Viewliner crew sleeper

[Amtrak Watcher]

The superliner transition sleepers for the service crew have, like most cars, a door on each end. But these are a bit strange with a high-up door on one end to mate up with the other superliner cars, and low-down door on the other end to mate up with the baggage car. This seems to restrict the direction the service crew sleeper car can be arranged in the train.

Does the viewliner have a similar crew sleeper? If so, is it free of this kind of configuration restriction?

 

[P40Power]

There is no Viewliner crew sleeper, the crew rides in dorm cars which are former 10&6 Heritage fleet sleeper cars. And this car is free of that restriction since the dorm cars which run on Viewliner equiped trains is single level along with the rest of the cars. If they wanted to use Single and Bi Level equipment on the same train you would hook the two kinds of cars up with a transition sleeper, though I dont know of any trains that have ever had that configuration (Maybe the Auto train when it had Superliner II Sleepers but still had Amfleet II coaches back in 95-96)

 

[AlanB]

Amtrak Watcher,

The transition sleeper was designed exactly that way, so that it could be used to provide access to a baggage car or a single level car as needed. It also does as you point out basically require that the car be a one end or the other of the train. You can't place a Trans Dorm in the middle of the train.

Now for the single level trains, there are no Viewliner crew dorms. Amtrak still uses Heritage sleepers, these are hand me downs from back when the freight RR's still ran passenger trains. The only Viewliner equipment that Amtrak has ever had is Viewliner sleepers and one prototype diner (now out of service).

Even if Amtrak did have Viewliner crew dorm, it wouldn't be possible to have a high door as it would be ripped right off the car when the train goes through the tunnels here on the east coast. Plus since they've already got the Superliner Trans Dorm to make a connection between single and bi-level cars, so there really is no need to have a Viewliner configured similarly.

 

[battalion51]

Ocasionally when there is no 10-6 for a single level train (mechanical failure, service, etc.) another Viewliner will be put in and eight rooms will be crew protect, the rest sold for revenue.

 

[amtrakadirondack]

The sleeping car service attendant of a Viewliner sleeper has a private room at one end of the car.

 

[Superliner Diner]

There is no Viewliner crew sleeper, the crew rides in dorm cars which are former 10&6 Heritage fleet sleeper cars.  And this car is free of that restriction since the dorm cars which run on Viewliner equiped trains is single level along with the rest of the cars.  If they wanted to use Single and Bi Level equipment on the same train you would hook the two kinds of cars up with a transition sleeper, though I dont know of any trains that have ever had that configuration (Maybe the Auto train when it had Superliner II Sleepers but still had Amfleet II coaches back in 95-96)

I can give two instances where I was on a train that used a transition car. They were both on the same trip I took back in 1996. One was when I was going from St. Louis to Chicago on a short-turn coach on the Texas Eagle. While the main part of the train was Superliners, we were put into one of two or three Heritage coaches. To get to the Sightseer Lounge (and the diner for those who wanted it) we had to walk through a Transition car ( I think this was actually an ex-Santa Fe Highliner with a stairway in the middle and different level doors).

This was also during the brief period of time when the Capitol Limited was carrying through coaches for the Three Rivers (the route via Akron & Napannee had no service when the Broadway Limited was cancelled west of Pittsburgh and became the Three Ruvers). So during that same trip, I was going from Chicago to Philadelphia so we had access to the Transition sleeper to get between the single-level coaches and the diner & lounge of the Capitol Limited portion of the train.

 

[battalion51]

Well the Transition Sleeper was originally designed to be a revenue/crew car. The low side was orignally intended for crew use (this is why the Conductors office is here, and swinging doors were going to seperate the car, this is why there is a Room H downstairs. Well that idea quickly went by the wayside, and the crew now inhabits the entire car, with the most seinor member of the crew in Room H.

 

[AlanB]

Well the Transition Sleeper was originally designed to be a revenue/crew car. The low side was orignally intended for crew use (this is why the Conductors office is here, and swinging doors were going to seperate the car, this is why there is a Room H downstairs. Well that idea quickly went by the wayside, and the crew now inhabits the entire car, with the most seinor member of the crew in Room H.

Of course now with the sleeper shortage, Amtrak should really revisit the idea of selling rooms in the Trans sleeper. They not only need the extra rooms, but they need the revenue from the rooms.

If and when Amtrak gets some new sleepers or if there are enough damaged ones in BG to be repaired and they get fixed, then the crew can have the trans dorm back exclusively.

 

[jccollins]

If Amtrak has extra rooms available in the crew sleepers on a regular basis, they need to be sold if and when all the other "regular" sleepers are sold out. It is foolish NOT to sell these rooms.

 

[tubaallen]

This was done last year on the Zephyr, as we had no Denver sleeper. Some of the people that had reservations for it, were put up in the crew car.

I present the employee side now...first of all, some poor coach attendant who already has his hands full handling two or three cars is the one who gets told to make up the rooms in the crew car, and to take care of these people. Also, the crew car is a safe haven for employees to "go home" to. If passengers are allowed up there, then on a 6 day trip (other than maybe a short layover) the crew has nowhere to go to get away from it all. Now that I have worked on the train, I sincerely hope that Amtrak does not do that.

Trust me you guys, I want Amtrak to survive, and I want to see it make as much income as possible too, however, I as an employee would not be happy to see them book rooms in the crew car.

 

[Bill Haithcoat]

Thanks for your views, tuballen.....you see a side the rest of us do not.

 

[Viewliner]

Well the Transition Sleeper was originally designed to be a revenue/crew car. The low side was orignally intended for crew use (this is why the Conductors office is here, and swinging doors were going to seperate the car, this is why there is a Room H downstairs. Well that idea quickly went by the wayside, and the crew now inhabits the entire car, with the most seinor member of the crew in Room H.

Of course now with the sleeper shortage, Amtrak should really revisit the idea of selling rooms in the Trans sleeper. They not only need the extra rooms, but they need the revenue from the rooms.

If and when Amtrak gets some new sleepers or if there are enough damaged ones in BG to be repaired and they get fixed, then the crew can have the trans dorm back exclusively.

Well, they might do so on the Texas Eagle, selling these rooms at a discount if it reduces the #of Sleepers if/when it goes to 1 locomotive.

 

[AlanB]

I present the employee side now...first of all, some poor coach attendant who already has his hands full handling two or three cars is the one who gets told to make up the rooms in the crew car, and to take care of these people.  Also, the crew car is a safe haven for employees to "go home" to.  If passengers are allowed up there, then on a 6 day trip (other than maybe a short layover) the crew has nowhere to go to get away from it all.  Now that I have worked on the train, I sincerely hope that Amtrak does not do that.
Trust me you guys, I want Amtrak to survive, and I want to see it make as much income as possible too, however, I as an employee would not be happy to see them book rooms in the crew car.

Tubaallen,

I hear what you are saying, yet the simple reality is that Amtrak cannot continue hauling a half empty car across the country for just the crew. There is a major expense just for the upkeep on the trans-dorms, not to mention the huge amount of lost revenue. Revenue that Amtrak desperately needs.

The Cardinal, until it went to single level cars, ran without a trans-dorm. The crew on this train was forced to share a Superliner sleeper with paying passengers. So it can be done. Yes I understand that it is nice to have a place to hang out.

Now perhaps as I had suggested once before in another thread months ago, maybe Amtrak needs to install a full door between the crew section and the passenger section. If this is not feasable, then Amtrak must find some other use for part of this car that can generate revenue.

I also do agree with you that if Amtrak is to sell rooms in the trans-dorm, that they must also properly deal with staffing the car. They should not be expecting that a coach attendant who is 4 or more cars away can properly deal with the passengers in the trans-dorm.

I don't know what the ultimate or correct answer should be here, however Amtrak must deal with this issue. It costs way to much money to run an half-empty car and Amtrak needs revenue badly.

 

[Amfleet]

Maybe there is a way to lock the door into the crew lounge and have a more secure door to the crew rooms like Alan said, but the Trans Dorms can defienetly pick up some otherwise lost revenue.

 

[tubaallen]

Alan,

Of course I agree with the concept. I don't know what would work best. It may not even be worth discussing, as probably NOTHING will happen. I suppose, however, if there was a solid door, (and most importantly soundproof) it may be ok. Maybe there's a misunderstanding though...it isn't just so that crew can "hang out" (they can hang out among passengers), though that IS part of the reason...many crew members walk around the crew car like it's their home...in pajamas, or whatever. The main reason is that when there are problems or conflicts with passengers, we need to have a place to be able to go where we can vent, and get frustrated, and discuss it out loud with other crew members. The crew car serves as the perfect place to do this.

As I said, maybe with a solid door, this would still be feasible, but it is certainly something that needs to also be considered from the crew's side.

Allen

 

[battalion51]

It's been a while for me since I've been in a Trans Dorm (about three months) but correct me if I'm wrong but aren't there showers on what would be the revenue side of the car, that are intended for crew use? I do think that if a solid door is installed (similar to that of a Heritage crew Dorm between the "smoking lounge" and the crew area there will be no problems. A similar door could also be installed downstairs that leads into the crew room. If this were to occur there likely will be dedicated Texas Eagle Trans Dorms, similar to dedicated Auto Train Trans Dorms (39000, 39001, and 39002).

 

[AlanB]

Well it's official now. According to the NARP Hotline, which can be found here, Amtrak will begin selling rooms in the Trans/Dorm on the Texas Eagle as of June 8th.

This will be done for the summer months, so that Amtrak can take away one sleeper from the Eagle to boost the number of sleepers on the Zephyr. It however is also a test. If the test is successful, Amtrak may expand the program and start selling rooms in the Trans/Dorms of other trains.

 

[amtrakadirondack]

Thanks for the info AlanB, and thanks for the link!

 

[Amtrak Watcher]

I was put in in the crew sleeper on the southbound Texas Eagle 8 and 9 June from Chicago to Dallas. It was in the front of the train immediately forward of the diner and lounge cars (aft of the baggage car). The only other sleeper was a normal Superliner type sandwitched between coach cars. The crew sleeper was for passengers not going beyond San Antonio (not connecting to the west-bound Sunset Limited), while the normal sleeper was for those headed further to Los Angeles. The was some overflow of non-through passengers in the LAX-bound sleeper. There seemed to be no problems mixing passengers and crew. One member of the service crew seemed a bit annoyed with changes in general, especially the corach passenger traffic in the sleeper, which he termed "unprofessional." The problem with the Los Angeles-bound sleeper was the coach passenger traffic passing through the sleeper heading up to the lounge and the diner. The sleeper's snacks and goodies had to be hidden (downstairs I believe). Make sure you try to get a room on the lower floor if you book a Texas Eagle sleeper trip through San Antonio. Otherwise, it's fine.

I don't know how this works on those days when the Texas Eagle does not meet the Sunset Limited.