Future of Amtrak

News or chat about railroad info that pertains to the entire United States, another state, or country.
NSSD70ACe
The Conrail Guru
Posts: 1084
Joined: Mon Mar 25, 2013 1:34 pm
Location: Bottom of Lake Mead

Future of Amtrak

Unread post by NSSD70ACe »

(Placing in National forum as it pertains to Amtrak as a whole)

Morning folks,

The Rail Passenger Association met with Amtrak CEO Anderson and Chief Commercial Officer Gardner to discuss the future of Amtrak including equipment, long distance trains, and food service.

Currently, Amtrak has no plans to eliminate long distance routes. Anderson said that Amtrak will always have LD trains and that they want to service more Americans, not less, but right now the easiest way to expand is in the corridor market (<600 miles). The long distance network will be determined by Congress.

As for food service: Gardner and Anderson both want to raise the quality of Amtrak’s food and they are prepared to spend more money to meet this goal. They also want at least one hot option and acknowledges that the LSL/CL menus are a “work in progress”. Amtrak is also anxious to get their new diners out of Florida and into service. 11 are currently awaiting replacement parts. Amtrak also is looking at opening the dining car up full time to allow people to eat when they want and going cashless.

New equipment: Amtrak is ready to submit an RFP for the replacement of the Genesis fleet. Anderson and Gardner want motive power that can be produced and put into service quickly. They also plan to submit RFIs for new single level LD equipment and DMUs. Personally, I believe that the Chargers will be the Genesis replacement, as Siemens already has a production line going and the Charger has completed testing already. It’s the fastest way to get what Amtrak wants instead of waiting on EMD, GE, or someone else to design a totally new locomotive, test it, change it, then get it into production. Anderson and Gardner also looked at refurbishing the Superliners, but after looking at the laundry list of items that would be needed to accomplish that, they decided that replacement is the way to go.

Thoughts?

Link: https://www.railpassengers.org/happenin ... line-1068/

EDIT: I forgot that EMD has once again started building passenger locomotives (F125). However, my personal belief still stands, as the F125 hasn’t exactly been flying off the shelves (Metrolink is the only company who has purchased it).
Last edited by NSSD70ACe on Tue Jun 05, 2018 1:48 pm, edited 1 time in total.
:roll:

the contents of the above post are my opinion and mine alone, and do not necessarily reflect the views of my employer.

User avatar
SD80MAC
Ingersoll's Mr. Michigan
Posts: 10431
Joined: Thu Mar 10, 2005 4:59 pm
Location: Grand Rapids

Re: Future of Amtrak

Unread post by SD80MAC »

It all sounds good to me! People are quick to grab their torches and pitchforks in front of Anderson, but I believe he's doing what he thinks is best with the cards he's been dealt. Sometimes it takes a little while for the big picture to come into focus.
"Remember, 4 mph is a couple, 5's a collision!"
http://flickriver.com/photos/conrail680 ... teresting/
Image

NSSD70ACe
The Conrail Guru
Posts: 1084
Joined: Mon Mar 25, 2013 1:34 pm
Location: Bottom of Lake Mead

Re: Future of Amtrak

Unread post by NSSD70ACe »

Amtrak opened an RFP for new locomotives on or about June 1. Apparently, said RFP also included an option to rebuild the P42s and convert them from DC to AC. That RFP has since been closed and removed from the procurement site.

Within the last week, Amtrak has submitted an RFI (Request for Information), asking companies to pitch their DMU products to them in a 90 minute meeting at Amtrak’s headquarters. The criteria for the DMUs are:

1. 79-110 miles per hour (MPH) capable, with provisions for a 125 MPH option for operation on Amtrak’s Northeast Corridor.
2. 85’ maximum length per car
3. 165,000 pounds as maximum weight per car
4. A minimum seating capacity of 60 seats

A second, related RFI will be issued on or about Wednesday, June 27. The post did not specify what that RFI will entail.
:roll:

the contents of the above post are my opinion and mine alone, and do not necessarily reflect the views of my employer.

Post Reply