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The major head scratcher with FLIRTs is figuring out a good way to handle high platforms. Even the higher floors over the trucks/bogies don’t seem to be nearly high enough. The double decker KISS manages with the middle level at the ends (Caltrain and Russia). Sent from my iPhone using Amtrak Forum

The preference for multiple units (with driven axles spread out across semi-permanently coupled cars and passenger space in the driving cars) and trainsets (with semi-permanently coupled unpowered cars and locomotive(s)/powercar(s) at the end(s)) varies across Europe. Germany and Austria tend to...

With the Siemens trainsets on the San Joaquins is it certain the the driver/engineer will be in a combination Cab, baggage and passenger car (Cabbager?)? The cab car appears to have a box structure above the coupler on the driving end. Is this a crush box for crash protection? Even if the cab...

Perhaps: https://www.sjjpa.com/getattachment/Business-Plan/2018-SJJPA-Business-Plan-Update-Public-Review-Draft.pdf Sent from my iPhone using Amtrak Forum

This my long winded way of saying Siemens is only one option for future purchases even if this Caltrans/IDOT buy gives them an advantage. Sent from my iPhone using Amtrak Forum

Stadler is a bit of a wild card in the USA passenger car world with their Utah factory. They don't seem to make many traditional passenger cars (carriages in British-English), but they do make some (e.g...

The February Trains article calls them “Coach/business but the slides say Business/economy. Coach seems more likely.

For esthetic and, perhaps more importantly, aerodynamic reasons with the cab car leading. I’m actually mostly curious to see what Caltrans does as they have already limited flexibility with the semipermanently coupled trainsets. I’d be tempted to eliminate the spoiler on at least seven Chargers...

I checked and the wheelchair lifts are on the IDOT business/economy cars and on the cafe cars. That was in another report. So every train will have one or, probably, both a business/economy and cafe car. As you pointed out, people and wheelchair movement between the cars can be made easier with...

There are certainly a large percentage of cars with only 2 doors. Maximizing interior room must be the highest priority. A number of Caltrans Chargers remain to be delivered. I would think that at least seven of these might not have spoilers/ski jumps to match the new trainsets. Sent from my...

Do these Siemens trainsets represent the end of Amtrak California branding? Or did the SC-44s already represent a change? Sent from my iPhone using Amtrak Forum

Great. I think that makes baggage the most likely use of the large cab car side door. Sent from my iPhone using Amtrak Forum

As a further note, I recently read on another blog that the Amtrak Midwest cars will not be trainsets like California but individual cars. And that they will run with a Charger at each end eliminating the need for cab cars. That also has an effect on the color scheme as each car needs look ok in...

Has anyone seen anything similar on the color scheme/livery of the Midwest passenger cars? I presume it will continue the theme on the Amtrak Midwest Charger locomotives, but I haven’t seen anything specific. Sent from my iPhone using Amtrak Forum

The Railjet has one in a similar position for engineer/driver and Premium class access (http://www.stscms.com/FileUpload/files/media/1872/pdfs/Railjet_seat_map.pdf via https://www.seat61.com/index-mobile.htm). That doesn’t make sense here as there is a separate engineers/drivers door forward and...

The wheelchair lift on RailJet. .I’m not certain if they can or will use a similar contraption on the California/Midwest cars. It also looks a bit tight for some of the larger motorized conveyances I see regularly on my DC Metro Rail train. Sent from my iPhone using Amtrak Forum

One small point is that in order to look like the sleek trainset with the cab car on one end and a Charger on the other shown in some drawings , the Caltrans Charger rear wedge has to go. Sent from my iPhone using Amtrak Forum

There is also a picture of the California cab car with the revised window locations here. The various cab car drawings including the side drawing in the presentation indicate a conventional coupler on the engineer/driver’s end, but a semi-permanent coupling to a trainset on the opposite end...

In addition to Brightline, the other close relative of these trainsets appears to be the Austria/Czech Railjet (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Railjet). Railjet is another Siemens product with Comfort Coaches. I think that this might have been mentioned once earlier. The Railjet video at...