Amtrak Vermonter / Montrealer

asull85 wrote:57's equipment is still in Brattleboro. Engine 10 suffered significant damage and cannot be moved. The rescue shuttle returned to Springfield.

How was it damaged? Was there a collision?

Ridgefielder wrote:

asull85 wrote:57's equipment is still in Brattleboro. Engine 10 suffered significant damage and cannot be moved. The rescue shuttle returned to Springfield.

How was it damaged? Was there a collision?

See upthread. This is probably the one whose plow partly broke off ("twisted under the pilot") after heavy snow and downed tree.

Arlington wrote:

Ridgefielder wrote:

asull85 wrote:57's equipment is still in Brattleboro. Engine 10 suffered significant damage and cannot be moved. The rescue shuttle returned to Springfield.

How was it damaged? Was there a collision?

See upthread. This is probably the one whose plow partly broke off ("twisted under the pilot") after heavy snow and downed tree.

9641 was on Wednesday, 10 was Thursday. Neither one will be road worthy for a while. Engine 10 hit two very large trees in Brattleboro. 9641 hit several crossings packed woth heavy, wet snow and then a tree.

Has anyone got video to share yet of the test trains so far running on the new track? From news articles I have read the tests are being conducted at 45 MPH right now soon to be up to 80 MPH.

9641 hit several crossings packed with heavy, wet snow and then a tree.

They drive the way I do. My car is in the shop at this very moment to have its lower bumper cover replaced after I hit a frozen snowball the size of a melon. The snow last week was very saturated and then froze like concrete. I always thought that trains were an irresistible force, unbreakable, but apparently not.

Will things get better when there are more trains on the line to dash through the snow before it gets so deep or freezes so hard?

Need to upgrade the equipment on the route perhaps? :D

asull85 wrote:

Arlington wrote:

Ridgefielder wrote:

asull85 wrote:57's equipment is still in Brattleboro. Engine 10 suffered significant damage and cannot be moved. The rescue shuttle returned to Springfield.

How was it damaged? Was there a collision?

See upthread. This is probably the one whose plow partly broke off ("twisted under the pilot") after heavy snow and downed tree.

9641 was on Wednesday, 10 was Thursday. Neither one will be road worthy for a while. Engine 10 hit two very large trees in Brattleboro. 9641 hit several crossings packed woth heavy, wet snow and then a tree.

I saw a heavily damaged cab control car in Amtrak's New Haven yard on Monday afternoon. I could image that this is car 9641. Hope the engineer is okay since it looked like the engineers compartment was crushed by the impact with the tree.

Here are a few notes from this evening's meeting of the Passenger Rail Advisory Committee in Northampton.

An officer from the Amtrak Police Department spoke at length about steps that are being taken to educate the public (school children in particular) prior to the re-start of Amtrak service on the Conn River Line. Amtrak officers from as far away as Boston and Providence have been brought in to increase patrols along this right of way.

This YouTube video is being used in the local high schools as part of the outreach program:
"Cheating Death: Grade Crossing Awareness"
http://youtu.be/SyAEGxJ3f4w

::

A representative from the local congressman's office then provided an update on the new service.

All indications point to a service start day of Monday December 29th.
The schedule and fare information should be available by the end of the week.

An "inaugural train" is being planned for the elected officials and media. Details are yet to be determined but they are trying to schedule it for the week before the service starts.

::

The executive director of the Pioneer Valley Planning Commission (PVPC) then spoke.

Although the project is "substantially completed" they will use all of 2015 to work though a long list of "punch list" items up and down the line.
No additional passenger trains on the line are planned for 2015 due to the "punch list" work.

The PVPC had early on considered extending some of Amtrak Shuttle trains to Greenfield but it was found to be prohibitively expensive to have Amtrak provide this service.
They are looking at using unused MBTA equipment to provide additional service between Springfield and Greenfield, but the earliest that this might happen is 2016-2017.
Another option being looked at is the extension of some of CT's Hartford Line trains up to Greenfield at some point in the future.

::

There was an interesting discussion regarding ridership on the Vermonter once the service is moved to the Conn River Line.
Someone made a statement that they project a 30% increase is passengers.
Many people felt that there will be a considerable number of passengers coming up the line to visit Northampton as a destination, in addition to local people heading South.
A representative from Greenfield said that Deerfield Academy wants to run a shuttle buses to meet the train so that prospective students who visit the campus can take the train rather than drive.

BenH wrote: I saw a heavily damaged cab control car in Amtrak's New Haven yard on Monday afternoon. I could image that this is car 9641. Hope the engineer is okay since it looked like the engineers compartment was crushed by the impact with the tree.

Thats the 9639, damaged in the collision with a wood chipper and tree truck in June. It will be scrapped at some point. 9641 must have immediately gone into the shop as it is back out on a shuttle set with a new plow and other components.

"Efforts are also underway to restore service to Montreal.

Delabruere says both countries are currently working on a treaty that would allow the train to continue to Montreal for customs clearance without making a border stop.

He says the treaty is a major hurdle facing Montreal service, but it could be settled early in the new year.

Other, less significant issues will also need to be resolved. There is no specific timeline for the resumption of Montreal service."

http://digital.vpr.net/post/vermonter-r ... ord-levels" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

No Conn River schedules in the Amtrak computer yet but fares appeared by this morning to Greenfield (city code GFD) and Northampton (NHT).

BM6569 wrote:"Efforts are also underway to restore service to Montreal.

Delabruere says both countries are currently working on a treaty that would allow the train to continue to Montreal for customs clearance without making a border stop.

He says the treaty is a major hurdle facing Montreal service, but it could be settled early in the new year.

Other, less significant issues will also need to be resolved. There is no specific timeline for the resumption of Montreal service."

http://digital.vpr.net/post/vermonter-r ... ord-levels" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Once the treaty is in place I think the rest of the project should actually be completed in relatively short order. I won't be surprised if Vermont pushes to have the Montrealer restored in 2016. That would give officials about a year and a half to build the new pre-clearance facility and also allow one summer's worth of trackwork to be done on the remaining mileage to Montreal.

gokeefe wrote:

BM6569 wrote:"Efforts are also underway to restore service to Montreal.

Delabruere says both countries are currently working on a treaty that would allow the train to continue to Montreal for customs clearance without making a border stop.

He says the treaty is a major hurdle facing Montreal service, but it could be settled early in the new year.

Other, less significant issues will also need to be resolved. There is no specific timeline for the resumption of Montreal service."

http://digital.vpr.net/post/vermonter-r ... ord-levels" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Once the treaty is in place I think the rest of the project should actually be completed in relatively short order. I won't be surprised if Vermont pushes to have the Montrealer restored in 2016. That would give officials about a year and a half to build the new pre-clearance facility and also allow one summer's worth of trackwork to be done on the remaining mileage to Montreal.

Is it good for Vermont to go to Montreal? If the train sells-out with through riders, less people will be using the train to go to Vermont.

zerovanity59 wrote:

gokeefe wrote:

BM6569 wrote:"Efforts are also underway to restore service to Montreal.

Delabruere says both countries are currently working on a treaty that would allow the train to continue to Montreal for customs clearance without making a border stop.

He says the treaty is a major hurdle facing Montreal service, but it could be settled early in the new year.

Other, less significant issues will also need to be resolved. There is no specific timeline for the resumption of Montreal service."

http://digital.vpr.net/post/vermonter-r ... ord-levels" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Once the treaty is in place I think the rest of the project should actually be completed in relatively short order. I won't be surprised if Vermont pushes to have the Montrealer restored in 2016. That would give officials about a year and a half to build the new pre-clearance facility and also allow one summer's worth of trackwork to be done on the remaining mileage to Montreal.

Is it good for Vermont to go to Montreal? If the train sells-out with through riders, less people will be using the train to go to Vermont.

That's not a problem anyone would really classify as a problem. If it sells out you first add more cars to the train, then add more train trips. Vermont would be ecstatic if demand crests like that. Demand is what nets better service sooner.

F-line to Dudley via Park wrote:

zerovanity59 wrote:Is it good for Vermont to go to Montreal? If the train sells-out with through riders, less people will be using the train to go to Vermont.

That's not a problem anyone would really classify as a problem. If it sells out you first add more cars to the train, then add more train trips. Vermont would be ecstatic if demand crests like that. Demand is what nets better service sooner.

I'll double down on that one and add the following:

Due to the addition of new bi level rolling stock in 2015 Amtrak is going to have more than enough single level cars on hand to service virtually any level of ridership on the Vermonter/Montrealer. Sell outs (other than Arlington's "one seat remaining") will be a thing of the past on regional services in the East that use traditional engine and trailing car consists.