mtuandrew wrote: ↑Wed Sep 25, 2019 4:05 pm
I’m not sure why the Ultra Domes are coming up in conversation here. Several of us were discussing a single-level dome as are used by VIA, and as were once used by the Seaboard Air Line Railroad. These would fit within NYP and the North River Tunnels, let alone Chicago.
I'm glad you said that as I'm not sure why the Ultra domes are in question, either. My reference to the new Rocky domes from Stadler is only to illustrate that (a) they will will open a production line for a small series like 5-10; (b) they are willing to be responsive to custom needs within reason, such as single-level. Stadler is a strong second behind Siemens for the US market right now. They are making quite a few cars for our market and have a plant somewhere like SLC. So far they have not had any trouble with crash testing or initial reliability that I am aware of.
This is really important because part of making Amtrak (or other passenger trains) a truly viable transportation asset is not messing around with delivery dates or initial reliability issues. Disasters like Acela, DE/DM, et al just make it looks like a food's errand (foamer's errand?) and drive away regular passengers.
There's a concept called "friction" with regard to websites. It basically means "how hard are you going to make it to do business with a website?". If you make it hard, people go away frustrated and don't come back. That applies to transportation as well. The more PITA a service is, the more people stay away and tell their friends. I can't tell you how many people in my parents' generation in South Bend remember the beat up orange South Shore cars and the Penn Central and still won't go back 40 years later.
The new Acela: It's not Aveliable.