MARC New Multilevels

Yes, last Friday was the inaugural run on the Brunswick Line. It started a day earlier on me by surprise. LOL

The car is noisier than the bi-levels, must be less sound deadening material.

Also, there are no overhead storage areas. Both levels seem to have a lower ceiling than with the bi-levels, so I guess they didn't have enough room left for the storage.

Lastly, the new multi-levels haven't been seen on the B-Line? Looks like we only rated 1 day's usage, then off somewhere else??? B-Line is back to mostly single-levels.

Train setup was one Kawasaki cab car and five Bombardier multi-levels.

realtype wrote:Does anyone know if the new cars have been certified to run at 125mph on the Penn Line?

Not as of yet. They aren't even certified for 100mph.

my notes say 5 132 seat cars with washrooms and 34 142 seat cars without but Wikipedia just lists 34 coaches 8000 to 8033. Which is correct? If it is Wikipedia which of 8000 to 8033 will have 132 seats plus washroom?

(15 127 seat cab cars 8045 to 8059(

Martin Baumann wrote:my notes say 5 132 seat cars with washrooms and 34 142 seat cars without but Wikipedia just lists 34 coaches 8000 to 8033. Which is correct? If it is Wikipedia which of 8000 to 8033 will have 132 seats plus washroom?

(15 127 seat cab cars 8045 to 8059(

My fault. I had edited and overhauled the entire "Equipment" section of the wikipedia article, but I about forgot the 5 bathroom trailers. I had calculated the car numbers based on the car numbers currently delivered:

8001-8008
8046-8048

Since I'm not sure what the numbering is for the bathroom trailers I'll leave the car numbering section blank for now.

Does anyone know when the new Multilevel cars will RETURN to service? This is ridiculous.

What was your impression of the seat comfort of the new cars?
IMHO...the original Kawasakis are some of the most comfortable commuter rail cars I've ever been in, including European trains. (The Seattle "Sounders" which I rode a couple times when VRE had them were close, too.) If you compare the non-reclined positions, they were in fact more comfortable than an Amfleet I...better ergonomics. But that might vary on the user. The VRE Kawasakis are much worse IMHO, I always avoid those when I see them in a consist. As for VRE's current cars...when I sat in one at Train Day, I thought it was like a troop transport level of comfort. If that! Sorry, don't mean to diss them but that was how bad they seemed.

dt_rt40 wrote:What was your impression of the seat comfort of the new cars?
IMHO...the original Kawasakis are some of the most comfortable commuter rail cars I've ever been in, including European trains. (The Seattle "Sounders" which I rode a couple times when VRE had them were close, too.) If you compare the non-reclined positions, they were in fact more comfortable than an Amfleet I...better ergonomics. But that might vary on the user. The VRE Kawasakis are much worse IMHO, I always avoid those when I see them in a consist. As for VRE's current cars...when I sat in one at Train Day, I thought it was like a troop transport level of comfort. If that! Sorry, don't mean to diss them but that was how bad they seemed.

Well, having ridden the NJT versions, maybe I can be of assistance. Seat comfort is good, however the quarters are a bit tight on a packed train, watch your head when you step up to go onto your seat on the lower level or you will bang it.. Hard. The ride can be a bit tipsy on the upper level going through interlockings and the like, say for example through DC Station, to translate it over to your terms, you may notice a good bit of lateral sway. i personally prefer lower level as the ride is calmer down there. However, you can tell that these things were designed for the NEC, because when youre on board one at 90 some odd mph down the NEC, the ride tightens up very nicely. Now, i have no idea regarding the accommodations on a MARC coach, but compared to an NJT Comet, you dont have as much room to move around. The leg room is not dreadful, but a bit less than I prefer, and im not all that tall '5 8". If you dont mind slightly tight quarters, and want a calmer ride, I recommend the lower level, if you want more headroom, but are willing to make a trade for a busier ride through interlockings and such, go upper. If I had to sum it up, they are nice cars, and the NJT versions have been doing us well for years now.

An update from the MTA regarding the new Bombardier multilevels:

"We have taken delivery of some of the new bi-level cars, some of which are currently stored in the Brunswick Yard, Riverside Yard, and at our Martins facility. Initially, we were hoping that the cars would be put into service in August, then it got moved to September, and we are now in October because the cars had to go through the testing and training phase first. Once the testing was completed, we needed to make some minor adjustments and modifications to the cars before we could place them in service. This has all been done and we are now waiting for the FRA to sign off on the work before they can be released for service. The latest word on the new cars is that we expect to have them operational within the next week or two."

This is in response to an inquiry I made yesterday requesting a status update on the new cars. Now that the gallery cars are gone, trains on the Brunswick Line are nearly all composed of just single level cars and are experiencing overcrowding.

Excellent news RealType.

This Thursday morning I saw 2 new M/Ls hooked up to 2 old B/Ls on a staging sidetrack just outside Union Station this morning. I took that as a good sign, then read your posting.

And yes, the Brunswick trains have been very overcrowded for too long.

Peace!

HopFest96 wrote:Excellent news RealType.

This Thursday morning I saw 2 new M/Ls hooked up to 2 old B/Ls on a staging sidetrack just outside Union Station this morning. I took that as a good sign, then read your posting.

And yes, the Brunswick trains have been very overcrowded for too long.

Peace!

Yeah, I saw them as well last Wednesday (8048 and 8004 I believe).

There is a long line of the multilevels in Riverside Yard, I saw them from the highway over the weekend.

Saw a photo of one of these things in one of the train magazines. All I can say is enjoy the Kawasaki cars, because these cars are and will be much less comfortable all around. Bombardier products, while built tough, don't quite ride as good as Kawasaki cars overall.

Two multilevel cars on one of the side tracks at Union Station, as seen from a red line train this morning. Just barely got the shot.

jcepler1 wrote:Two multilevel cars on one of the side tracks at Union Station, as seen from a red line train this morning. Just barely got the shot.

Looks like they're finally entering service. Hopefully they're cleared for 125mph on the Penn Line.

Thanks for the update and the photo!