Business Class on LSL

[printman2000]

Just wondering what this car it like? I think I remember that it is half snack bar and booths and half 2-1 seating for BC.

Is the BC seating usually at the front of the car so people going to the snack bar do not have to walk through? If at the front, do they keep non BC customers out of that area like they do with sleepers?

I assume there is a restroom in this car. Is it on the BC side or the snack bar side?

Is the car a Amfleet I?

Anyone have some interior pics of this car?

Thanks!

 

[AlanB]

Yes, the car is an Amfleet I with 2 & 1 seating at one end, cafe in the middle, booths at the other end. They typically do orientate it so that non-BC pax don't have to walk through the BC side to reach the cafe and the attendant is supposed to keep non-BC customers out of the BC section. There is indeed a restroom, but stupidly its on the cafe side rather than the BC side, so anyone can use it. I was on the Maple Leaf last year where one of the conductors kept the bathroom locked and would only allow BC pax to use it, but that's the one and only time that I've ever seen that happen.

 

[Tony]

From my experiences, the snack bar is in the center. The "table end" is toward coach. The one, rather large, restroom is on the far "table end". So, BC passengers have to walk thru the tables to reach it.

The seats are faux leather (rather good quality, it fooled me), and when you lean back, a leg rest unfolds out, kind-of like a recliner at home.

There is LOTS of luggage space. Overhead racks, the "designed in" car luggage place in the vestibule area, and a large gap behind the last row of seats.

There is a sign, plus a drape like on airplanes, between the snack bar and BC, to keep the riffraff from coach out.

Of course, for your train, they could always swap in some other car.

 

[meatpuff]

Hmmm...I took a look at the Amtrak reservations system, and it looks like you can book LSL westbound business class if you're going no farther than approximately ALB. Do they lop off the car at Albany or something?

 

[AlanB]

Hmmm...I took a look at the Amtrak reservations system, and it looks like you can book LSL westbound business class if you're going no farther than approximately ALB. Do they lop off the car at Albany or something?

It's a stub train between Boston and Albany. It arrives in time to connect with the main train out of NY, and it departs eastbound after the main train arrives into ALB from Chicago. But none of the cars to/from Boston continue west of Albany. All passengers must transfer between the main train and the stub train.

 

[meatpuff]

It's a stub train between Boston and Albany. It arrives in time to connect with the main train out of NY, and it departs eastbound after the main train arrives into ALB from Chicago. But none of the cars to/from Boston continue west of Albany. All passengers must transfer between the main train and the stub train.

Yeah, but I was thinking of out of NYP. You can book BC on the LSL out of NYP, but only as far as ALB. I think the rest of this trainset continues on to CHI, but why no BC after ALB?

So many acronyms!

 

[wayman]

It's a stub train between Boston and Albany. It arrives in time to connect with the main train out of NY, and it departs eastbound after the main train arrives into ALB from Chicago. But none of the cars to/from Boston continue west of Albany. All passengers must transfer between the main train and the stub train.

Yeah, but I was thinking of out of NYP. You can book BC on the LSL out of NYP, but only as far as ALB. I think the rest of this trainset continues on to CHI, but why no BC after ALB?

So many acronyms!

There's no BC on 48 today. Baggage, three Viewliners, Diner Lite 28022, Horizon cafe 53511, four Amfleet coaches.

Does BC usually run in place of the Horizon cafe? Would it normally run ahead of the diner so only sleeping car passengers have to pass through to and from the diner (instead of the entire train)? Will we gain a BC car in Albany?

 

[MrFSS]

It's a stub train between Boston and Albany. It arrives in time to connect with the main train out of NY, and it departs eastbound after the main train arrives into ALB from Chicago. But none of the cars to/from Boston continue west of Albany. All passengers must transfer between the main train and the stub train.

Yeah, but I was thinking of out of NYP. You can book BC on the LSL out of NYP, but only as far as ALB. I think the rest of this trainset continues on to CHI, but why no BC after ALB?

So many acronyms!

I don't think BC is available on the LSL between NYP and ALB. Only between Boston and Albany. I put a few random dates in and checked the upgrades, no BC from NYP on the LSL.

 

[AlanB]

BC is not available on the LSL out of NYP, unless there is something very unusual going on like a train substitution for some reason.

 

[meatpuff]

BC is not available on the LSL out of NYP, unless there is something very unusual going on like a train substitution for some reason.

Dang, you're right, I got confused.

 

[Joel N. Weber II]

It's a stub train between Boston and Albany. It arrives in time to connect with the main train out of NY, and it departs eastbound after the main train arrives into ALB from Chicago. But none of the cars to/from Boston continue west of Albany. All passengers must transfer between the main train and the stub train.

Yeah, but I was thinking of out of NYP. You can book BC on the LSL out of NYP, but only as far as ALB. I think the rest of this trainset continues on to CHI, but why no BC after ALB?

So many acronyms!

I think on all Amtrak trains that offer sleepers at all, the only alternative to booking a sleeping car compartment is to ride in coach.

If you consider all of the different flavors of sleeping compartment to fall under a single sleeper class, then I believe you can say that no single Amtrak train offers more than two classes of service (and some of the smaller trains probably offer only coach, period).

 

[Trogdor]

It's a stub train between Boston and Albany. It arrives in time to connect with the main train out of NY, and it departs eastbound after the main train arrives into ALB from Chicago. But none of the cars to/from Boston continue west of Albany. All passengers must transfer between the main train and the stub train.

Yeah, but I was thinking of out of NYP. You can book BC on the LSL out of NYP, but only as far as ALB. I think the rest of this trainset continues on to CHI, but why no BC after ALB?

So many acronyms!

I think on all Amtrak trains that offer sleepers at all, the only alternative to booking a sleeping car compartment is to ride in coach.

If you consider all of the different flavors of sleeping compartment to fall under a single sleeper class, then I believe you can say that no single Amtrak train offers more than two classes of service (and some of the smaller trains probably offer only coach, period).

Correct, for the present.

For approximately one month, in April 2002 (or was it 2003? I forget), the Silver Palm offered three classes of service, Coach, Business Class, and First Class (sleeper). Then the sleeping car was discontinued, and the train became the Palmetto. For a while, the Twilight Shoreliner/Federal also offered three classes of service, before the sleeper was cut from that train.