It's a Superliner! No, it's a Surfliner!

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sportbiker

Lead Service Attendant
AU Supporting Member
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May 30, 2007
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I knew CA paid to refurb some Superliners in exchange for exclusive use on the San Joaquin and Capitol Corridor routes, and I've previously seen Superliners in std. Amtrak colors pinch-hitting on longer Surfliner consists, but today was the first day I saw a Superliner in Surfliner livery, complete with the the Caltrans logo on the side. The interior was Superliner-standard, down to generic Amtrak fabric on the seats rather than the custom Surfliner fabric.

It was coach 34967.

In other Surfliner refurb news, Business Class coaches are losing their special green interiors and getting standard blue, the video monitors in the seatbacks are no more (they weren't used anyway), and the window curtains are being 86'd :-(

I hope everyone appreciates the effort it took to get this news: I had to make a round-trip from LAX to SAN, but I did it for you. You can thank me later.
 
I'm curious as to how they will reconcile the manual-opening Superliner doors with the automatic Surfliner ones. It may be a bit of a hassle for de/boarding and staffing.

And thanks for the heads up about the Surfliner Business class. Guess it really isn't worth the upgrade anymore (except for the guaranteed seat). I'll stick with coach for when I head down to OSD this December/January (That way, I can go business class on the Cascades VAC-SEA r/t. Business class is worth it just to get through customs faster :D )
 
sportbiker said:
Skeena_PG said:
I'm curious as to how they will reconcile the manual-opening Superliner doors with the automatic Surfliner ones. It may be a bit of a hassle for de/boarding and staffing.
Click to expand...
There was a sign taped to the inside of the door's window: "No access through this door" or words to that effect.
Click to expand...
Why does that scream "potential logistical nightmare" to me? You may have upwards to 70 people who'll have to divert to another car for de-boarding (along with baggage and such). Not very efficient if you ask me.
 
Skeena_PG said:
Why does that scream "potential logistical nightmare" to me? You may have upwards to 70 people who'll have to divert to another car for de-boarding (along with baggage and such). Not very efficient if you ask me.
Click to expand...
To paraphrase, "You create consists with the rolling stock you have, not the rolling stock you might want or wish to have at a later time." Caltrans was pretty proactive in the Superliner refurb/exclusive use agreement, given that there was no money for new equipment and it would have taken years to put into service anyway. I'm not going to fault them for having to work around details like manual doors. As a passenger, would you rather be on one of the many SRO runs rather than have to walk from your seat to go one coach over to detrain?
 
Of the Superliners I've seen on the Capitol Corridor, I've never seen them operate the door on those cars.

The only problem I see is that people tend not to sit there. The regular riders know, and those walking to the cafe usually figure it out.

Certainly, better than nothing.
 
sechs said:
The only problem I see is that people tend not to sit there. The regular riders know, and those walking to the cafe usually figure it out.
Click to expand...
Agreed. One time I took a Superliner seat at the beginning of the run. Many pax who came in after me were confused by the different interior, usually asking each other if they had wandered into the business class section. Amtrak should have paid for my ticket that day for all the times I explained to confused newbies, "No, this is coach, and you're welcomed to sit here."
 
sechs said:
They are supposed to be green?
Click to expand...
See my post above about people intuitively knowing (sometimes wrongly) they're where they shouldn't be because the layout is different. I think green textiles were chosen for Business Class to elicit that response from wayward coach pax. Now BC interiors are identical to coach interiors.
 
Skeena_PG said:
sportbiker said:
Skeena_PG said:
I'm curious as to how they will reconcile the manual-opening Superliner doors with the automatic Surfliner ones. It may be a bit of a hassle for de/boarding and staffing.
Click to expand...
There was a sign taped to the inside of the door's window: "No access through this door" or words to that effect.
Click to expand...
Why does that scream "potential logistical nightmare" to me? You may have upwards to 70 people who'll have to divert to another car for de-boarding (along with baggage and such). Not very efficient if you ask me.
Click to expand...
Those Superliners are the cafe cars and on the Capitol Corridor the crew never operates the doors on the cafe cars. They always remain closed.
 
sportbiker said:
I hope everyone appreciates the effort it took to get this news: I had to make a round-trip from LAX to SAN, but I did it for you. You can thank me later.
Click to expand...
Oh THANK YOU, most beneficient, wise, and omniscient one. As mere Surfliner serfs we bow before you in abject unworthiness even as we grovel at your remarkably large feet.

Then we start looking for the Holy Hand Grenade instruction booklet. :D

Oh sportbiker, I would fain continue to extoll your many and great virtues, but alas it cannot be so. Trouble at the mill.
 
sportbiker said:
Skeena_PG said:
I'm curious as to how they will reconcile the manual-opening Superliner doors with the automatic Surfliner ones. It may be a bit of a hassle for de/boarding and staffing.
Click to expand...
There was a sign taped to the inside of the door's window: "No access through this door" or words to that effect.
Click to expand...
What then happens is when the customer (too dumb to read) stands at the door when arriving at his/her stop and then sees the train start to leave, they'll do the only logical thing: PULL THE E-BRAKE!

At least that's what happened on my MARC train on the way home on Friday (the 13th, obviously the cause). Not sure what happened to the PAX (I'm sure that they made it off the train at their stop, if for nothing else their own safety from the irate pax still on the train). The conductor firmly reminded everyone to not ever ever touch the brake as it's a federal offense and after 15 minutes of getting air back and doing brake checks, we were on our way home again.

Sorry for the slight derail, but if you have doors that don't open when aligned with a platform, this is going to happen from time to time - people are just stupid like that.
 
sportbiker said:
tp49 said:
Those Superliners are the cafe cars
Click to expand...
Huh? Do you mean they're similar to cafe cars in that the doors don't open? I have surely never seen the role of cafe car being performed by Superliner coach.
Click to expand...
The exclusive use Superliners on the Capitol Corridor/San Joaquin are Coach/Cafe's. The cafe is on the lower level. The crew never opens the doors on the cafe car for passenger boarding.
 
sportbiker said:
sechs said:
They are supposed to be green?
Click to expand...
See my post above about people intuitively knowing (sometimes wrongly) they're where they shouldn't be because the layout is different. I think green textiles were chosen for Business Class to elicit that response from wayward coach pax. Now BC interiors are identical to coach interiors.
Click to expand...
Keeping in mind that I've only ridden in Pacific Business Class twice, I don't recall either time sitting in a car with a green interior.

I also never noticed any misplaced coach passengers; they're usually pretty concerned about getting back to their stuff at their seat. You'd have to get turned-around and be illiterate to end up in the business class car.
 
tp49 said:
sportbiker said:
tp49 said:
Those Superliners are the cafe cars
Click to expand...
Huh? Do you mean they're similar to cafe cars in that the doors don't open? I have surely never seen the role of cafe car being performed by Superliner coach.
Click to expand...
The exclusive use Superliners on the Capitol Corridor/San Joaquin are Coach/Cafe's. The cafe is on the lower level. The crew never opens the doors on the cafe car for passenger boarding.
Click to expand...
Are you talking about the rebuilds or the regular Superliners in the California pool?

It would seem a bit silly to pay to have them converted to coach-cafes, as there are about as many California car cafes as cab cars already.
 
sechs said:
tp49 said:
sportbiker said:
tp49 said:
Those Superliners are the cafe cars
Click to expand...
Huh? Do you mean they're similar to cafe cars in that the doors don't open? I have surely never seen the role of cafe car being performed by Superliner coach.
Click to expand...
The exclusive use Superliners on the Capitol Corridor/San Joaquin are Coach/Cafe's. The cafe is on the lower level. The crew never opens the doors on the cafe car for passenger boarding.
Click to expand...
Are you talking about the rebuilds or the regular Superliners in the California pool?

It would seem a bit silly to pay to have them converted to coach-cafes, as there are about as many California car cafes as cab cars already.
Click to expand...
I was wrong. I can admit that.

I walked over to the Sacramento station tonight to see if I could find one of the CalTrans rebuilt coaches and I did. It is still a full fleged coach. There was also one of the "pinch-hitter" Superliners in the same consist and it was a cafe/coach.

I stand corrected.
 
tp49 said:
I walked over to the Sacramento station tonight to see if I could find one of the CalTrans rebuilt coaches and I did. It is still a full fleged coach. There was also one of the "pinch-hitter" Superliners in the same consist and it was a cafe/coach.
Click to expand...
The pinch-hitter Superliners I've seen in SoCal are coach/baggage units. Do you know if the NorCal Superliner cafes are used as cafes on regular runs? Or is the lower level just not used?
 
sportbiker said:
tp49 said:
I walked over to the Sacramento station tonight to see if I could find one of the CalTrans rebuilt coaches and I did. It is still a full fleged coach. There was also one of the "pinch-hitter" Superliners in the same consist and it was a cafe/coach.
Click to expand...
The pinch-hitter Superliners I've seen in SoCal are coach/baggage units. Do you know if the NorCal Superliner cafes are used as cafes on regular runs? Or is the lower level just not used?
Click to expand...
They are used as cafe's on regular runs. When the pinch hitter Superliners are in a consist they are there in place of the cafe car.
 
tp49 said:
sechs said:
tp49 said:
sportbiker said:
tp49 said:
Those Superliners are the cafe cars
Click to expand...
Huh? Do you mean they're similar to cafe cars in that the doors don't open? I have surely never seen the role of cafe car being performed by Superliner coach.
Click to expand...
The exclusive use Superliners on the Capitol Corridor/San Joaquin are Coach/Cafe's. The cafe is on the lower level. The crew never opens the doors on the cafe car for passenger boarding.
Click to expand...
Are you talking about the rebuilds or the regular Superliners in the California pool?

It would seem a bit silly to pay to have them converted to coach-cafes, as there are about as many California car cafes as cab cars already.
Click to expand...
I was wrong. I can admit that.

I walked over to the Sacramento station tonight to see if I could find one of the CalTrans rebuilt coaches and I did. It is still a full fleged coach. There was also one of the "pinch-hitter" Superliners in the same consist and it was a cafe/coach.

I stand corrected.
Click to expand...
Is there a picture of said coaches?
 
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