Dreamstar overnight train between San Francisco and Los Angeles?

[Metra Electric Rider]

Wow! Neon (well, LED strip....)! Suspension Bridge!

Is that the new bay crossing?

 

[leccy]

Um, stations anyone?

 

[frequentflyer]

Wasn’t this called the Spirit of California back in the 80s?

 

[frequentflyer]

View attachment 36391View attachment 36392
Well the photos are really nice. Nothing like what there going to start out running with, but still really nice.

Not sure there Euro equipment that comes close to looking like this. Unless a Siemens set and covert to sleepers.

 

[Caesar La Rock]

According to this article here, the equipment they're using will be refurbished bi-level equipment. Whether that means the former ATSF Hi-level cars that Amtrak used I'm not sure, they could also be retired commuter coaches from elsewhere. It's not made clear.

https://qz.com/dreamstar-lines-luxury-train-los-angeles-san-francisco-1851402196

 

[cirdan]

According to this article here, the equipment they're using will be refurbished bi-level equipment. Whether that means the former ATSF Hi-level cars that Amtrak used I'm not sure, they could also be retired commuter coaches from elsewhere. It's not made clear.

https://qz.com/dreamstar-lines-luxury-train-los-angeles-san-francisco-1851402196

Do the former ATSF bi-levels have any useful life left in them? I guess they were eliminated by Amtrak for a reason, and the many years of subsequent languishing in the open will not have improved them either.

OTOH modifying commuter equipment would entail a near total rebuild, at least for the sleeper cars.

 

[railiner]

The former Hi-Levels have even lower headroom than the Superliners, making it difficult to have any upper berths.
OTOH, their Budd-built stainless steel carbodies are probably fairly solid, but they would still need extensive rebuilding to convert to sleeping cars…

 

[Green Maned Lion]

Allow me to hypothesize a bit here. The Amtrak Roomette is a model of space efficiency for transporting a lot of passengers in mediocre sleeper comfort, but it is not a great design as far as luxury travel is concerned. Gallery style cars would not offer private rooms on their upper level, because of the basic layout, so that can't be it, either. Amtrak is surely not leasing Superliners to anybody, so that's out too. And refurbishing hi-levels is something for museums to do for low speed trips paid for only by rail nuts who will put up with it because of the nostalgia factor; its not how you launch a business with a realistic prospect of success at attracting anyone but rail fans. Yes, Budd cars last forever and can take quite a licking; which is why they have already taken a heck of a licking and lasted forever- no other quality of mainline equipment could have done what these have done, but everything wears out eventually and the Budd cars have.

If we eliminate these unlikely pieces of equipment, we get to a relatively cheaply available used equipment type that has a layout that can be converted to sleeping accomodations without bunks fairly reasonably: Bombardier Bi-Levels. Clearly this start up equipment is a temporary thing, given they seem to be dreaming about something really modern and European style. They need, in my opinion, three sets of equipment (one is dormant on any given day for heavy service and cleaning, the other turns same-day). If you want to get more than the rail-nut contingent it has to be fairly modern, comfortable, affordable, and above all reliable. If I was trying to build such a train, this is what I would do.

By the way, this is a slightly easier route than the Spirit- that started out in Sacramento; it got to Oakland at 21:40 and arrived LAX at 8:30, 10h 50m. Schedule this for a few hours over that, leaving at lets say 7:30 and advertised arrival at 8:45, and you'd have a pretty good chances at adequately on time arrivals, especially if you run pretty limited stops.

 

[Northwestern]

I do agree that Dreamstar must have modern and comfortable equipment. Even if prices approach or go a little beyond the airline costs, I think it would still would be very popular. I do think, however, they need different classes of service.

https://is.gd/FnFnFN

Lie flat beds and Wi_Fi throughout the train. Queen beds and showers for premium class. Modern lounge cars and Ap-based ticket service. Sounds good if it isn't all just speculative.

 

[west point]

Lie flat beds and Wi_Fi throughout the train. Queen beds and showers for premium class. Modern lounge cars and Ap-based ticket service. Sounds good if it isn't all just speculative.

With these comforts cannot imagine how few riders per car would be its capacity. Now imagine the fare required to make the car break even or even a profit.

 

[Mailliw]

Lie flat beds could mean a pod setup like the new Nightjets or a capsule hotel. That would work for economy class on dedicated night train like Dreamstar. One thing is for sure, if this happens at all it'll have years before it has to compete with CA HSR!

 

[jis]

Lie flat beds could mean a pod setup like the new Nightjets or a capsule hotel. That would work for economy class on dedicated night train like Dreamstar. One thing is for sure, if this happens at all it'll have years before it has to compete with CA HSR!

If night trains truly develop a market then I doubt they will compete with day time HSRs. At least wherever night service has been successful they have not been at odds with daytime HSR, though it does seem counter intuitive in the first blush. But the pre-requisites for any rail service to be successful in the US has several other unknowns when compared to Asia and Europe as in the lack of a recent tradition of success at levels common elsewhere.

 

[Caesar La Rock]

Do the former ATSF bi-levels have any useful life left in them? I guess they were eliminated by Amtrak for a reason, and the many years of subsequent languishing in the open will not have improved them either.

OTOH modifying commuter equipment would entail a near total rebuild, at least for the sleeper cars.

We'll find out when more details come out. Regardless of what they've selected, it'll require some sort of complete rebuild in order to convert the cars into what they're advertising. Something that needs to be reaffirmed.

They're planning on using the trainsets at night, not everyday traveling the country daily in all kinds of weather like most of Amtrak's long distance trains do. So I imagine whatever equipment they have, will be subjected to far less abuse regardless of it's age.