California's new car deployment plan

[Green Maned Lion]

To be precise, it's not.

 

[Anderson]

That's sorta what I was expecting...since it would mean that a "coach car" was just a car that wasn't either a cab, coach-cafe, or coach-bag and therefore likely wouldn't be listed differently in the equipment order (even if it got a quick paint job and showed up separately on the roster).

 

[Tuffster]

So more than likely, a few of the Coach Cars will probably end up as Business Class to fill out the minimum of 12 train sets by 2020.

 

[rickycourtney]

These new cars have been designed to quickly reconfigured from coach to business class. Unlike the old California cars the seats, overhead lights and power outlets are all track mounted allowing spacing between seats to be adjusted. The business class service unit (for coffee and pastries) also attaches to the seat track and can be plugged into the regular 110v power outlets.

 

[neroden]

These new cars have been designed to quickly reconfigured from coach to business class. Unlike the old California cars the seats, overhead lights and power outlets are all track mounted allowing spacing between seats to be adjusted. The business class service unit (for coffee and pastries) also attaches to the seat track and can be plugged into the regular 110v power outlets.

I had no idea that the California Car seats *weren't* track mounted. Are you sure they aren't track mounted? I think even the Superliner and Amfleet seats, both older are track mounted...

 

[Anderson]

These new cars have been designed to quickly reconfigured from coach to business class. Unlike the old California cars the seats, overhead lights and power outlets are all track mounted allowing spacing between seats to be adjusted. The business class service unit (for coffee and pastries) also attaches to the seat track and can be plugged into the regular 110v power outlets.

I had no idea that the California Car seats *weren't* track mounted. Are you sure they aren't track mounted? I think even the Superliner and Amfleet seats, both older are track mounted...

The only explanation I can come up with for this is that Bombardier did both the California Cars and the Acelas (hence the all-too-familiar tones on the loudspeaker system on the Surfliner) and they might have done something funky with the seats as a result. Might simply have been a badly-speced order.

 

[rickycourtney]

I should clarify... I'm not sure that the seats in the old cars aren't attached using some sort of track.

The big difference is that the overhead light unit and power outlets will now be track mounted. They are fixed in the old cars. So if you moved the seats in the old cars you'd likely have a lot of mis-aligned lights and outlets.

 

[neroden]

Ah, thank you.

 

[X]

These new cars have been designed to quickly reconfigured from coach to business class. Unlike the old California cars the seats, overhead lights and power outlets are all track mounted allowing spacing between seats to be adjusted. The business class service unit (for coffee and pastries) also attaches to the seat track and can be plugged into the regular 110v power outlets.

I had no idea that the California Car seats *weren't* track mounted. Are you sure they aren't track mounted? I think even the Superliner and Amfleet seats, both older are track mounted...

The only explanation I can come up with for this is that Bombardier did both the California Cars and the Acelas (hence the all-too-familiar tones on the loudspeaker system on the Surfliner) and they might have done something funky with the seats as a result. Might simply have been a badly-speced order.

Morrison-Knudsen got the contract for the California Cars and even managed to finish half the order before going bankrupt. Their railroad divison was then spun off into Amerail, who finished the order (and a couple others) before being bought by Alstom. The Surfliner cars are the second generation California Car design ("California II'), utilizing lessons learned from the Cal Cars along with the expertise Alstom brought to the table.

And yes, Cal Car and Surfliner seats are track mounted, just not the furnishings.

 

[seat38a]

Serious question: How is a "business class" car different from a "coach" car on a Surfliner, beyond moving seats around (if that) and a dab of paint on the side?

As I recall more legroom, free muffins and drink, and guaranteed seating (which is probably the major draw).

Don't forget the free wine on afternoon trains! The wine and the guaranteed seating plus lounge access at LAUS makes it worth it.

IMG_0358 by seat38a, on Flickr

The business class on some of the popular evening commuter trains sell out real fast. I could not buy a business class seat yesterday because it was sold out. Train 785 and 591 sell out often. Its not uncommon for the 700 series train to be 50%+ full.

 

[sechs]

Adding trains to the Capital Corridor is relatively easy. The route is entirely double track and near dead flat, other than approaches to the Carquinez (sp?) Strait bridge. Therefore, slotting in additional trains is relatively easy.

The San Joaquin route is mostly single track, although there have been several additional segments of double track added in order to permit the 6 daily trains. This is a very busy freight route as well. It is more than just equipment. There needs to be track added in order to add trains without adding significant delays to all trains.

Actually, I think that it had a lot more to do with the CCJPA being willing to put their money where their mouth was and make it a win-win for UP.

If the SJJPA can do the same with BNSF, they can have what they want. I personally don't feel like they have the wherewithal.