passengers suffering from amtrak's winter woes

[Green Maned Lion]

Good article. I said the very same thing here a few weeks ago and was roundly dished by many who think that railroads just always give up in cold weather. I think this article points out many of the issues that should be addressed.. As I mentioned earlier, its like no one at Amtrak can remember what happened last winter and its all a big surprise when it gets cold again.. Hey, insulate the water lines or do something. Design the cars right in the first place, that could have been a big help instead of now being always caught off guard. You sympathizers for every thing that goes wrong can shoot some emails to the newspaper reporter this time.

The cars are basically Pullman-Standard/Bombardier Comet cars, specifically Bombardier Comet IIs. They were designed for the track, weather, and other general conditions on the Erie Lackawanna Railroad. They were never intended to be anything but commuter cars.

The Comet IIs have automatic sliding doors, for instance. Those doors have lower sections which cover up the exterior stairs while the train is in motion. Whereas the manual doors on the Horizons prevent that- and thus the stairs are exposed to the elements. The Horizon IS a Comet II- you can see a fascinatingly Horizon like car on the North Jersey Coast line, because it is equipped with Amtrak style seats for use by a private commuter club. The differences between a Comet III with bathroom and a Horizon are:

The end doors on the Horizon are Automatic and button operated- the end doors on the Comet are manual.

The Vestibule doors on the Horizon are manual with dutch-style upper sections- the doors on the Comet are automatic and one piece.

The Horizon has two bathroom modules, one on each side of the car- the Comet has one.

The Horizon uses Amtrak Amfleet I type 2-2 seating- the Comet uses 2-3 seating with manual reversing.

The Horizon uses GSC trucks- the Comet uses commuter trucks, very similar to those on the Amfleets.

Other than that, they are the same basic car. The Horizons were a piggy back order on the Comet IIs. No designing was done. They didn't spend hundreds of millions on R&D and design and such. They paid about a million bucks a car. Amtrak got itself 99 cars for less money than it paid to get 50 Viewliners. Keep that in mind. They were an emergancy, we need more short distance coaches, purchase.

 

[oldtimer]

This has been an incredible winter here in Chicago,
And I'm not making any excuses for Amtrak, it seems that every year when Winter rolls around, Amtrak is somehow caught offguard and has problems galore with it's equipment. Yet to the west of them, Metra manages to keep its equipment warm and unfrozen.

Although I must admit, that this year has been a bit problematic for Metra as well. They too have had frozen toilets, car doors that don't open or close, and strangely enough, locomotive failures. Everyone's equipment is getting old and needs to be replaced.

I managed to speak with my acquaintance at Amtrak Chicago a few weeks ago and he intimated to me that it is a case of (sorry politically incorrect): "too many chiefs and not enough indians!" Amtrak like everyone else is trying to make do with less (employees), but it comes back to bite them in many ways!

This post hits the nail on the head, try to work with approx. 2/3's the work force that was in Chicago mechanical 10 years ago. Try to inspect the underside of a Horizon car with ice built up on the truck that covers everything except wheels, brake shoes, discs and pads. it is impossible. How about tried to work outside in Chicago where the tempertaure is setting records for the duration of days below freezing and today I got 12 inches of new snow only 25 miles form Chicago, near the old NYC main, there was already 17 inches of snow on the ground in the middle of my backyard, now this. The workers have to shovel their way out of their home, get the car dug out, spend an extra hour each way commutting, work outside in these elements. The cold takes its toll on the workers. The work is not easy even on a good summer day. Half the workforce is on the cusp of retirement.

I really do not think that there are too many chiefs in Chicago mechanical!

fOR SURE THERE ARE FAR,FAR,TOO FEW INDIANS. :angry:

 

[amtrakwolverine]

why can't they just put pipe insulation on the pipes when the cars come in for inspection. problem solved.

 

[PRR 60]

why can't they just put pipe insulation on the pipes when the cars come in for inspection. problem solved.

You have to also have heat applied to the piping. Insulated pipes will still only be at ambient temperature unless there is a heat source to keep them above freezing. Then, if you do that, the second trick is to ensure the crews hook-up the power to heat the pipes when the car is sitting overnight.

 

[oldtimer]

why can't they just put pipe insulation on the pipes when the cars come in for inspection. problem solved.

You have to also have heat applied to the piping. Insulated pipes will still only be at ambient temperature unless there is a heat source to keep them above freezing. Then, if you do that, the second trick is to ensure the crews hook-up the power to heat the pipes when the car is sitting overnight.

The job of keeping the cars on power is a mankiller in the winter. You have to follow the FRA Blue Signal rules, which include derails or locking switches at both ends applying the actual blue flag before the power can be applied and must be removed and power shut down to allow a switch engine to come to remove a car. The process is now repeated for any move in the yard. Ten years ago 3 to 4 men per trick were assigned to this work, now 1 or 2 do it.

As I said before it is a mankiller.

Be there, done that, got the frostbite.

 

[amtrakwolverine]

well why not something that takes power from the cars battery's which are charged from the loco.

 

[oldtimer]

well why not something that takes power from the cars battery's which are charged from the loco.

The railcar has a limited battery capacity. If the 3-phase 480-volt power from the engine or ground supply is not available the batteries are used for limited emergency functions (emergency lights, end door operation, PA system,marker lights, etc.). To have battery power resistive heat you would need a very large amount of batteries!