Wisconsin Talgos Disposition - MI and now Pacific Surfliner

Matt Johnson/The EGE - thanks.

Wanted to repost this from another thread for those who are interested in the Talgo story and might enjoy it:

April 1, 2014 - In a surprising development that many are calling brilliant, Talgo has retrofitted one of it's orphaned trainset with hydraulic lifters located within the vertical suspension arms. The modification allows the entire train to rise up to meet high-level platform heights on the Northeast Corridor. After departing each station the entire train lowers down to its normal height to take full advantage of its passive tilting suspension system on the twisty shoreline route.

An announced lease deal allows Amtrak to test the new equipment for a six month period for the cost of $1, in hopes that the agency will purchase similar new high-speed equipment for its new Acela trains. Since the Talgo equipment is shorter in length than traditional cars, future cars will be wider at 11 feet creating the widest most comfortable railcar to ever travel in North America. This gives Talgo the unique ability to match the width of existing Chinese high-speed railcars which is not possible by other bidders. In this way one type of equipment could be used for both the new California High Speed Rail project and Amtrak resulting in a great cost savings.

Talgo plans to build high-capacity coaches, business-class cars and cafe cars for regional routes. Also planned are baggage, diners, lounges, and sleepers for long-distance services. The additional width will create the biggest most comfortable roomettes and the widest dining cars ever operated by Amtrak allowing the most spacious comfortable long-distance cars in US history.

Talgo claims that a newly equipped Talgo Silver Service between New York City and Miami could operate on a less than 24-hour schedule along the Florida East Coast Railway leaving New York City at 4 PM every day and arriving in Miami by 12 noon the next day.

This is truly a classic lemonade out of lemons story

That is pretty awesome. This would also make low level platforms and high level platforms accessible on the northeast corridor.

jackintosh11 wrote:That is pretty awesome. This would also make low level platforms and high level platforms accessible on the northeast corridor.

Yes because it's so simple mechanically and easier than traps on the stairs.

Greg Moore wrote:

jackintosh11 wrote:That is pretty awesome. This would also make low level platforms and high level platforms accessible on the northeast corridor.

Yes because it's so simple mechanically and easier than traps on the stairs.

Although it is more mechanically complex, traps on stairs pose an issue for wheelchair passengers. This is the first design that I've seen that allows wheelchair access from both high and low level platforms.

bostontrainguy wrote: April 1, 2014 - In a surprising development that many are calling brilliant, Talgo has retrofitted it's orphaned trainset with hydraulic lifters .....

This is truly a classic lemonade out of lemons story

I hope that scholars of innovation can someday soon examine the April 1st effect. It appears that a disproportionate number of revolutionary inventions are announced on April 1st every year. The phenomena has always stumped me....

jackintosh11 wrote:

Greg Moore wrote:

jackintosh11 wrote:That is pretty awesome. This would also make low level platforms and high level platforms accessible on the northeast corridor.

Yes because it's so simple mechanically and easier than traps on the stairs.

Although it is more mechanically complex, traps on stairs pose an issue for wheelchair passengers. This is the first design that I've seen that allows wheelchair access from both high and low level platforms.

Take a look at low-level platforms, you'll see they're equipped with wheelchair lifts.

Again, let's not take a joke and try to make too much of it.

Bob Roberts wrote:

bostontrainguy wrote: April 1, 2014 - In a surprising development that many are calling brilliant, Talgo has retrofitted it's orphaned trainset with hydraulic lifters .....

This is truly a classic lemonade out of lemons story

I hope that scholars of innovation can someday soon examine the April 1st effect. It appears that a disproportionate number of revolutionary inventions are announced on April 1st every year. The phenomena has always stumped me....

Like a kneeling bus in reverse. Makes a lot of sense to me , by the time you look at the cost of converting routes that include the NEC, to high level platforms.

A transition Talgo car would be much simpler

Matt Johnson wrote:A transition Talgo car would be much simpler

Actually, all joking aside, the car you show does function as a transition car- I've seen schematics. The door on the short end is regular Talgo-floor height, and the door on the tall end is regular Amtrak floor height. Same is true on the new Talgos without the fin.

"2 high-speed train sets built for Wisconsin set to leave Milwaukee"
More speculation that they may be going to the Wolverine Service:
http://www.jsonline.com/news/milwaukee/ ... 51491.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Awesome, I'd take a trip out there just to take a ride on the Talgos at 110 mph! Hope it happens.

Suburban Station wrote:

Vincent wrote:The trainsets are brand new and the maintenance requirements should be minimal. With only 2 trainsets to maintain and Michigan footing the bills, I would expect some sort of temporary maintenance facility will be built in either Pontiac or Detroit if the trainsets are sold. In 2018, Michigan could recoup some of their investment by selling the trainsets to WA (hopefully to cover the Seattle to Spokane route!).

why would they want to sell the sets? in 2018 MI will still be a higher speed railroad than WA will it not? what sort of trip time impact is there from tilt?

The tilting saves at least 30 minutes on the Seattle-Portland run. The four Talgo Cascades make it in 4 hours, 4:05, or 4:10 with the savings. By comparison, the Coast Starlight's scheduled time is 4 hours 50 minutes.

I'm not sure that all the Cascades' time savings is attributable to tilting, but on that route, featuring "hundreds of curves" as a WashDOT official described it, clearly the tilting is crucial.

Volks, at this time, it appears that Talgo is looking for a more economical means to store their inventory than leasing the manufacturing facility. Any economic development agency, State or local as the case may be, would like to have that space used as intended - at that usually translates into JOBS - well paying at that.

This further affirms the 'Hell on Wheels' business model I first suggested at this Forum some five years ago.

This is not to say that these trains will see revenue service on the Michigan routes - even though so far as I'm concerned, such would be a waste of resources. Michigan is party to the 'Midwest bi-level' equipment order, which is a-building (the Nippon Sharyu plant is clearly visible from I-88 at Rochelle), and I'd like to think there is another three or so years of economic life to the Horizon fleet (they're really 'not all that bad'). Should that initiative move forth, considerable $$$ would be required to train Amtrak Shop and Operating employees on this 'two of a kind' equipment. While Talgo has relied upon contracted-out maintenance for the Cascades equipment at Seattle, I'd place my bets that no party is about to propose such in the highly Unionized work environment here in Chicago. While of late, Michigan has become more Union-hostile, where would such a contract maintenance facility be built?

Finally, wherever Talgo chooses to store their inventory until its disposition (really; 'Up the St Lawrence and out to Gaspe' might end up being the case), I can only hope such is secure, as we need not have this Talgo equipment become TAGlo.