I am actually pretty dumbfounded with the reaction to 12 car single level trains. That was a pretty normal train length back in the day, 8-12 cars being very common. It isn't that long.
I am of the opinion that if Amtrak does make a long distance car order, it will be single level. The contortions required to make bilevels fully ADA compliant are just too much, and the discussion here does not make me any more confident of it. In any case, Amtrak will almost certainly apply the KISS principle and keeping it simple points towards single level, single fleet.
With that said, I do think there should be dedicated lounge space that is not a table car. Wraparound windows are not a function of height. Something akin to the Seaboard Air Line's Sun Lounges could servce as a model. I know I am dreaming wildly, but I actually think in terms of non-revenue cars, a single level long distance train should have a diner, lounge, and cafe as separate cars. That is very analagous to pre-Amtrak operations, where name trains tended to have both diners and coffee shop/counter service cars as well as lounge cars.
While I think coach passengers should have access to the diner, I don't really consider that terribly germane to the equipment discussion. Running a diner versus who has access to it are two different things. At this point, I still think the restriction is more of a function of the staffing shortages and am still hopeful it is temporary.
We are seeing the result ADA requirements in the Venture cars, with narrower seats with wider aisles. I do not know if they will pass a wheelchair, but they are ADA compliant. They have to be, they are not grandfathered as virtually all current Amtrak equipment is. I imagine in a new generation of sleeping cars, we will likewise see wider aisles. In sleepers, that may force all accommodations to be transverse to direction of travel with a side aisle as required aisle width may preclude reasonable sleeper accommodations being available on either side of a center aisle.
Dining cars are toward the center of trains that don't split. The Builder, even a full pre-COVID consist Builder, is not the longest walk to the diner from a sleeper. That honor goes to the Boston sleeper on the Lake Shore.
I am of the opinion that if Amtrak does make a long distance car order, it will be single level. The contortions required to make bilevels fully ADA compliant are just too much, and the discussion here does not make me any more confident of it. In any case, Amtrak will almost certainly apply the KISS principle and keeping it simple points towards single level, single fleet.
With that said, I do think there should be dedicated lounge space that is not a table car. Wraparound windows are not a function of height. Something akin to the Seaboard Air Line's Sun Lounges could servce as a model. I know I am dreaming wildly, but I actually think in terms of non-revenue cars, a single level long distance train should have a diner, lounge, and cafe as separate cars. That is very analagous to pre-Amtrak operations, where name trains tended to have both diners and coffee shop/counter service cars as well as lounge cars.
While I think coach passengers should have access to the diner, I don't really consider that terribly germane to the equipment discussion. Running a diner versus who has access to it are two different things. At this point, I still think the restriction is more of a function of the staffing shortages and am still hopeful it is temporary.
We are seeing the result ADA requirements in the Venture cars, with narrower seats with wider aisles. I do not know if they will pass a wheelchair, but they are ADA compliant. They have to be, they are not grandfathered as virtually all current Amtrak equipment is. I imagine in a new generation of sleeping cars, we will likewise see wider aisles. In sleepers, that may force all accommodations to be transverse to direction of travel with a side aisle as required aisle width may preclude reasonable sleeper accommodations being available on either side of a center aisle.
Dining cars are toward the center of trains that don't split. The Builder, even a full pre-COVID consist Builder, is not the longest walk to the diner from a sleeper. That honor goes to the Boston sleeper on the Lake Shore.
Last edited:
