Viewliner II - Part 1 - Initial Production and Delivery

[Bob Dylan]

As the Prez likes to say, "Come on Man! "

Sarcasm right on point ThirdRail!

 

[Steve4031]

Try dancing at restricted speed as the the train switches onto the other track to overtake the freight. And then as it accelerates and then slows to cross back over. Brings new possibilities to twerking.

 

[me_little_me]

One more thing...to save more time. the sleeping cars may emerge without doors on the sleeping cars....exterior doors. 1/3 of them were completed when someone finally realized the only way in was from an adjacent car. The exterior doors were omitted to solve the problem of ice and snow build up around the doors. If we get rid of the doors, that's one less area for it to build, right? Right?

This story is now on the internet...therefore, it must be as true as anything else in this tread...right? :hi:

Did you forget to mention about eliminating the hallway doors? I understand that hallways will have cots for the roometteless sleeper service and sleeper passengers in rooms can use the ladders to climb in/out of windows. Much faster departures as there are no waiting on line to get off at stations. You simply lower your ladder attached to the window frame, throw out your mattress and luggage then jump. The SCA puts the mattress back and passengers climb in from the new higher level ADA compliant platforms.

 

[PaulM]

Lucy strikes again!

 

[TiBike]

You win the thread, good sir

This story is now on the internet...therefore, it must be as true as anything else in this tread...right? :hi:

 

[Mystic River Dragon]

Sarcasm right on point ThirdRail!

Yep, even I got the sarcasm this time!

You win the thread, good sir

This story is now on the internet...therefore, it must be as true as anything else in this tread...right? :hi:

Absolutely agree with TiBike--I'm especially getting a chuckle out of imagining people disco dancing and line dancing on the train! :giggle:

 

[A Voice]

Sarcasm right on point ThirdRail!

Yep, even I got the sarcasm this time!

You win the thread, good sir

This story is now on the internet...therefore, it must be as true as anything else in this tread...right? :hi:

Absolutely agree with TiBike--I'm especially getting a chuckle out of imagining people disco dancing and line dancing on the train! :giggle:

Oh, come on - how is that unusual? We've all seen people dancing their way down the aisle of a moving train. Usually on CSX trackage..........

 

[Mystic River Dragon]

Sarcasm right on point ThirdRail!

Yep, even I got the sarcasm this time!

You win the thread, good sir

This story is now on the internet...therefore, it must be as true as anything else in this tread...right? :hi:

Absolutely agree with TiBike--I'm especially getting a chuckle out of imagining people disco dancing and line dancing on the train! :giggle:

Oh, come on - how is that unusual? We've all seen people dancing their way down the aisle of a moving train. Usually on CSX trackage..........

Well, that's true--I've danced down them myself, a few times--but I wouldn't say it was graceful or coordinated!

 

[PVD]

Anyone remember the Olympic Airlines commercials? "Please, no dancing in the aisles"

 

[Steve4031]

The CSX shuffle. Performed to soul train by Mfsb. Best of the philly sound.

 

[neroden]

Amtrak can and does sell seats in (non-operating) cafe cars over Thanksgiving. Getting the dining cars in service would, as I said, free up cafe cars from the LSL and Cardinal to be used for this purpose.

They don't sell seats in non-revenue cafe cars.

*Cough* I've been on an Empire Service train where every single seat was filled and additional passengers were being seated in the cafe car. I have been on an LSL where every single seat was filled and they had attached an extra cafe/lounge and started putting the additional passengers *there*. (In both cases they were transferred to other seats once some passengers detrained and the train became less crowded.)
So yes, in fact, on the ultra-busy holiday weekends, Amtrak *does* effectively sell seats in non-revenue cafe cars. I believe they call it "overbooking", but they won't overbook past the cafe car capacity. This is a completely sensible way to maximize ridership and revenue given a shortage of coaches.

Actually, there are no cafe cars used on the Lake Shore Limited anyway. That train currently runs with two Amfleet II lounge cars, with the "diner-lite" rebuild, and one taking the place of the dining car.

Amfleet II lounges are a type of cafe car, according to the definition of cafe car I was using. I will happily change my statement to "Amtrak can and does sell seats in lounge cars over Thanksgiving", if you prefer.

When they're selling tickets to people and seating them in the lounge car -- even if it's only for part of their trip -- then as far as I'm concerned they're using the lounge car for extra revenue capacity.

 

[PVD]

Even without overbooking, some "reserved" trains can get overboarded because various forms of commuter pass holders are not counted in the reservation count. Plus, there are always deadheading employees and non rev pass holders.

 

[jis]

The employees and non rev pass holders are not supposed to occupy revenue seats while revenue paying passengers are left seatless.

 

[PVD]

Which is one of the ways people end up sitting in the lounge. Crew packs and paperwork aren't supposed to occupy more than one table on any train, that isn't widely followed either

 

[neroden]

There are no commuter passes on Empire Service or LSL west of Albany to my knowledge. Really, this was genuine and deliberate booking beyond the number of coach seats available, and they seated people in the cafe car from Utica to Schenectady (which was the most crowded segment both times...)

 

[PVD]

I think it's no multi ride at all for the LSL. Empires West of Albany. And to support your premise, I have seen it oversold Eastbound boarding in Depew. Toast by Syracuse. Have also been on a sold out Northbound Silver where a sleeper was bad ordered with no added coach, I was pointing out that trains can be over full without being overbooked, but was not trying to say they don't occasionally do that also.

 

[CraigDK]

For what its worth, in the NARP's latest hotline has section on the new diner and the remaining VII order. According to them, the evaluation of 68001 apparently will be for an extended time and the next diners are expected after the new year.

 

[Just-Thinking-51]

Too lazy to check, how many months, years late?

 

[Cho Cho Charlie]

The employees and non rev pass holders are not supposed to occupy revenue seats while revenue paying passengers are left seatless.

And how exactly do you identify these people, to ask them to give up their seat to you? The few times over the years that I was on an over-filled Amtrak train, and had to stand, the conductor showed no interest at all in finding standing passengers a seat (to their side, the conductors seemed overwhelmed at that time).

 

[OlympianHiawatha]

The employees and non rev pass holders are not supposed to occupy revenue seats while revenue paying passengers are left seatless.

And how exactly do you identify these people, to ask them to give up their seat to you? The few times over the years that I was on an over-filled Amtrak train, and had to stand, the conductor showed no interest at all in finding standing passengers a seat (to their side, the conductors seemed overwhelmed at that time).

When I was on an overbooked Meteor last year and had to step down to Coach from Washington to Richmond, the AC and Car Attendant quickly flushed out several non-rev CSX employees and sent them to the lounge; they were already flagged on the load sheet. They were still short on seats after that, and I volunteered to head to the lounge, as I figured the couple hour plus ride would be more interesting there than in a crammed Coach; it was.

 

[hermit]

Amtrak’s long-awaited CAF-built Viewliner II Dining Cars and Sleepers are one step closer to seeing revenue service. The first diner – #68001, the “Annapolis” – shipped from CAF’s Elmira, N.Y., plant on Tuesday and was moved to Hialeah, Fla., on the southbound Meteor the following day. Given the many issues brought up on previous inspections of the new design, Amtrak plans to take an extended period of time to test the car and be sure CAF has resolved any lingering issues. However, Amtrak management tells NARP they’re confident the problems are behind them. Sometime after the first of the year CAF will begin rolling out cars at a rate of two or three per month, Amtrak tells us, with all 25 diners delivered in the first half of 2017. The new Viewliner sleepers are next and Amtrak expects to get a final schedule for the production rollout of these cars within days.

 

[George K]

Can someone elaborate what the "many issues" were on the test diner?

 

[Bob Dylan]

".. all 25 Diners delivered in the first half of 2017. The new Viewliners sleepers are next.. "

Well isn't that Special?!!! If we're lucky well actually see these cars in our lifetimes!

 

[Thirdrail7]

You win the thread, good sir

This story is now on the internet...therefore, it must be as true as anything else in this tread...right? :hi:

Thank you. I was hoping you would get a laugh out of this. However, the joke is ultimately on everyone else. We will defer to the wise words of




I'm sure it will be exhibit "B" in the future! :giggle:

 

[neroden]

Well, I suppose it's good to check the new dining car over *thoroughly*, given the previous problems, but here's hoping everything checks out fine and they can cut the testing period short. Because if everything is working fine, one month should be enough to be sure that everything is working fine.

The baggage cars came out in a giant lump, not a few at a time. Frankly I don't believe "two or three a month", I think we'll see something much more irregular than that.