Sleeper 9712...Wow!

[Manny T]

Wonderful reporting!

I'm quite interested in the chair in the bedroom, not the roomette. I wonder if you had occasion to sit in it and try it out (apologies if this is mentioned previously). Is it comfortable? Is it at all different than the previous version, or is it just the same but reupholstered in a new fabric?

From my experience, this item, although called a "chair," cannot be sat it comfortably. I'm not an expert in ergonomics so I can't explain why; I can only state what my back, spine, neck and butt tell me...Hence, I wonder if they improved the chair, or if it is still unusable.

 

[Maglev]

The Superliner rooms on Amtrak were originally called "Economy" and "Deluxe." The Economy Bedrooms were designed as an inexpensive way for two people to be able to lie down at night. As far as lack of floor space in Roomettes and Bedrooms (by the sink) goes, I think it's just a sacrifice to being able to experience comfort while traveling.

I agree that the chair in the old Bedrooms is very uncomfortable. The previous free-standing folding chair was much softer.

 

[Qapla]

Perhaps, as they are used a bit more, the latches on the doors will become easier to use and people can once again complain about the "banging and rattling" they make and go back to wedging/taping them.

 

[cocojacoby]

I believe the newer "chair on a post" design was made necessary because of a wreck where the old folding chair became a really dangerous projectile. The attached chair is a clever design, fairly comfortable and functions well.

In my personal experience I like sitting face forward to travel and that extra chair allows that (depending on the orientation of the car). I'm glad they just didn't say we have to remove that loose chair for safety and give up on that extra window seat. Kudos to Amtrak on this.

 

[IndyLions]

...Now with the tricky latches that may not function from inside, imagine the nightmare for people who can't get out!

I am afraid that my descriptive language on the latches may have led to the misconception that people would get trapped.

That is highly unlikely to happen. Even if it did, Amtrak has a key/tool to open the door from the outside.

The most likely scenario for a “malfunction” would be a latch that doesn’t stay latched or a latch that might be a little harder to turn to unlatch. In both cases, pushing the door all the way closed while latching/unlatching allows it to work just about every time.

 

[crescent-zephyr]

The latches won’t last... they were part of the Viewliner I doors as well and they eventually got replaced with the tried and true heavy duty Amtrak metal latch.

 

[IndyLions]

Wonderful reporting!

I'm quite interested in the chair in the bedroom, not the roomette. I wonder if you had occasion to sit in it and try it out (apologies if this is mentioned previously). Is it comfortable? Is it at all different than the previous version, or is it just the same but reupholstered in a new fabric?

From my experience, this item, although called a "chair," cannot be sat it comfortably. I'm not an expert in ergonomics so I can't explain why; I can only state what my back, spine, neck and butt tell me...Hence, I wonder if they improved the chair, or if it is still unusable.

I certainly spent some time trying it out and sitting in it. I thought it was a sturdy chair which was fairly adjustable and pretty comfortable. I sat there for several hours at a time while my wife and I played cards, and I don’t remember any ill effects.

But I don’t have a lot to compare it to. I’ve spent very little time in the Superliner Bedroom portable chair (not impressed) and I’ve never sat in the VLI version.

 

[Cal]

The latches won’t last... they were part of the Viewliner I doors as well and they eventually got replaced with the tried and true heavy duty Amtrak metal latch.

Honestly, I like those. Easy to use and pretty clear.

 

[Mailliw]

he Superliner rooms on Amtrak were originally called "Economy" and "Deluxe." The Economy Bedrooms were designed as an inexpensive way for two people to be able to lie down at night. As

This. Amtrak roomettes are basically a hybrid of Pullman roomettes and sections. I think Amtrak should revert to marketing them as the "economy sleeper" option and the Bedrooms as the deluxe option. Unless of course Amtrak decides to order cars with Nightjet style couchette pods.

 

[Cal]

This. Amtrak roomettes are basically a hybrid of Pullman roomettes and sections. I think Amtrak should revert to marketing them as the "economy sleeper" option and the Bedrooms as the deluxe option.

Not with the current prices!

 

[railiner]

This. Amtrak roomettes are basically a hybrid of Pullman roomettes and sections. I think Amtrak should revert to marketing them as the "economy sleeper" option and the Bedrooms as the deluxe option. Unless of course Amtrak decides to order cars with Nightjet style couchette pods.

Another comparison might be a Double Slumbercoach Room....

 

[crescent-zephyr]

Another comparison might be a Double Slumbercoach Room....

Those were even smaller!

 

[Ferroequinologist]

Is this latch actually a deadbolt?

 

[jpakala]

The double Slumbercoach rooms didn't seem smaller to me. Part of that may have been the higher ceiling than in Superliner roomettes. The one-passenger roomettes had a regular rather than narrow single bed. You did in the original style have to open the door to raise it to use the toilet (not the sink) and that's why there were curtains on the outer side of roomette doors, but the later style had a slightly narrower bottom third of the bed so you could stand on the floor to raise it, and no curtains were involved.

 

[Qapla]

It would be nice if the rooms had ceiling fans

 

[IndyLions]

Is this latch actually a deadbolt?

No - it’s not a deadbolt. I don’t remember the design exactly, but regardless of the actual details, the design depended on tolerances that the fabrication wasn’t delivering.

 

[IndyLions]

Honestly, I like those. Easy to use and pretty clear.

Those old fashioned latches work - but getting into a latched room from the outside in an emergency, or simply latching the door from the outside still aren’t supported.

Again, we landed on the moon in ‘69. Designing a decent rail compartment door latch shouldn’t be that difficult...

 

[IndyLions]

It would be nice if the rooms had ceiling fans

It would also be nice if the windows (or a section of a window at least) could open for fresh air ventilation.

However, this is the USA. We have faaaar too many lawyers for any feature that might require a scintilla of common sense by the consumer. So no fresh air for us.

 

[railiner]

It would be nice if the rooms had ceiling fans

Agreed. The Heritage rooms had them.

 

[crescent-zephyr]

The Viewliner I’s have Fans built into the wall.

 

[cocojacoby]

And Amtrak should have come up with a locking mechanism from outside the room. They have them in Europe. A magnetic card like a hotel room or even a smart phone key is not futuristic wish list stuff anymore. Actually that would work from both sides eliminating any problematic manual latch.

 

[Mailliw]

Or even PIN locks like alot of Airbnb rentals and some hotels use. Passengers could just be emailed their PIN 48 hrs or so before the trip and could access their compartment as soon as they board just as they do now w/o having to wait for the SCA to unlock it or distribute a key card.

 

[joelkfla]

Or even PIN locks like alot of Airbnb rentals and some hotels use. Passengers could just be emailed their PIN 48 hrs or so before the trip and could access their compartment as soon as they board just as they do now w/o having to wait for the SCA to unlock it or distribute a key card.

There's not even a need to provide a PIN. Hotel room safes and Japan's Sunrise Express sleeper let the user set their own PIN. The SCA would simply reset it when the room's occupant detrains.

 

[tricia]

I don't even want to think about what a mess PIN locks would have been when I was traveling with my elderly father, whose memory was fading.

It's not hard to imagine a good many folks locking themselves out of their own rooms if remembering a PIN is required.

 

[Mailliw]

There's not even a need to provide a PIN. Hotel room safes and Japan's Sunrise Express sleeper let the user set their own PIN. The SCA would simply reset it when the room's occupant detrains.

That works too; I was just thinking they'd be locked by default so only the passengers booked could access. No system will please everyone. Using a PIN system eliminates the need for physical keycards, but some passengers may have trouble keeping track of their PIN. On the other hand passengers may forget to take their keycard with them to the diner/toilet/shower and lock themselves out anyway. Letting passengers use their phone as a key raises issues of its own, and would still need a backup option. The SCAs presence should alleviate lockouts.