondering when they'd recertify the Viewliner Is for 125 mph. (We knew they were planning to do so before the Heritage cars went away, and we know the Viewliner Is were supposed to be good for 125 with no mods.)Actually, it is a joint test between NJT and Amtrak to get the ALP-45s and Viewliner 1s ready for 125mph. They ran them together to save time, manpower, track space and it also allowed the FRA to kill two birds with one stone. This consist will continue to roam both ends of the corridor for the next week or so.
Thanks for the info.
I suspect it is maintenance. Years ago when Metroliner Amfleets ran at 125 MPH and Northeast Amfleets ran at 110, every now and then they substituted a Northeast Amfleet if there was an equipment shortage. Those cars would ride rough and vibrate because the suspension had not been tuned.Has to be maintenance, because they were designed to be good for 125 and are still tested and certified for 110. Probably bad maintenance of the suspension system, which IIRC is pretty complex.Many of them start shaking and vibrating badly at 90 MPH. Have to reduce speed from 110 MPH. Don't know if it is poor maintanence or the design. Will be interesting to see how they do at 125 MPH.
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That explanation makes sense. I now recall a car inspector forman explaining something like the above to me.The intricate details are a bit over my had but I under the basics of the issues. It is no so much as a maintenance issue. It is a wheel profile issue. The wheel profile of the eastern long distance fleet isn't really matched for operation of the NEC. They are matched to operate over CSX, NS and other slow routes. As such, there will always be that extra bit of lateral motion on the viewliners and AM2s.
Another point that is exacerbated when long distance trains operate over the NEC is a maintenance condition known as tread worn hollow. As you can see, there are established limits identifying if the wheel is condemnable( will/will not turn or total replacement.) If is within limits, chances are the will not be replaced, particularly since the majority of the trip will be at slower speed.
In case one happens to have read the Wiki page on the ALP45DP one would already know the answer to this question, since an ALP45DP is not capable of operating above 100mph in diesel mode.Also, about the test, was it in electric mode or diesel mode?
Only 100 MPH? On the NEC, that's like doing 55 MPH in the left-hand lane on I-95 in Melbourne!In case one happens to have read the Wiki page on the ALP45DP one would already know the answer to this question, since an ALP45DP is not capable of operating above 100mph in diesel mode.Also, about the test, was it in electric mode or diesel mode?
It is even like trying to do 55mph in the right hand lane on I-95 in Melbourne.Only 100 MPH? On the NEC, that's like doing 55 MPH in the left-hand lane on I-95 in Melbourne!In case one happens to have read the Wiki page on the ALP45DP one would already know the answer to this question, since an ALP45DP is not capable of operating above 100mph in diesel mode.Also, about the test, was it in electric mode or diesel mode?
I would presume that it went well and the DP is now certified for 125 on the corridor. However, since none of NJT's passenger stock is certified for 125, it's sort of a moot point until there's more cert runs.How were the results of the ALP-45DP high speed test?
Here's a song from the old 90's "Madchester" scene that sums how things went. Incidentally, I used to be able to play this on drums and guitar.How were the results of the ALP-45DP high speed test?
The Pitz man got a few shots of it at Wilmington... standard Comet equipment with a 45 on one end and a 46A on the other.Did anyone happen to catch ALP the retest in Maryland this week?6 Perhaps there are pictures on Facebook somewhere.
The PV community should be up in arms over this. I'd think I would bebe pretty comfortable in Hickory Creek going 125 or any non-heavyweight PV car. That being said, some PV's might not have the structural integrity for the higher speeds. Some of the newer ones maybe if they've had serious framework done.Already from NYP-BOS they are only allowed on 65/66. They could probably continue on the eastern long distance south of New York. But the real answer is it looks interesting. I'll have to ask Kevin when I see him soon
Amtrak is probably years away from upping the speeds on the long distance trains to 125mph. Even when they are able, you will likely see private cars remaining on the Long Distance trains. They carry private cars on train 42 quite often and they run it as a 110mph train.With Amtrak now upping the speeds of all of its NEC trains to a MAS of 125mph, what does that do to PV owners? While I can see some PVs being able to do 125, I'm not so sure about the heavyweight units.
Are there any plans at all to make any schedule changes for LD trains on the NEC when all the Viewliner 1s have been certified for 125mph and LD trains have no Heritage equipment in them?Amtrak is probably years away from upping the speeds on the long distance trains to 125mph. Even when they are able, you will likely see private cars remaining on the Long Distance trains. They carry private cars on train 42 quite often and they run it as a 110mph train.With Amtrak now upping the speeds of all of its NEC trains to a MAS of 125mph, what does that do to PV owners? While I can see some PVs being able to do 125, I'm not so sure about the heavyweight units.
Remember, LD trains are receive/discharge only on the NEC, so there is always time in the schedule.
That explains in part why I've been in some Amfleets and I swear we were about to fall off the tracks.The standards to have a PV on Amtrak are vastly higher then the standards Amtrak has for their own cars. Right now the PV community has been quiet about that.
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