Passenger Trains > Amtrak ACS-64 #603 Begins its Transcontinental Trek

But not after going the wrong way at first. Amtrak is continuing with its recent practice of sending a pair of P42's lite engines from Oakland to the Siemens plant in Sacramento to retrieve the latest ACS-64 release and bring it back west to Oakland for adding to the next available #6. The unit then travels to Wilmington on the Cal Zephyr and Capitol Limited. Don't know how this stacks up cost-wise to the alternative of having UP move it in manifest service east out of Roseville with interchange to NS or CSX for final movement to the NEC. It appears Amtrak would prefer to control the entire transportation move for their $6.5 million babies($466 million for 70 locomotives).

P42's 57 and 41 returned to Oakland this morning with the 603 in tow running as train #995. They are seen at 11:00 westbound on main two at Hercules, CA(RV021 UP Martinez Sub). It's probably now safe to say that the appearance of the 603 with the small U.S. flag below each cab side window will be the final look of the fleet. Any further information on whether the 602 has started test runs in the Corridor yet?



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 08/09/13 14:27 by shed47.

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Overall, I like the new livery!

Emphasis on corporate identity with SOME patriotism (it is a government corporation, after all). Not bad!

Why isn't the flag on all Amtrak equipment? VIA Rail even has the Canadian flag on every passenger car.

Could someone with photoshop talent put a "pointless arrow" on there?

shed47 Wrote:
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> ... Don't know how this stacks
> up cost-wise to the alternative of having UP move
> it in manifest service east out of Roseville with
> interchange to NS or CSX for final movement to the
> NEC. It appears Amtrak would prefer to control
> the entire transportation move for their $6.5
> million babies($466 million for 70 locomotives).

If you had ever tried to ship a locomotive of any sort dead-in-tow, you wouldn't blame Amtrak a bit. It is absurdly ridiciulous how difficult it is for Class One freight carriers to move a locomotive as a freight car with any sort of care or reliability.

andersonb109 Wrote:
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> Why isn't the flag on all Amtrak equipment? VIA
> Rail even has the Canadian flag on every passenger
> car.

I've seen small national flag decals on intercity and transit rail equipment in several different countries. Done right, they look good!

Does anybody know if the roof of these new units is the "final product"? Or is some sort of covering or SOMETHING going to go up there around the red catenary thingies? It looks kinda strange just being open like that----like it's missing the final few pieces.

chs7-321 Wrote:
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> Overall, I like the new livery!
>
> Emphasis on corporate identity with SOME
> patriotism (it is a government corporation, after
> all). Not bad!


Agreed. I especially like the large logo on the side. Finally, there will be locomotives to shoot on the NEC with visible Amtrak logos, compared to the previous three models:

Photo 1. AEM-7 at Jersey Avenue Station, New Brunswick, NJ.
Photo 2. HHP-8s at Newark Airport Station, Newark, NJ.
Photo 3. Acela Express trainset at Elizabeth, NJ.

- Chris

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coaststarlight99 Wrote:
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Or is some sort of
> covering or SOMETHING going to go up there around
> the red catenary thingies?

They're called "pantographs"! :)

coaststarlight99 Wrote:
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> Does anybody know if the roof of these new units
> is the "final product"? Or is some sort of
> covering or SOMETHING going to go up there around
> the red catenary thingies? It looks kinda strange
> just being open like that----like it's missing the
> final few pieces.

What you see are the high voltage interconnects from the pantographs to the transformers. They are mounted on the red insulators.

Ray

PatternOfFailure Wrote:
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> If you had ever tried to ship a locomotive of any
> sort dead-in-tow, you wouldn't blame Amtrak a bit.
> It is absurdly ridiciulous how difficult it is
> for Class One freight carriers to move a
> locomotive as a freight car with any sort of care
> or reliability.

When Caltrain was having its then-new MP36PH-3Cs delivered from MPI in Boise, ID, they were shipped via UP. One of them got sent over the hump (or perhaps kicked elsewhere in the yard) in Roseville and was slammed into some standing equipment. It suffered enough damage that it had to be sent back to MPI in Boise for repairs. Another one of the units was "lost", ping-ponging back and forth between Roseville and another yard for a week to 10 days before finally being sent to San Jose.

Caltrain only bought 6 of these units, and that's how UP delivered a third of them.

If I remember correctly, some freight railroads have requirements for coupler stops. I believe at least some locomotives leave Boise with a set of "loaner" couplers and coupler stops, which are changed out upon arrival at their destination. They at least aren't shipping this ACS-64 wrapped, like the first one delivered. I'm not sure how the hand brake or safety appliances were accessed when the entire unit was bagged.

Amtrak, pulling the locomotive with its own power, on its own trains wouldn't face that problems they would if they sent them as freight. As somebody else alluded, electric locomotives being shipped as "freight", are usually shipped right behind the power, and they tend to get cut off and left behind at some fuel rack or another. The attitude on the ground is pretty much,"when somebody misses them, they'll come looking, and tell us what to do."

Been there, done it... MARC had most of our four AEM-7's got lost on their way from La Grange to Baltimore. We found at least one at Conway, and I forget where the others were found.

G.F.Payne, MARC retired
Baltimore, MD

Sure can. Which do you like better?

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Neither. :)

bwyrick Wrote:
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> Sure can. Which do you like better?


Excellent!!! I like #2 the classic look.

outpost Wrote:
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> bwyrick Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Sure can. Which do you like better?
>
>
> Excellent!!! I like #2 the classic look.


Second one looks good!

Jim Montague
IRVINE, CA
Train and Nature photo Art



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/10/13 09:10 by 3751_loony.

The addition of the Amtrak logo makes a big difference. Nice touch also with the flag decals. I like it.

How about Phase III!

Pepsi can scheme!

When looking at the 603 being taken back to Oakland, it looks like the flag on the rear end is backwards. I thought the blue portion where the stars are should be in the upper left hand corner?
Robert