Mondays have typically been the day that Amtrak ferries engines and cars from Beech Grove back to Chicago on the Cardinal to be placed back in service. For 3 weeks in a row now, there's been nothing on Monday's Cardinal coming into Chicago but the usual Cardinal consist, and it doesn't appear any of the other Cardinals the past few weeks had any ferry moves either. Did they skip the last 2 Mondays because they fell on holidays or is there something else happening there?
No Amtrak Beech Grove moves in 3 weeks
- Thread starter TommyBNSF
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Why would you think something happened other than the holidays? It was reported a large movement of equipment right before the holiday period. Let these guys and gals have a restful holiday with their family, before we start panicking. I glad we did not pay holiday wages for equipment movement. I hope everyone who works at Beech Grove had a great holiday.
The holidays would easily explain things being light. I think it's a little bit surprising that nothing went in or out due to bad ordering that couldn't be fixed in Chicago and the like. Remember, three weeks goes back to mid-December.
Edit: Also, with the amount of stuff that's sitting in yards while trains have still been running short on equipment, I'll have to beg your pardon for being a bit less understanding than I otherwise would be.
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Equipment only goes to Beech Grove (or Bear or Wilmington shops) every four years for level 1 overhaul work (and less frequently for more major overhauls) or if it’s wrecked. Overhauls are typically timed around the annual COT&S inspection and other major lifecycle preventative maintenance tasks so the back shops will take care of any of that work for any equipment undergoing work there. Bad orders, major repairs, and lifecycle preventative maintenance activities including COT&S inspections between overhaul years are done at the repair facilities around the country - turnaround facilities can do basic repairs and clean and service the equipment while more major repairs are done at the 18 maintenance facilities. A bad order would not go to Beech Grove or Bear but it may have to be reassigned to a more major shop (or between shops due to workload.) Beech Grove’s work is all major capital repairs and I’m not sure it operates three shifts around the clock or operates on holidays/weekends (someone with more knowledge may know.)
A couple locations actually have multiple facilities - Chicago has 3 for example on which handles turnaround servicing and the other two of which are the repair facilities one for locomotives and one for cars. The largest repair facilities can also handle the periodic lifecycle preventative maintenance tasks - things like the annual COT&S inspection (during non overhaul years.) Amtrak’s mechanical department also has a contract to maintain the diesel locomotives and Mafersa passenger cars owned by the Connecticut Department of Transportation that are used on its Hartford Line service. Amtrak operates the shop at CTDOT’s New Haven yard that handles the diesels and Mafersa coaches (right across the tracks from Amtrak’s own Parcel G facility which handles Amtrak equipment.) I believe the arrival of the Airo equipment and new long distance fleet is also going to change things somewhat - some facilities will be downsized and others will become more significant due to some of the operational changes. And some facilities may even close. One example up my way is I believe due to the Airo equipment being dual mode and the elimination of New Haven engine changes Springfield is going to become a more major repair facility at the expense of Parcel G in New Haven.
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Also some repair facilities that handle multiple equipment types may only do the high level work like lifecycle PM for certain of the equipment types. Like I think Hialeah may be the only level 1 facility for the Viewliners for example - other facilities that can work on Viewliners like Sunnyside for basic repairs do more major work on other equipment types. I’m not 100% sure on that in regards to Hialeah but about 75% on that.
Missing a lot of turn around, layovers facilities.
Such as;
Savannah, Georgia
Buffalo, New York
Portland, Oregon
Springfield, Massachusetts
List is not inclusive, just random locations.
Even when they have a column for this.
Never mind the western train enroute inspection locations.
So not sure what this chart is looking to prove? Vertical integration? Lack of outsourcing of work?
It’s nice to see what can be worked where, but don’t understand why they include turn around and layover services.
Such as;
Savannah, Georgia
Buffalo, New York
Portland, Oregon
Springfield, Massachusetts
List is not inclusive, just random locations.
Even when they have a column for this.
Never mind the western train enroute inspection locations.
So not sure what this chart is looking to prove? Vertical integration? Lack of outsourcing of work?
It’s nice to see what can be worked where, but don’t understand why they include turn around and layover services.
I didn't include the rest of the state partner ones because my point was to show beach groves job isn't to do minor bad order issues that gets handled by a local shop
NorthShore
Conductor
I didn't realize Amtrak has a turnaround and maintenance facility at Brighton Park, southwest of their big yard that everyone knows about beyond Roosevelt Rd. I'm going to have to sort out and spot where, exactly, that is next time I'm on the Orange Line or a trip to Springfield.
Brighton Park Maintenance - 3727 S Sacramento Ave
Google Map image:
https://www.google.com/maps/place/3...ab7eb!8m2!3d41.825183!4d-87.6986186?entry=ttu
http://wikimapia.org/8767546/Amtrak-Brighton-Park-Car-Shop
Closest Orange Line station - 35th/Archer
