Current Cardinal consist

[NativeSon5859]

Are there currently one or two sleepers on 50? I'm booked in the 5000 car, was just wondering if it's the only sleeper in the consist right now.

Also...since this is my first time riding the train eastbound...is there a consensus on which side of the train has the best views? I'll be travelling CHI-CVS.

Thanks!

 

[philk]

Only one sleeper at this point. Second usually gets added in late spring. Not sure how truncated CHI-WAS route will affect that.

Need to be on the right side to see the New River Gorge in West Virginia.(Left side view is hillsides, and a lot of abandoned coke ovens.)

If your room is facing the wrong way, the lounge section of the business class car is open to sleeper passengers.

 

[NativeSon5859]

Perfect. Thanks a bunch. I took 51 something like ten years ago out of WAS to CHI, but I was in coach, with an aisle seat on a completely full train, and I didn't see much. Not the best trip.

 

[Thirdrail7]

Are you traveling before the end of the month? We're assuming it will still be a single level train but we're not sure.

 

[dlagrua]

Cardinal is always single level and up until early spring has only one sleeper of which 3 or 4 roomettes are used by the crew.

 

[Thirdrail7]

Cardinal is always single level and up until early spring has only one sleeper of which 3 or 4 roomettes are used by the crew.

The Cardinal is single level because it runs to NYP. That won't be the case at the end of the month. It is possible that they may run a small Superliner set from WAS-CHI to save equipment and have a few interchangeable cars.

 

[Triley]

Cardinal is always single level and up until early spring has only one sleeper of which 3 or 4 roomettes are used by the crew.

The Cardinal is single level because it runs to NYP. That won't be the case at the end of the month. It is possible that they may run a small Superliner set from WAS-CHI to save equipment and have a few interchangeable cars.

Silly Amtrak employee...you don't know what you're talking about!
Sent from my SM-G955U using Amtrak Forum mobile app

 

[Manny T]

I'm traveling on the Cardinal later this year.

I'm wondering if the sleeper car 5000 will be in the front or the back of the consist?

 

[Seaboard92]

Usually it’s the rear. Which is the traditional placement of sleepers in a historical sense of passenger railroading.

Occasionally the cardinal would have them in the front when we had PVs on the rear operating field trips. And that’s because the overflow kids were in coach and we wanted to keep them together where they could walk to visit each other.

 

[FreeskierInVT]

When I rode CHI-NYP about 2 weeks ago, there was only one sleeper (#5000) which was the second to last car (baggage car was the rearmost car)

 

[JP1822]

The train could use a second VIewliner Sleeper, but Amtrak holds that back!

 

[jiml]

Last eastbound Cardinal I was on was 3 years ago during summer. There were 3 sleepers directly behind the 2 locomotives (long walk in Chicago). When we purchased our tickets in February of that year only 2 cars were scheduled with bedrooms all sold-out, so we reserved a roomette in 5000 and waitlisted for a bedroom. Amtrak notified me in April that an additional sleeper had been added and some passengers had moved to it, freeing up Bedroom B in 5001. That many passengers made for an interesting scene in the Am-dinette and they ran out of food quickly. Lone attendant did an admirable job and managed to maintain his sense of humor. I also recall the third sleeper had an odd number - 5013 comes to mind. It struck me as funny since we had already walked well down the platform already and could see the front of the train. Somewhere during the night we dropped a couple of coaches and a locomotive.

 

[PVD]

If the Card gets a diner for boxed meal distribution, that would also serve as a lounge, that would be another option for viewing if your roomette is on the other side. Not sure if that will happen before your date of travel.