sunset back to old habits

[railfangns]

I just checked the scheduled arrival time for train number 1 the sunset limited it is running 7 hours late between Del Rio and Sanderson Texas.Its eta into El paso texas is 1015pm mst.Anybody know why its running this late has the UP delayed it or was it the CSX run into New Orleans that got it this late.Also since its scheduled to leave Los Angeles at 230pm friday can they use the southwest chiefs set so number 2 can depart on time?I know the chief gets into LA in the morning and departs in the evening so this will work if amtrak tried it.Simply service the chiefs set when it arrives and let it be train 2 on friday. When the sunset arrives service it and send it out as train 4.Both trains use superliners so amtrak can do this.Years ago in New orleans the city of New orleans set that arrived this afternoon went out as the crescent tomorrow morning. And the crescent set that arrived at night was next days City of New orleansThey cant do that now the city uses superliners and the crescent uses single level cars.In seattle the Empire Builder and Pioneer used to swap sets because the pioneer was late getting into Seattle and had an early morning departure the next day.

 

[Guest]

The sunset leaves LA at 230pm now Makes a real short time to clean and service the cars.

 

[jccollins]

There is an extra set of Superliner equipment kept at Los Angeles Union Station now to protect on time departures of Train 2.

There is no way they could possibly consider doing a same day Sunset Limited trainset turn at LAX now that #1 is scheduled in at 10:10am and #2 departs at 2:30pm. Even if #1 arrived on time there would not be enough time to turn the train. According to the folks at Amtrak it takes about 6 hours minimum to fully service and turn a trainset. It is currently planned for #3's set to go out the same evening as #4, #11's set to go out the next day as #14, and the arriving Sunset Ltd set to go out a couple/few days later (the next non-same day Sunset Ltd departure).

One reason they cannot *easily* swap Sunset trainsets with the Chief and Starlight is that each of the trains now have a different number of sleepers and coaches. The Sunsets are running with the dorm/1 revenue sleeper and 2 or 3 coaches, the Chief with the dorm/two revenue sleepers and three coaches, and the Starlight with the dorm/3 revenue sleepers and 3 or 4 coaches.

This is not to say that the trainsets cannot be swapped between routes; they just prefer not to do it because of the different consists. However, swapping will be done tonight and the extra Sunset trainset will be sent out of LAX as an on time #4 since #3 has still not arrived into the station and would not be able to turn on time. There was a freight train derailment along the BNSF route in Winslow, Arizona that help up the Southwest Chief #3 for 8 or 9 hours at the Albuquerque, NM Amtrak Station.

 

[Trogdor]

I'm not sure if this is the same trip, but one (very) recent Sunset trip departed Orlando on time, but was five hours late pulling into NOL.

 

[railfangns]

Thanks for the info.I didnt know the sunset and chief had different sets.I figured they both had a baggage car, a dorm car,2 sleepers,a diner a lounge cafe car,and the same number of coaches.But i seen the chief has more cars than the sunset.Last year in chicago they turned the California zephyr set at chicago and used it for the city of new orleans.There was zephyr timetables route guides, and menus in every car i went in. They used to run the Empire builder through from Chicago to New orleans including the Portland section but they stopped that a few years ago.The main reason they did that was to allow the superliners to thaw out in warm New Orleans after the harsh cold winter weather they must travel through in the midwest.

Overall i think the sunset is doing better about being close to on time. Train 2 left El Paso on time thursday morning.

 

[Guest]

I'm not sure if this is the same trip, but one (very) recent Sunset trip departed Orlando on time, but was five hours late pulling into NOL.

OOPS CSX SLIPPED UP! It was the train that left Orlando Tuesday.

 

[Guest_Midland Valley]

Last summer we were stuck in the Chicago stockyards, I mean the regular waiting room for 6 hours past departure time. They said it was because Builder was late getting in and it needed to be fitted for the Chief. I didn't know they did that.

 

[Trogdor]

Last year in chicago they turned the California zephyr set at chicago and used it for the city of new orleans.There was zephyr timetables route guides, and menus in every car i went in. They used to run the Empire builder through from Chicago to New orleans including the Portland section but they stopped that a few years ago.

If the Zephyr turned to the City of New Orleans last year, it would have been due to a problem with the normal equipment, which comes off of the Texas Eagle (a very late arrival of #22 would be one reason this might occur).

When the Empire Builder ran through for the City of New Orleans (at least, when I rode it), they only took the lounge and the first coach of the Portland section. The rest stayed behind in Chicago.

 

[battalion51]

Well just because there were Zephyr schedules doesn't mean it JUST came off the Zephyr. They seem to be the only crews that put their schedules in the schedule holder. I've been on a Westbound Sunset with Zephyr schedules in there. It would've had to cycle through the Chief, and an EB Sunset before it could've made it that far.

 

[Trogdor]

Well just because there were Zephyr schedules doesn't mean it JUST came off the Zephyr. They seem to be the only crews that put their schedules in the schedule holder. I've been on a Westbound Sunset with Zephyr schedules in there. It would've had to cycle through the Chief, and an EB Sunset before it could've made it that far.

True. I've been on the Empire Builder before when the lounge had Crescent timetables. Try and figure that one out.

 

[Midland Valley]

maybe they just do whatever they want to do whenever they want to do it. I have ridden the CZ when it had two lounge cars. But that might have been when the DWind or Pioneer was on.

 

[battalion51]

Well just because there were Zephyr schedules doesn't mean it JUST came off the Zephyr. They seem to be the only crews that put their schedules in the schedule holder. I've been on a Westbound Sunset with Zephyr schedules in there. It would've had to cycle through the Chief, and an EB Sunset before it could've made it that far.

True. I've been on the Empire Builder before when the lounge had Crescent timetables. Try and figure that one out.

During the car crisis last summer when Superliners were in short supply and single level equipment was being substituted.

 

[GG-1]

Aloha

Reading all this makes me wonder, How does Amtrak decide what equipment to use?

Mahalo

 

[battalion51]

There are a couple of factors Amtrak looks at.

Distance of the train trip

Height clearance requirements (how tall to get through a tunnel)

How fast the train will go

These are the major factors in what decides what equipment a train will get.

 

[Trogdor]

Well just because there were Zephyr schedules doesn't mean it JUST came off the Zephyr. They seem to be the only crews that put their schedules in the schedule holder. I've been on a Westbound Sunset with Zephyr schedules in there. It would've had to cycle through the Chief, and an EB Sunset before it could've made it that far.

True. I've been on the Empire Builder before when the lounge had Crescent timetables. Try and figure that one out.

During the car crisis last summer when Superliners were in short supply and single level equipment was being substituted.

When were single-level cars ever substituted on the Empire Builder? I don't recall this ever happening in recent times (with the exception of one trip when the Empire Builder was cancelled west of MSP account a freight derailment, and the City of New Orleans was extremely late getting into CHI, they ran single levels CHI-MSP, but I was not on that trip).

The lounge in question was a Superliner Sightseer Lounge, so I still don't see how that could have been caused by a Superliner shortage.

 

[GG-1]

Aloha Battalion 51

Thank you for your reply. What is interesting is you made no reference to the potential ridership.

Mahalo

 

[Amtrak OBS Employee]

Aloha Battalion 51
Thank you for your reply. What is interesting is you made no reference to the potential ridership.

Mahalo

Well he isn't totally wrong on that, bro. As a matter of fact Bat's pretty much on the money there! However, Amtrak does take into account the passenger count when assembling a consist for the most part! But there are many times when they don't! They just send a train out with too few seats at the peak points in a trip! So when that's the case, I say either stop selling tickets when you reach the point of maximum capacity of the allocated consist, or add the extra cars!! The question is which one can they do? We probably know that answer! LOL....... OBS... :lol:

 

[Extra Sets]

Where else does amtrak keep extra sets to cover trains that run late? I figured they kept an extra set in Seattle and Portland to cover the empire builder since they have a very short turn around time.I thought an extra set would be kept in San Antonio for the Texas Eagle Because it also has a short turn around time.Plus extra cars were probably kept in Newyork,Chicago, Miami, New Orleans,Los Angeles, Seattle,and Boston to fill in for cars that get bad ordered . Am i close to right?Also does amtrak keep an extra set in LA or Seattle for the Coast Starlate I mean Starlight.

 

[Trogdor]

Where else does amtrak keep extra sets to cover trains that run late? I figured they kept an extra set in Seattle and Portland to cover the empire builder since they have a very short turn around time.I thought an extra set would be kept in San Antonio for the Texas Eagle Because it also has a short turn around time.Plus extra cars were probably kept in Newyork,Chicago, Miami, New Orleans,Los Angeles, Seattle,and Boston to fill in for cars that get bad ordered . Am i close to right?Also does amtrak keep an extra set in LA or Seattle for the Coast Starlate I mean Starlight.

Amtrak doesn't keep "extra" sets anywhere.

The Sunset "extra" set is required to maintain service, because even if it ran on time, with the new schedule there's no way for them to service and turn the equipment. I guess you could call it "extra," but that's just the new programmed turn.

They don't keep any spare equipment in Portland, and very minimal spares in Seattle (usually consisting of stuff that had been bad-ordered off either the Starlight or the Builder and got fixed in Seattle).

There are protect (i.e. "extra") cars in San Antonio, at least there used to be, to protect the LAX-CHI through cars in the event that the Sunset ran so late that it missed the connection (which was, well, all the time). I don't know if they still keep these cars down there now that the Sunset has been rescheduled.

Protect cars are around the system (Chicago, NOL, Florida, New York, etc.), but not quite enough to make up an entire trainset if one arrives late.

 

[AmtrakFan]

Well just because there were Zephyr schedules doesn't mean it JUST came off the Zephyr. They seem to be the only crews that put their schedules in the schedule holder. I've been on a Westbound Sunset with Zephyr schedules in there. It would've had to cycle through the Chief, and an EB Sunset before it could've made it that far.

True. I've been on the Empire Builder before when the lounge had Crescent timetables. Try and figure that one out.

During the car crisis last summer when Superliners were in short supply and single level equipment was being substituted.

I saw one of those Trains. Plus 6 goes into the nextday 5 at CUS in Chicago. I have seen the same set more than once the nextday

 

[battalion51]

Robert is correct. Even in the largest of facilities like Hialeah (which home base for much of the single level fleet) there have been situations where they can't even come close to fielding a trainset. I remember one particular incident a few summers ago. I came in on a very late 97 (to the tune of 15 hours) and hung around the station for a few hours. 97 went out to the yard to be cleaned and serviced. 89 came in about an hour behind 97. The coaches and lounge from 89 plus 97's sleepers and diner were put together to make that day's 92! Needless to say 92 left very late that day (6 1/2 hours late).

 

[Tanner929]

:blink: :unsure: :angry: :huh:

Is this anyway to run a railroad :blink: :huh: