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Moderators, please fold this into the construction thread after April 2.

From Trains

Link Here: Metra station at Homewood, Ill., set for 50-day closure (April 1 to May 20), NO ADA access until June 30

No! You missed why this report was made in the first place. Congress passed a law in 2021 for the FRA, not Amtrak, to make a report for returning to service long distance trains Amtrak had killed since 1971, when Amtrak was started, and future routes the FRA found might be started. I hate to tell y...

While I agree the new seats look uncomfortable as anything, facing seats were a feature of First Class cars from the 1860s to their final withdrawal from service at A-Day. Here is some Pullman Company literature from the 1930s. IMG_4868.jpeg IMG_4868.jpeg IMG_4867.jpeg IMG_4866.jpeg IMG_4865.jpeg

What shops are going to be closed?

I think it was on Jersey Transit that I saw a conductor walk the length of the coach aisle, with both arms extended to the side, causing the seat backs to all swing to the other edge of the bench as he passed, "reversing" the seats. It's nifty for commuter cars but it means the seat bench...

I have to love some of you. If you’d travelled the US by Pullman in the 1920s to 1950s, in a pre streamlined car, SOMEBODY was sitting backwards…generally the person who had the upper berth.

If the issue is Arsenal Bridge, then Amtrak has a real problem.

The mechanism was never designed for 100 ton cars. The foundry at the Arsenal regularly fabricates teeth segments of the gear wheel. It’s a several day process, and the bridge has to stay open until the repair is complete.

I have a Northern California friend, Mr Roger Colton. He recently posted his perceptions of a recent trip on the San Joaquin on book of faces. I have his permission to copy it verbatim Ok, trip report. Now, my first San Joaquin ride was back in the days of ex Southern Pacific FP-7’s along with some ...

That takes care of the IL side. The IA side is beyond the reach of IL.

1) Why isn’t ILDOT talking with Iowa DOT? 2) Has anyone other than Tad thought that maybe Iowa Interstate doesn’t need 60MPH freight, 79MPH passenger track, and thus Amtrak should be on the hook for all costs of upgrade, including building shoo flies to keep the freight moving while the upgrade gets...

You’ll find your answer to this report when you find the legislative foamer staffer who wrote this section. I have to wonder if any congresscritter read it? I don't think the FRA is going above and beyond, but are following the instructions in paragraph (c). SEC. 22214. AMTRAK DAILY LONG-DISTANCE SE...

The crappy customer service (I’ve seen my share too) is first and foremost a consequence of Amtrak being a monopoly. Before Amtrak, ATSF and UP competed to the very end on the Chicago-LA run. As far as the equipment goes, that photo shows a standard passenger car. IIRC French TGVs are articulated. B...

As GBN has said more than once, the people who created Amtrak thought it would be a ramp down over 10 years. They didn’t realize that it would require a political constituency of its own (which it did).

NH2060 wrote: ↑Mon Feb 12, 2024 5:01 pm No way would they give the fluted sided cars a “wrap” repaint like what the smoothsided AIRO trainsets are getting.

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Tad, dining stations are a good solution!

All,

As late as 1953, FRED Harvey operated dining stations for the Santa Fe. Witness the consist list from an ATSF 1953 public timetable.

Witness also the WWII menu for the Los Angeles Harvey House.

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