Acela II (Alstom Avelia Liberty): Design, Production, Delivery, Acceptance

Backshophoss wrote: ↑Thu Oct 01, 2020 7:45 pm They need to get rid of that european horn put a KL5A and a Hancock air whistle on it.

We get it.....!
Horn sucks, everyone wants a KL5A......

Ben

I think it fair statement that more Acela riders than not have been overseas. Those are the train horns over there. Now so far as "Here comes the Polizei/Gendarmes" siren, well, that's a new one. Go over for a week, and you will be quite attuned to such.

From videos I've seen, there seems to be a toggle switch, normally centered. Push it one way for the higher tone, the other way for the lower; alternating them gives you the Polizei mode. Given the virtually universal (in Europe) use of the high-low alternating sound by emergency vehicles, it's probably an effective warning for motorists over there.

Maybe the engineer was just having some fun with it ...

shadyjay wrote: ↑Thu Oct 01, 2020 4:26 pmAlright, I'm going to say it.... does it really matter what kind of horn its got? It doesn't have to appease the railfan community... it has to alert those on the tracks (whether they be roadway workers or trespassers, and at grade crossings. As long as its the proper sound level and gets everyone's attention, then that should be the end of it.

I think it does - Americans associate that noise with automobiles, not trains. It would be easy to assume someone is honking on the highway and not think to look at the tracks, whereas a three-tone chime instantly signals “beware, train.”

Greg Moore wrote: ↑Mon Sep 28, 2020 5:23 pm Lovely photos all over Facebook of its trip up to Boston.

Next step, North of Boston...


Oh wait...

LOL, you win the internetz today....! How fast can it go on the Grand Junction!?!?

mtuandrew wrote: ↑Fri Oct 02, 2020 7:10 am

shadyjay wrote: ↑Thu Oct 01, 2020 4:26 pmAlright, I'm going to say it.... does it really matter what kind of horn its got? It doesn't have to appease the railfan community... it has to alert those on the tracks (whether they be roadway workers or trespassers, and at grade crossings. As long as its the proper sound level and gets everyone's attention, then that should be the end of it.

I think it does - Americans associate that noise with automobiles, not trains. It would be easy to assume someone is honking on the highway and not think to look at the tracks, whereas a three-tone chime instantly signals “beware, train.”

I saw an official AMtrak video about horns a while ago that said the trains of the 50s and 60s had horns associated with trucks and automobiles instead of trains which led to an increase in grade-crossing accidents, so the horn of Avelia is contradicting Amtrakś own history lesson.

Jeff Smith wrote:

Greg Moore wrote: ↑Mon Sep 28, 2020 5:23 pm Lovely photos all over Facebook of its trip up to Boston.

Next step, North of Boston...


Oh wait...

LOL, you win the internetz today....! How fast can it go on the Grand Junction!?!?

I remember seeing a comment on facebook when the first trainset was traveling to Pueblo saying that they hoped it would be used on the Southwest Chief...

Spotted the test run west in Fairfield CT at 12:05 PM this afternoon.

One of the original Acelas was exhibited without catenary near Richmond, Virginia, towed there by a Diesel, which may have provided Head End Power.

JimBoylan wrote: ↑Fri Oct 02, 2020 5:33 pm One of the original Acelas was exhibited without catenary near Richmond, Virginia, towed there by a Diesel, which may have provided Head End Power.

That's kind of weird.

This just hit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T8XS0hDsOgQ

Acella II at NYP, with some through-window shots of the train being tested.

Pensyfan19 wrote: ↑Fri Oct 02, 2020 11:36 amI remember seeing a comment on facebook when the first trainset was traveling to Pueblo saying that they hoped it would be used on the Southwest Chief...

Coulda, shoulda, woulda... https://www.jstor.org/stable/43524020?seq=1

Pensyfan19 wrote: I saw an official AMtrak video about horns a while ago that said the trains of the 50s and 60s had horns associated with trucks and automobiles instead of trains which led to an increase in grade-crossing accidents, so the horn of Avelia is contradicting Amtrakś own history lesson.

More or less what I’m thinking. People did get used to multi-chime horns as they were adopted universally (even eventually by the air whistle holdouts), and I think part of that was railroads moving from two-chime to three, four, and five-chime horns. I don’t see any other roads planning to return to two-chime horns on their equipment though.

^^ Seeing that video reiterates how gorgeous these trains actually are. I was a bit unsure when I saw the first renders, but it's such a sharp look!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VKKKT_Jxc3E
Compilation of my daylight Avelia shots from this week.

Fan Railer wrote: ↑Sat Oct 03, 2020 7:20 am http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VKKKT_Jxc3E
Compilation of my daylight Avelia shots from this week.

Thank you for taking the time to shoot, edit, and post this video.
It was probably a labor of love, but thanks anyways.