Ridgefielder wrote:Problem with running the Ethan Allen and Vermonter as one train looping through Essex Junction is you wind up with at least one Dual Mode stuck in New Haven, where it's not needed.
That could be accomplished by an engine change at ALB. The Adirondack changes engines at ALB, the Maple Leaf may as well. The LSL drops its dual mode and picks up the power from the Boston section (straight-up P42s). There's only 18 dual modes so keeping them as close to the ALB-NYP corridor where they're required is critical. Right now the EAE doesn't change engines, but RUD isn't "too far" from ALB. That could change when the extension from RUD to BUR/BTV happens. Amtrak may want to keep its dual modes closer to base, requiring an engine change at ALB for the EAE anyway.
The wye in Rutland is a possibility. I was on a Mass Bay RRE excursion from Burlington to Rutland a few years back and they permitted passengers to remain on board while the train was wyed. Whether or not that becomes a regular occurrence on the EAE remains to be seen. Would make sense as to why they'd want to turn the train up in B-town somewhere.
As for riding backwards, that problem could be overcome with what the Vermonter did from 4/95 until 12/14 - half the seats in the car face one way, the other half face the other. It is kind of ironic, how one Vermont service train went from a reverse move to a straight-on move (Vermonter), while another is being extended in the near future, facing the reverse situation (straight-on to a reverse move)... unless the Rutland wye is utilized.