Passenger Trains > Mainline of Mid America!

Mainline  of  Mif  America
     Are  they  still  running  SUPERLINERS on the  Carbondale  trains?  Either  or  both?  Really  a  waste  when LD trains  short of  cars.

Both trains are operating with Superliniers. That's 16—count 'em, 16—Superliner coaches. Enough to add a daily coach to the California Zephyr, the Southwest Chief, and the Sunset.

14.

Posted from iPhone

Tell that to CN which still doesn't trust its track circuits even with the axle count they demand and will force the 39X trains to comply with low speed limits over crossings unless heavy cars are run.  I guess IC must have used technology no one else did.

Does Amtrak have any MHCs left?  Fill'em with dead weight and run the trains with 4 or however many single level cars they really need plus however many heavily loaded MHCs CN would want.  That would free up Superliners.  Too bad the ex C&NW cars are gone.  They'd be perfect for this.

rgzfan Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Superliners are for the following trains only:
>
> Empire Builder
> California Zephyr
> Southwest Chief
> Maybe Coast Starlight/Daylight/Whateverlight
>
> if the trip isn't 2+ days long, it doesn't deserve
> superliners.
>
> All the other trains should be operated with
> single-level equipment.
>
> End of debate.


Glad you're not in charge of equipment utilization. There would be a lot more parked Superliners if Amtrak did what you're suggesting.

While I dislike the Superliners, the CN former IC situation is disgusting.   FRA should lean on them to properly maintain theirgrade crossings.  full stop.

BrynMawr Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> While I dislike the Superliners, the CN former IC
> situation is disgusting.   FRA should lean on
> them to properly maintain theirgrade crossings. 
> full stop.

As long as they are working with the equipment that the CN requires, or there are rules in place when other equipment is substituted to maintain safety, there is nothing the FRA can say. Full stop. 

rgzfan Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Superliners are for the following trains only:
>
> Empire Builder
> California Zephyr
> Southwest Chief
> Maybe Coast Starlight/Daylight/Whateverlight
>
> if the trip isn't 2+ days long, it doesn't deserve
> superliners.
>
> All the other trains should be operated with
> single-level equipment.
>
> End of debate.
University of Illionis students never had it this good!  LOL!

What about the Sunset Limited?  Capitol Limited?  Texas Eagle?  They all meet your requirements.

rgzfan Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Superliners are for the following trains only:
>
> Empire Builder
> California Zephyr
> Southwest Chief
> Maybe Coast Starlight/Daylight/Whateverlight
>
> if the trip isn't 2+ days long, it doesn't deserve
> superliners.
>
> All the other trains should be operated with
> single-level equipment.
>
> End of debate.

CN should be dragged into court; also before the FRA.  They are a poorly operated railroad which is very hostile to Amtrak on the ex-IC routes.  

Wow. Thamks  for  all the  replys!!

rgzfan Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Superliners are for the following trains only:
>
> Empire Builder
> California Zephyr
> Southwest Chief
> Maybe Coast Starlight/Daylight/Whateverlight
>
> if the trip isn't 2+ days long, it doesn't deserve
> superliners.
>
> All the other trains should be operated with
> single-level equipment.
>
> End of debate.

That's pretty arrogant.

Why is it OK for a Chicago to Kansas City passenger on the Southwest Chief to ride in a Superliner, but not someone riding from Washington, DC to Pittsburgh on the Capitol Limited?

Why is OK for a Chicago to Denver passenger on the California Zephyr to ride in a Superliner, but not a passenger riding from Chicago to New Orleans on the City of New Orleans?

Without any justification, you are being dismissive of Capitol Limited and City of New Orleans passengers.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/15/23 18:40 by RuleG.

rgzfan Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> CONO is a disgusting train. Employees used to call
> it the "bone train" for all the chicken bones that
> passengers would jam between the seats, between
> the seats and the walls, and leave everywhere. No
> Superliner should have to endure that indignity.
>
> Capitol Limited is cool, but Superliners are for
> western trains. They are the Conestoga Wagons of
> the railroad.
>
I rode the City of New Orleans three times and never thought it was a "disgusting" train. You're showing your contempt for all City of New Orleans patrons.

The Capitol Limited has been operated with Superliners for nearly 30 years without any issues specific to use of Superliners.  Your insistence that Superliners should only be operated on western trains is without merit.  



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/15/23 20:28 by RuleG.

Maybe if Amtrak had come up with a decent single level long distance coach back in the early 80's ,
instead of the 150 regurgitated corridor amtube design cars, we wouldn't be having this argument.

There are fewer Superliners in existence now than 30 years ago and consists have suffered everywhere. There should be enough Amfleet-2 coaches to cover the Capitol Ltd if they weren't tied up on corridor trains. We know there are more than enough Viewliners. Half the Viewliner-I sleepers (25), which are newer than Superliners, are stashed in Hialeah. Only 11 of 25 diners are used everyday. If the Crescent and Cardinal had them, that would make 17 of 25. 

Given the 1 sleeper + 1 coach on the Capitol Ltd currently, it is clearly on the Gardner/Harris chopping block, seen as redundant and expandable against the Lake Shore Ltd and Cardinal. I think there is 50/50 chance in 2 or 3 years that the Capitol Ltd will morph into a middle of the night Thruway bus between Pittsburgh and Cleveland, given the Superliner situation.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/16/23 05:08 by joemvcnj.

mp51w Wrote:
-----------------------------------------
> University of Illionis students never had it this
> good!  LOL!

Much better than the racist bus service that ran from Champaign- Chicago….

https://news.wttw.com/2017/12/04/suburban-express-bus-line-facing-blowback-offensive-bigoted-ad

Posted from iPhone



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 03/16/23 05:20 by Spoony81.

“passengers like you” on upcoming Christmas break rides... “You won’t feel like you’re in China when you’re on our buses,”

How stupid and bigoted. 
Could be Norman Lear's Archie Bunker's script. 

Again - if it takes more passenger cars to operate a particular service for a State than what the ridership demands (capacity exceeds demand, but a requirement exists for so many cars to be in the consist), is the State of Illinois paying for that LOST opportunity revenue?

OR does demand = capacity over 80% of the time with the Superliners supplied?

The Superliners in tow can't be totally "inoperable" or they wouldn't be in the consist. I've yet to get clarity on this conundrum with the Superliner operation (as related to the axle count issue).



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/17/23 04:19 by jp1822.

rgzfan Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> CONO is a disgusting train. Employees used to call
> it the "bone train" for all the chicken bones that
> passengers would jam between the seats, between
> the seats and the walls, and leave everywhere. No
> Superliner should have to endure that indignity.

This is definitely what happened, and not at all a contrived story based on hearsay from an isolated incident.

On my one and only trip on the City of New Orleans, disgusting would describe it perfectly.

Ill never take that route again on Amtrak.


portlander Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> rgzfan Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > CONO is a disgusting train. Employees used to
> call
> > it the "bone train" for all the chicken bones
> that
> > passengers would jam between the seats, between
> > the seats and the walls, and leave everywhere.
> No
> > Superliner should have to endure that
> indignity.
>
> This is definitely what happened, and not at all a
> contrived story based on hearsay from an isolated
> incident.