Amtrak adds Acela RT - Nightly Premium Service

[Arlington]

Is there a thread to discuss how it is that 44 years after the Penn Central merged with the New Haven that's there's (apparently) no way to crew a thru-NYP [train] from, say, BOS to PHL or NHV to WAS?

[theozno]

DAMMIT!
all I ever wanted was one that connected to 66/67... not going to happen

[ThirdRail7]

2173 is being retimed in July. It will depart BOS 15" earlier and arrive WAS 20" earlier while overtaking 175 at PHL.

[Arlington]

2173 is being retimed in July. It will depart BOS 15" earlier and arrive WAS 20" earlier while overtaking 175 at PHL.

Is 2173--or other retimed/off-peak Acela service--the thing that has caused Acela ridership to explode in NYP-BOS and NYP-PVD? (both up ~+25% May '14 vs May '13). The performance report partly attributes this to May '13 having been depressed by the Metro North derailment, but it can't account for it all.

So, to supplement the MNRR-bounceback theory, here are some other theories:
- 2173's retiming is working
- Is there some other Acela frequency increase or re-timing we missed?
- Amtrak is selling as "local" NYP-BOS/PVD seats that previously went to BOS-PHL (as this market faded, due to JetBlue/USAir pressure, they better-than-backfilled by offering them to the local market?). Backfilling on the northside has worked, but the NYP-PHL has been harder to fill?

Either way, growth like +25% in markets like PVD/BOS-NYP, It seems that it might be time to add another off peak Acela pairing. This would also be the kind of time and train that should slip in a NLC.

Something like an Acela southbound from BOS at 6:20p (and maybe a stop at NLC) terminating at NYP c. 9:45p, and northbound from NYP at 8pm (with a stop in NLC) arriving BOS at 11:45pm (and push the regionals around a little bit to space it all better)


Here is the May 2014 performance report that shows big growth in Acela, (~+11%) caused by big growth on the northside

Acela
Though positively impacted by last year’s derailment, much of Acela’s growth continues to be in markets north of New York. May total ridership in this segment was +25% vs last May, with ridership between New York and the Boston area stations up was +27%. New York-Providence ridership was 23% ahead of last year. May FY14 ridership on the southend was +5% vs year ago with the top market in this segment (NY-DC) +8% vs last year (Philadelphia-DC ridership was also up 8%). Acela first class ridership was +12% vs last year. Business class ridership was up 11%. There were eight days in May where Acela recorded more than 14,000 trips…

Emphasis mine. Quotes are from: http://www.amtrak.com/ccurl/848/146/Amt ... y-2014.pdf" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Suburban Station]

A good idea, but we'd need something back. For all Arlington and Afigatts numbers, 2175 isn't really desirable. That train is a throw away for balancing 2128. My prediction is eventually 2128 will make a stop at MET and 2175 will make a stop at BWI. Otherwise, I see them tanking (except on MON and FRI) and dragging 198 down with them just like before.

While this may have been the theory, 2175 is the fastest growing Acela so far this year (followed by 2128). i can't say as I agree with your analysis to begin with since 2175 has a very desirable departure time for anyone travelling from boston/providence to NYP/PHL/WAS. Hopefully this will embolden Amtrak to extend another train northbound (2124?) and add another southbound to NYP to balance it out.

Is 2173--or other retimed/off-peak Acela service--the thing that has caused Acela ridership to explode in NYP-BOS and NYP-PVD? (both up ~+25% May '14 vs May '13). The performance report partly attributes this to May '13 having been depressed by the Metro North derailment, but it can't account for it all.

perhaps you meant 2175?

[Arlington]

2175 is the fastest growing Acela so far this year (followed by 2128). i can't say as I agree with your analysis to begin with since 2175 has a very desirable departure time for anyone travelling from boston/providence to NYP/PHL/WAS.

Thanks for this insight. This is what I was hoping was the cause when I specified 2173. I was fishing for some sense that it was "shoulder-of-day" growth that was powering northside growth, and am happy to learn that it is (and won't question where you get your numbers )

Hopefully this will embolden Amtrak to extend another train northbound (2124?) and add another southbound to NYP to balance it out.

That's what I'm hoping too. For every "last hour" train that does well--and it sounds like that's what's happening-- its worth probing the market with another train further out of the peak ('cause its trainset is probably sitting idle in Queens or Dorchester as it is). If it stops at NLC, maybe ConnDOT can lean on all the other Connecticut stakeholders to get it done. My sense is that the entrenched bridge-boat-commuter positions are mostly dug in about who-gets-what in the 8am to 6pm range. Later Acelas have the virtue (I'd hope) of asking for something (off-hours) that people will be much more flexible on.

[Suburban Station]

even with 2175 the last acela of the night is now 520 pm so theres plenty of room for growth out of boston id imagine...even one more northbound out of washington might be worth a shot.

[ThirdRail7]

Oooooh Arlington! Starting later this month, 2173 will begin stopping at Metropark and will drop BWI while 2175 will add Trenton. I'm not sure how Trenton got thrown in the mix but someone obviously thinks it is a good idea.

Personally, I'd like to see 2175 add MET. Ideally, they'd both make BWI and MET.

[Arlington]

I like Trenton and Metropark because they are great "hit them where they ain't" places that the airlines serve badly.

There's just a lot of people along the Garden State Parkway (and out near Red Bank) for whom Metropark is their best option (without having to press all the way into EWR/NWK), and plenty of corporate HQs around there.

Trenton gives good access to the #4 and #8 richest per-capita counties in the USA (Hunterdon to the North and Somerset to the Northeast...not particularly populous, but rich.) and also Princeton (which shares Mercer Co. with Trenton)

Here's a plot of Fortune 1000 co. hqs. (that is a little unfair to trenton since two dots, Covance and NRG, are located in Princeton but covered by the "N" in "New Jersey" in this view:



BWI gives you the #3 and #18 richest (Howard and Anne Arundel), but NEC air service from BWI airport is vigorously competitive. It is very hard to know if the answer is to go to less competitive places (like MET and TTN) or to add frequencies at BWI (or pull down)

[Edit: I think it'd be a great way to "spend" the NJ minutes of speed improvements to actually add stops at TTN and MET at certain hours of the day]

[ThirdRail7]

For all of the board members that love to play fleet manager and financier, let's post a hypothetical, of course.

As previously mentioned, the Acela sets are on their last leg. You've added a new, non stop round trip. Various disruptions and the need for more equipment has pressed your premium product into much needed, added capacity.

However, time is catching up and failures are increasing since the equipment is older, prone to failure and needs shop time to eliminate runnning repairs.

You also may want to extand another night train to BOS, (come on 2174...as mentioned earlier in the thread!!!!)

As such, you need to cancel one to WAS to balance the fleet. You also may want to cut another round trip so your fleet has time at night for repairs, so it is available on weekends (when you used to perform more of the major repairs.)

In my eyes, you extend 2122 to BOS, kill 2175 at NYP (that currently operates NYP-WAS at 905pm) with through passengers to 187 (currently a 910pm departure at NYP). While I'd like to bring back a train that operates BOS-NYP around 8ish ( similar to 2191/2195) to close the gap between 169 (645pm) and 67(9:30pm), it defeats the purpose of giving your fleet time for maintenance. I'd also eliminate the two nonstop trains between NYP-WAS but you know that will never fly. Some may lock on to 2128 but I'm in favor of keeping 2128 as a shield for 90 and 66, which often operate late.

Perhaps the 7pm and I would be stuck for a southbound outside of 2175.

Let's here your service plan.

[Tadman]

This leads to a concept I've alluded to in the past - why does a premium service that doesn't need 150mph equipment have to be run with Acela? The traveling public doesn't know an Amfleet from a Horizon from a wheelbarrow. They get on without seeing the power, and notice the interior immediately.

It would probably work just as well to have ten very clean amfleets with a bright red window band and a modified interior featuring "Amtrak platinum seats". If it goes the distance on time and provides very good service, nobody will say a thing.

[Greg Moore]

I have to disagree. Many folks in the NEC know "Acela" and know that speed is part of the premium service.
And folks want more speed.

[Arlington]

I have to disagree. Many folks in the NEC know "Acela" and know that speed is part of the premium service.
And folks want more speed.

I agree:
WAS-NYP they've learned to be picky, even though both Acela and NER can do a good job of beating flying.

NYP-BOS the trip-time differences make a big difference in whether the Acela is near-competitive with flying (depends on where in NYC my trip originates) or if Amtrak NERs are just out-competing the bus (and not air competitive, in my opinion)