Worst Trackage on Amtrak

[MARC Rider]

Generally speaking, the Northeast Corridor and Keystone Line (to Harrisburg) are higher-speed rail and are thus smooth.

Oh yeah? You need to ride on the track between the north portal of the Baltimore and Potomac Tunnel and Baltimore Penn Station. OK, it's only a couple of minutes, and the train is going pretty slowly, but you really do bounce around.

 

[BlackDiamond]

The Post Road connection from the ex-B&A Pittsfield - Selkirk line to the Albany Station traversed by the Lake Shore Boston Section used to be horrible. It is owned by Amtrak and they may have fixed it since then.

Rode the Post Road in September and it didn't seem too bad, although still jointed rail. There were worse spots on CSX and NS during the rest of the trip.

One problem seems to be the switches such as at passing sidings and industrial spurs. There seems to be a lot of lateral motion when traversing the switch. European railroads don't seem to have this problem by and large. Maybe we should figure out what they are doing differently. I realize their trains especially freight are lighter and most likely are easier on the track.

 

[George Harris]

One problem seems to be the switches such as at passing sidings and industrial spurs. There seems to be a lot of lateral motion when traversing the switch. European railroads don't seem to have this problem by and large. Maybe we should figure out what they are doing differently. I realize their trains especially freight are lighter and most likely are easier on the track.

First and foremost, aside from light average and maximum axle loads, the European systems spend a lot more per unit of traffic on maintenance than the US systems. Second, safety limits are well beyond comfortable. Third, most European turnout geometries are for the most part simpler and thus smoother than those in the US, and thus tend to be smoother riding, Fourth, because of this and other factors, internal designs and operating mechanisms are much more complex and thus more expensive to fabricate and maintain than US (along with Canadian and Mexican) designs. In general, the North American concept is rugged simplicity, and the European designs have neither.

 

[Seaboard92]

First and foremost, aside from light average and maximum axle loads, the European systems spend a lot more per unit of traffic on maintenance than the US systems. Second, safety limits are well beyond comfortable. Third, most European turnout geometries are for the most part simpler and thus smoother than those in the US, and thus tend to be smoother riding, Fourth, because of this and other factors, internal designs and operating mechanisms are much more complex and thus more expensive to fabricate and maintain than US (along with Canadian and Mexican) designs. In general, the North American concept is rugged simplicity, and the European designs have neither.

I would say the Russian system is still fairly simplistic. And by far they have some of the best track I've ever ridden on. And definitely the best train handling I've ever had.

 

[denmarks]

Can it be this bad? ND&W Railway

 

[Cal]

Can it be this bad? ND&W Railway

View attachment 25295

It would be cool to see a picture of the track once a year from when it was installed to today.

 

[bratkinson]

I'm amazed at how quickly the brand new 2nd main between New Haven and Hartford CT has lost it's being smooth. Even the reworked (I think) original track isn't anywhere near as smooth as it was 2 years ago. They're both 'jiggly', nothing serious. Goes to show what a wet winter with lots of rain then freezing can do. The national weather bureau is predicting a warmer and wetter winter this season, too.

 

[dlagrua]

We've experienced quite a few bumpy spots on our trips over the years but if I were to pick the roughest overall ride it would have to be on the Autotrain. The reason being that it makes no stops along the way and runs along at a steady 72 MPH. When a train makes a stop or extended stop it gives one a chance to fall asleep. Except for the stop in Florence, SC the Auto train keeps moving all night and it can be rock n roll most of the trip. We find it hard to get a good night sleep on the CSX freight track to Florida. Norfolk Southerns track seems somewhat better on the other routes

 

[Bob Dylan]

The Old Mopac/Katy and SP Tracks around San Antonio ( now UP) on the Texas Eagle and Sunset Ltd. Routes are extremely rough, resulting in Slow orders for the Trains as they wind their way around San Antonio to reach and depart the Sunset Station.

 

[Pipp]

Obviously when not trying to sleep: I kind of look forward to rough track. It can make ride more interesting . The only thing I don't like about is the stuff that raddles, that could be rather loud and obnoxious.

 

[Cal]

Obviously when not trying to sleep: I kind of look forward to rough track. It can make ride more interesting . The only thing I don't like about is the stuff that raddles, that could be rather loud and obnoxious.

But when you’re sitting in the SSL it can be fun!

I also like turbulence when flying (sometimes).

 

[Qapla]

Do you also enjoy driving on a road full of potholes?

 

[Pipp]

A road full potholes? No! You got be slow and careful with those or you'll mess up your car. I have yet to encounter anything on the rails as nasty as those if you speed across them.

 

[Rasputin]

We took a pretty hard bump on the Southbound Crescent in May of 2019 at dinner south of DC. It was so hard that it bumped a fellow at our table in the dining car out of his seat and onto the floor (fortunately without injury). I think he was sitting a bit on the edge of his seat but still the result was kind of extraordinary. I don't know what caused that bump but in years of riding passenger trains that was about the hardest hit I have felt. Fortunately it was confined to that one spot only.

 

[Cal]

Do you also enjoy driving on a road full of potholes?

Not quite, nor do I enjoy waves when sailing.

 

[daybeers]

It's definitely the cars, too. Remember, all of Amtrak's equipment is 30-50 years old except for the Acela, which is over 20.

I'm amazed at how quickly the brand new 2nd main between New Haven and Hartford CT has lost it's being smooth. Even the reworked (I think) original track isn't anywhere near as smooth as it was 2 years ago. They're both 'jiggly', nothing serious. Goes to show what a wet winter with lots of rain then freezing can do. The national weather bureau is predicting a warmer and wetter winter this season, too.

On the Amtrak or CTrail trains, or both? The engines aren't smooth either and have trouble at the higher speeds and acceleration/deceleration, which they're not built for.

I know they did some work on the line a couple months ago.

 

[George Harris]

I would say the Russian system is still fairly simplistic. And by far they have some of the best track I've ever ridden on. And definitely the best train handling I've ever had.

Nice to know and all that, but don't see how it relates to what I had said. What I wrote was in response to what AmtrakMaineiac said about rough rides across switches, as to why that was so compared to the smoother ride across European switches. It was not talking about ride quality in general. Much of what I said about comparability between US and European systems, meaning Western Europe, is not relevant to the Russian system, anyway. I know nothing of the designs of Russian turnouts (in normal railroad engineering, the switch refers to the movable part only, the total unit enabling divergence from one track to another is called a turnout). In general terms, Russian track and loadings are more nearly American than European, beyond that I know very little so I will say to more.

 

[jis]

In general terms, Russian track and loadings are more nearly American than European, beyond that I know very little so I will say to more.

Although the Russian track gauge is larger than American by a few inches.

 

[AmHope]

It's definitely the cars, too. Remember, all of Amtrak's equipment is 30-50 years old except for the Acela, which is over 20.

VL2s are brand new, don't know what the ride quality is like since I haven't been on one yet.