Sprinter ACS-64 Electric Loco: Siemens.

track workers, couple of grade crossings left , possiblilty of electrification been extended , yard / depot work .

in all those instances a headlight and bell will work. no other needs.

I like the proposed paint scheme too.

But, why bother claiming that a bright coat of paint will increase visibility on a corridor that's almost entirely sealed to vehicle traffic? Sell it like it really is - Amtrak can use a more eye-catching paint scheme to increase its corporate visibility, remind non-riders that it is a viable option, and maybe even get more congressional support by not being just like an airline.

Don't knock the paint job until you see it in service. It's hard to tell if a scheme will work before you actually see it on a real locomotive.

Amtrak's livery is not the most important issue I know, but can we get the passenger cars and Amfleet or pax cars to wear the same livery? Take the Phase 4 blue stripe off the Amfleet and Viewliners. The red stripe on the bottom will connect with locomotives visually. The pax cars should go bare with only a reflective and red stripe on the bottom as they have now.

It appears the loco is not double ended. Is this true?

if its based on the EuroSprinter which is dual cabbed. I cant imagine why they would not make it this way. Having dual cabs on the electrics makes them very versatile and does not cost much more time in daily maintenance and inspections

This paint job stinks? How about the current paint scheme? The AEM7's tend to have a burnt patina after they toast themselves, and the HHP8's are spotless as they're shop queens. Jeez, guys, how about we get some locomotives that work really well? Any paint looks good at 125...

i say who cares what colors it is, lets see amtrak keep the paint clean. If it was up to me I wouldnt put any paint on the front of these engines because its always covered in bugs or debris.

Amtrak7 wrote:It appears the loco is not double ended. Is this true?

They will be dual-cabbed. This is just an "artist's rendering". I heard that at the design meeting many road foreman suggested that the motors are built with bigger side windows like the AEM-7s were because we have very poor visibilty out of the HHP-8s and HSTs. A couple other major differences from the HHP-8s is that the Coaster's doors will enter directly into the cab like the AEM7s. Also, the biggest difference between the current motors and the Coasters is that the Coasters will have a center aisle through the machine room as opposed to an aisle on each side.

As far as the paint job, i like the front, but I agree that we should deviate from the plain old grey. I'd love to see more Red White & Blue, like the older paint jobs. ALso, as Dutch points out, higher visibilty paint won't reduce accidents caused by people not paying attention. Honestly, with the headlight on bright and ditch lights on (The Coasters ditchlights will always be on when the headlight is on whether high or low, unlike the other motors and HSTs.), the paint on the nose won;t be visible. Speaking of visibility, I am hoping the Coasters will have the strobes like the AEM7's, but I doubt they will.

Also, I haven't heard any rumors of the numbering series that will be used on the Coasters, but I doubt they'll be in the 2xx's as the picture shows. Perhaps the 3xx's?

sprinter or coaster ?? something we missed ???

frequentflyer wrote:Amtrak's livery is not the most important issue I know, but can we get the passenger cars and Amfleet or pax cars to wear the same livery? Take the Phase 4 blue stripe off the Amfleet and Viewliners. The red stripe on the bottom will connect with locomotives visually. The pax cars should go bare with only a reflective and red stripe on the bottom as they have now.

I strongly disagree with you here! Why would we remove the Blue? Are you ashamed of the R/W/B? The R/W/B should stay because it's always been on the equipment (except the Acelas), and also it's our country's colors. Wanting to do away with patriotic colors?!? Sounds like something that would be said by the type of person who doesn't think our schools should say the Pledge Of Allegiance.

DutchRailnut wrote:sprinter or coaster ?? something we missed ???

Sorry Dutch, I thought I read or heard the nickname Coaster somewhere.

frequentflyer wrote:Amtrak's livery is not the most important issue I know, but can we get the passenger cars and Amfleet or pax cars to wear the same livery? Take the Phase 4 blue stripe off the Amfleet and Viewliners. The red stripe on the bottom will connect with locomotives visually. The pax cars should go bare with only a reflective and red stripe on the bottom as they have now.

I highly doubt that our opinion matters as to what the color scheme is. And really does it matter? The important thing is that the tired and not so reliable equipment is going to be replaced.
We should be thankful that they found a way to do this. Whatever color or colors they maybe.

Fan Railer wrote:No updates for a while, so I thought I'd post this:
http://www.amtrak.com/servlet/BlobServe ... 081511.pdf

Funny to read about the improvements in Boston. Yes, the car-wash works great....well, the few weeks that it was open. Problems with brushes breaking locomotive mirrors and now the doors won't open......guess they should've re-habbed the doors too.