Siemens Venture Single Level Cars for CA/IL/Midwest

Moved the above posts from the Amfleet replacement to the Siemens Single Level topic.

Is the plan to retire Surfliner and Cali cars or augment them? And if there is a bifurcated fleet, will the hump on the Charger be kept? The cute rendering above conveniently forgets the hump on the chargers.

I believe that the plan is augmentation, so as to retire the ex-NJ comets/arrows and return any amfleets/horizons/superliners to the national fleet

Car #SIIX9024 is in Boston for the week for testing

CSRR573 wrote: ↑Tue Apr 28, 2020 6:26 pm Car #SIIX9024 is in Boston for the week for testing

There's a stretch of 150 MPH territory between Canton and S. Attleboro for a distance. Might the car be up there for testing at that speed?

Rockingham Racer wrote: ↑Wed Apr 29, 2020 1:41 am

CSRR573 wrote: ↑Tue Apr 28, 2020 6:26 pm Car #SIIX9024 is in Boston for the week for testing

There's a stretch of 150 MPH territory between Canton and S. Attleboro for a distance. Might the car be up there for testing at that speed?

Not with those engines. I don't believe they are expected to run at more than 125 anyway.

bostontrainguy wrote: ↑Wed Apr 29, 2020 7:42 am

Rockingham Racer wrote: ↑Wed Apr 29, 2020 1:41 am

CSRR573 wrote: ↑Tue Apr 28, 2020 6:26 pm Car #SIIX9024 is in Boston for the week for testing

There's a stretch of 150 MPH territory between Canton and S. Attleboro for a distance. Might the car be up there for testing at that speed?

Not with those engines. I don't believe they are expected to run at more than 125 anyway.

I think the ACS-64 can go up to 135. The Charger can go up to 125. Who knows, maybe these cars can run up to 110 or even 125 on the corridors they might be on, especially throughout some of the straightaways of the California countryside.

I believe the plan is that the San Joaquins will run at 125mph over the Central Valley section of CAHSR. Makes sense to test at 125mph in MA right now, as there's so little MBTA midday service on the NEC that testing can probably take place any time outside rush hour.

These new cars are huge compared to an Amfleet. Maybe the size of a viewliner or slightly bigger.

Taken with permission and full PPE

CSRR573 wrote: ↑Wed Apr 29, 2020 4:33 pm These new cars are huge compared to an Amfleet. Maybe the size of a viewliner or slightly bigger.

I believe that's in part due to the A/C units being on the roof, as with the first gen Acela coaches. Unlike the Acela coaches, the Siemens coaches are designed such that the roof is flush with the A/C units, I'm guessing potentially with some more equipment under the roof shrouding. Maybe the Metroliner MUs post-rebuild when they had the roof humps would be a good comparison.

Looking forward to seeing photos of the car interiors ... These should give us a good idea of where Amtrak is headed in the future ...

CSRR573 wrote: ↑Wed Apr 29, 2020 4:33 pmThese new cars are huge compared to an Amfleet. Maybe the size of a viewliner or slightly bigger.

That is big. Very impressive. Thanks for taking the time to snap a photo and share it.

If you've ever traveled by heritage car, it's a shock how big they are compared to the Amfleet or even Horizon cars. It's almost unnerving how much open space there is above one's head. When I rode IP's Hoosier a few years ago, I popped into the coach for a few minutes from the big dome and it felt like a cavern. The same thing happened a few years later aboard North Shore Scenic's collection of NP and GN streamliners when I rode up the line. I bought a ticket in the dome, found it super cramped, moved through the streamlined cars and CNW bilevel, and settled in the cheap seats in the DMIR heavyweight. Best seat in the house. Wish I would've known.

Matt Johnson wrote: ↑Wed Apr 29, 2020 5:00 pm

CSRR573 wrote: ↑Wed Apr 29, 2020 4:33 pm These new cars are huge compared to an Amfleet. Maybe the size of a viewliner or slightly bigger.

I believe that's in part due to the A/C units being on the roof, as with the first gen Acela coaches. Unlike the Acela coaches, the Siemens coaches are designed such that the roof is flush with the A/C units, I'm guessing potentially with some more equipment under the roof shrouding. Maybe the Metroliner MUs post-rebuild when they had the roof humps would be a good comparison.

I would assume that design is to get all that stuff out of the way from debris strikes and snow. However wouldn’t that make the cars center of gravity higher thus lowering its top speed?