by Scoring Guy
I know, this doesn't sound like an Amtrak comment, but let me continue and I'll connect the dots:
A couple months ago, the Air Force announced that the B-52 fleet would remain in service for at least 40 more years; as their name indicates, the B-52's are vintage 1952 - that means that they will be a hundred years old by the time they are finally taken out of service (if indeed they are retired).
Today the news reports on the Washington DC Metro collision, have already put the blame on the 15-year old cars. And of course, Amtrak's fleet is mostly older than 15 years.
Many times on this forum, the age of the Amtrak fleet has been looked upon as a problem, but who exactly determines that? After all, a passenger rail car is just a metal box , , , does it just disintegrate after so many years? The B-52's metal airframe is still intact and apparently still strong enough to do the job!
Sure there are parts and systems of Amtrak cars that have to be replaced now and then, but that's also true of the B-52. Why is a heritage car automatically too old? , , , Sure some of it's details are outdated and parts get worn out, but the car itself, , , is it really too old? Virtually everthing Amtrak has, save for maybe a handful of baggage cars, are younger than a B-52. So by the B-52 standard, isn't Amtrak in good shape in this regard?
Would the casualty count in that D.C. Metro crash have been any less, if two brand new trains had collided?
So how old does a passenger rail car have to be, to be too old?
(Thread title edited (spelling) 7-30-09 1033PM CDT
A couple months ago, the Air Force announced that the B-52 fleet would remain in service for at least 40 more years; as their name indicates, the B-52's are vintage 1952 - that means that they will be a hundred years old by the time they are finally taken out of service (if indeed they are retired).
Today the news reports on the Washington DC Metro collision, have already put the blame on the 15-year old cars. And of course, Amtrak's fleet is mostly older than 15 years.
Many times on this forum, the age of the Amtrak fleet has been looked upon as a problem, but who exactly determines that? After all, a passenger rail car is just a metal box , , , does it just disintegrate after so many years? The B-52's metal airframe is still intact and apparently still strong enough to do the job!
Sure there are parts and systems of Amtrak cars that have to be replaced now and then, but that's also true of the B-52. Why is a heritage car automatically too old? , , , Sure some of it's details are outdated and parts get worn out, but the car itself, , , is it really too old? Virtually everthing Amtrak has, save for maybe a handful of baggage cars, are younger than a B-52. So by the B-52 standard, isn't Amtrak in good shape in this regard?
Would the casualty count in that D.C. Metro crash have been any less, if two brand new trains had collided?
So how old does a passenger rail car have to be, to be too old?
(Thread title edited (spelling) 7-30-09 1033PM CDT