Metroliner cab safety

It has been a recurring topic on these boards about the safety of the Metroliner cabs, particularly in crashes and frontal impacts. Being designed and built as high speed MUs in the late 1960s, the Metroliners were obviously built to meet or exceed the 800,000 lb end load (adapted by the ICC in 1956 for new passenger MUs from the minimum requirement for passenger cars enacted by the U.S. Postal Department for RPO service). Since the Metroliners were built to meet the 800,000 lb end load, they would comply with present day rules. But why is there an issue over their crashworthiness? Was it because being high speed MUs, they were never intended for grade crossings? Or is the concern about something like general cab car crashworthiness such is with the side end door and bulkhead, as seen on MARC (7752, Silver Spring) and NJT (Comet II 5146, Secaucus)?

biggest concern is very narrow exit from cab , the 800 000 lbs crush load strength has nothing to do with crash worthiness but with strength of under frame and how much car can deform.

https://www.pinterest.com/pin/465067098992404800/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Where is the exit in that photo?

Behind engineer after he turns his seat 180 degrees.
as you can see, no diving out of way when danger is imminent.

I ran them between New York and New Haven. The cabs were like sitting in a broom closet without the brooms.
Noel Weaver

Noel Weaver wrote:I ran them between New York and New Haven. The cabs were like sitting in a broom closet without the brooms.

Must been the one daily NHV-WAS roundtrip in the 1970s (an attempt for Metroliner to invade into Fairfield County's high-end business market).

These cabs are horrible. I am on the smaller end of people sizes among my co workers. I am 5'7 and 150lbs. I have issues getting out of these cabs. The seats are not all mounted the same. They are super uncomfortable. The doors to the coach body often jam, so we run with them open because thats yet another precious handful of seconds between life and death. These cars need to go. Either that, or they need to make it a full width cab and get rid of the whole phone booth setup. The front end doors are sealed up. The cars never get used for pass thru service. They should weld the whole front together and make the cab across, with two seats side by side and storage for crew items. IF they did this, we might feel a little better about it. For now, we run them with the intentions that we may have to bail at any time. A lot can happen very quickly at 125mph

They seem like they were designed to make GG1 engineers feel at home in the cab!

So if the exit is behind you, where does it exit to, I guess the right-hand side of the vestibule?

no vestibule on front end to speak of, only on firemans side next to cab.

Its a zig zag to get out, first you have to go back from the seat, then to the left into the vestibule and then you need to open the door into the coach body.

I've noticed on some of these cars the "pass through" door appears to have been changed on the front. It no longer has the outer frame/bellows to allow for connecting to another coach. It's been replaced be a flat panel that appears to be welded onto the front.

Are the doors being removed altogether?

you observed correctly.

The Ex-Metroliner Cab Cars will be retired in a few years, as part of the plan to retire all of the Amcans. The cab cars are very old.

The doors have NOT been removed, The plate goes over top of it, and the door is still behind it. Creating an impossible window of vision thru the middle. Dirt and water gets inside and nobody can clean it since the doors are welded shut.