Passenger Trains > Several Michigan Amtrak Trains

Here is a video combined from four shorter videos of three different Michigan Amtrak Trains.

The first segment is, I think, #352 AMTK 37 AMTK 26. They changed the schedule right along in here to the new summer/construction schedule, shown at MP 163, about 2 miles west of the town of Lawton, Michigan. This train was on Friday, April 17, 2015, at about 4:00 PM. If this was in fact #352 on the now older schedule, it would have been due into Kalamazoo at 4:08 PM. So with twenty miles yet to go, it's only fifteen or twenty minutes or so tardy.

The next 3 trains were on Friday, April 24, 2015.

The next segment is #359 AMTK 29 AMTK 33 shown at MP 114, about five miles east of the Battle Creek, Michigan, Amtrak Station, about 5:55 PM. Due into Battle Creek at 5:49 PM. Not too far off the mark.

The next segment is #364 AMTK 27 AMTK 32 shown at MP 163, about two miles west of the town of Lawton, Michigan, about 7:05 PM. Due into Kalamazoo at 7:12 PM. Also not too far off the mark. The Kalamazoo, Michigan, Amtrak Station is at MP 143.4 or so.

The last segment is #359, again, now leaving Lawton, at MP 163, after waiting in the siding there for #364. About 7:10 PM.

#352 and #364 are shown on the section where the speed limit is 110 MPH. They are both doing that speed, or close to it. #359 is on that same section of track, but has just left the siding and is getting up to track speed.

Ron

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brings me back to my NEC days ... steel wheels on steel rails have a distinct sound at 100mph+ ... nice vid ...

Posted from Android

In the 2nd video segment, the wb train is rounding a curve.  What is the speed limit for the curve?   It does not appear to be hugely superelevevated?  True?

A clear case of Whoosh! repeated four times :-)

John.

MEKoch Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> In the 2nd video segment, the wb train is rounding
> a curve.  What is the speed limit for the
> curve?   It does not appear to be hugely
> superelevevated?  True?

depends on the degree of curvature how much superelevation goes in for a certain speed ... with the zoom the curve seems tighter than it really is

Posted from Android



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/25/15 07:32 by Out_Of_Service.

Thanks for showing us why Amtrak is short on locomotives.  Pulling all that extra weight sure isn't energy efficient.  When do they plan to get trains that are correct for the service? Instead of this jury-rigged operation?

Marty Bernard



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/25/15 15:18 by MartyBernard.

The best one is #2, because it has no Crossing Gate Bell.  And very l-o-n-g approaches with those da** bells!

Da**ed if you do, and Da**ed if you don't, and ya can't please everybody. People here squwak about the lack of protection available in a cab car AND my understanding is that much HP is required for the speeds involved

CB

MartyBernard Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Thanks for showing us why Amtrak is short on
> locomotives.  Pulling all that extra weight sure
> isn't energy efficient.  When do they plan to get
> trains that are correct for the service? Instead
> of this jufy-rigged operation?
>
> Marty Bernard

The proper solution is something like the new Oregon DOT Talgos.  The cab car is crashworthy (that's why people think it is ugly) and the train is light so so much power and thus additional weight is not necessary.*  Michigan DOT had little to no choice in equipment when they started their reasonable-speed program.  And I'm certainly not critizing their current program.  It represents significant commitment of a fore-thinking state. The next step equipment wise is higher-tech trains.

Marty Bernard

* I understand the limiting factors to increased speed for the new Talgos is infrastructure, e.g., tracks, signals, grade crossing circuits.

"Mater" is beyond ugly. I doubt an engineer would survive hitting a truck with that panoramic windshield.


MartyBernard Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> The proper solution is something like the new
> Oregon DOT Talgos.  The cab car is crashworthy
> (that's why people think it is ugly) and the train
> is light so so much power and thus additional
> weight is not necessary.*  Michigan DOT had
> little to no choice in equipment when they started
> their reasonable-speed program.  And I'm
> certainly not critizing their current program. 
> It represents significant commitment of a
> fore-thinking state. The next step equipment wise
> is higher-tech trains.
>
> Marty Bernard
>
> * I understand the limiting factors to increased
> speed for the new Talgos is infrastructure, e.g.,
> tracks, signals, grade crossing circuits.

SP4360 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> "Mater" is beyond ugly. I doubt an engineer would
> survive hitting a truck with that panoramic
> windshield.
>

I understand they meet FRA safety standards.  If your opinion is that the standards are insufficient, get them changed.  You are in the industry and I'm sure you don't want somethig unsafe out there.

Marty Bernard

MEKoch Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> In the 2nd video segment, the wb train is rounding a curve.  What is the speed limit for the curve?   It does not appear to be hugely superelevevated?  True?

Well, first off, I'm not an Amtrak person. I only try to video them because they are often, and they are short, so I'm not trying to show really long boring videos.

But, I know an Amtrak Conductor that works between Battle Creek and Pontiac, Michigan. He said this: According to the latest timetable the speed is as follows...MP 113.3 to MP 114.3 is 60mph. MP 114.3 to CP Levitt is 79 mph.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
In the video you can see the MP 114 marker. There is another curve back to the west from where I was sitting when I took this video, so there is a 60 MPH speed limit through both of those curves.
I've added two photographs, both taken from about the same spot as the video, one looking to the east, and the other looking to the west, showing both curves.
And, I do not know where CP Levitt is, sorry.

Also, Amtrak and the State of Michigan are starting up the third year of a three year (I think) project to up the speed limit to 110 MPH between Kalamazoo and Detroit. Unlike the section west of Kalamazoo, this section east of Kalamazoo has many more curves and towns and villages to pass through, so I don't believe we will be seeing long stretches of 110 MPH track like there is west of Kalamazoo.
Also there was some mention last year about the State of Michigan buying two Talgo sets that Wisconsin cancelled. That might improve the speeds on the section east of Kalamazoo.

Ron

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MartyBernard Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> SP4360 Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > "Mater" is beyond ugly. I doubt an engineer
> would
> > survive hitting a truck with that panoramic
> > windshield.
> >
>
> I understand they meet FRA safety standards.  If
> your opinion is that the standards are
> insufficient, get them changed.  You are in the
> industry and I'm sure you don't want somethig
> unsafe out there.
>
> Marty Bernard

Because I am in the industry doesn't mean a damn thing, I'm just stating an opinion. They meet FRA standards, that's great. So did other types of cabcars, and unfortunately, some didn't come out on the winning end of a train/vehicle accident with more structure around the windshield.