The answer may be hither and yon ?
Newswire today states that Illinois is ging to start 110 PH service on a 18 mile streach of the CHI - STL route. The time savings will be from 3 min 12 seconds to 3 minutes 39 seconds depending on how the 110 PH speed will be obtained on this 18 mile streach. It also states that Horizon equipment is going to be replaced with Amfleet equipment.. For various reasons I have missed riding the Horizon cars so have several questions.
1. I get the feeling that some riders perceive the Horizon cars interiors somewhat inferior to Amfleet ?
2. What about the ride ?
3. Lincoln service requires 4 train sets of up to 6 cars ?
4. If so that will require 24 + 3 or 4 Amfleet spares to cover the service.
5. Are all Horizon cars set up for corridor service ?
6. Amtrak has stated in its Silver Meteor service improvement plan that they could only increase to 5 coaches by careful scheduling of Amfleet equipment.
7. So from where will the Amfleet cars for Lincoln service be taken and Horizon cars then substituted ?
8. Will maintenance then be decentralized on the Horizon cars causing a lower availability of the Horizons ?
9. It will be 2013 - 2014 before the California car style bi-levels will come into service on Lincoln trains ?
10..Where ever the Horizons go there will be complaints ?
They are not going to use Horizon Cars for very long. Illinois is going to purchase the new Amtrak double deck cars based on the Pacific Surfliner as a intermediate solution until they can fund an upgrade to 220 mph on Chicago - St. Louis. The Illinois part of the car order I think was $250-270 million and includes locomotives. Missouri was included to replace the equipment St. Louis to Kansas City, not sure how many or how much Missouri is buying.
So much for Wisconsin and it's Talgo plans to supply the Midwest HSR (I had a pretty good idea that was going to fail).
CMStPnP They are not going to use Horizon Cars for very long. Illinois is going to purchase the new Amtrak double deck cars based on the Pacific Surfliner as a intermediate solution until they can fund an upgrade to 220 mph on Chicago - St. Louis. The Illinois part of the car order I think was $250-270 million and includes locomotives. Missouri was included to replace the equipment St. Louis to Kansas City, not sure how many or how much Missouri is buying.
So the question remains ---- Where will the Horizon cars be assigned once these new cars are placed in service ? They certainly are not slated for early retirement.
blue streak 1 So the question remains ---- Where will the Horizon cars be assigned once these new cars are placed in service ? They certainly are not slated for early retirement.
The Horizons won't be replaced that quickly in the mid-West. The combined order is for 130 bi-level corridor cars, 42 to CA, the rest to the participating mid-West states (IL, MO, MI, maybe IA), which is mostly funded by federal HSIPR grants. The order is still in the long RFP and bid process with the order expected to be awarded in August or later. The requested date for delivery of the first bi-levels is FY2015. The deadline is that most of the cars have to be delivered by September, 2017 when the ARRA HSIPR funds expire.
The bi-level corridor cars are hardly an intermediate solution as any 220 mph Chicago-St. Louis corridor service is several decades away at best. Besides, there will be plenty of 79 to 110 mph corridors to use them on in the mid-West and West for the next 30-40 years.
As for what happens to the Horizon cars in 5-15 years, that is pretty much To Be Determined. Some may stay in the mid-West to expand service until more bi-levels are ordered. If the Miami to Jacksonville FEC corridor service happens in Florida, some could be used there on a interim basis. Some may go to reserve for use on busy peak holiday periods in the east.
Horizon Fleet was a "Quick and Dirty" response by Amtrak to a car-shortage. Amtrak ordered a commuter train car modified with a more comfortable interior. The model for Horizon Fleet was a Pullman-built car first used on the Erie-Lackawanna commuter service in New Jersey and New York. Later versions of the same car were delivered to the MBTA as well.
What follows is my opinion.
Car Interiors: Small windows, but the cars have a traditional railcar profile--not the Amfleet taper. I personally find it easier to see from an aisle seat in Horizon cars than in Amfleet I cars. Horizon cafe cars were built both with a small "First Class" section and as all-table cars. For a time in California on the San Joaquins a sit-down, waiter diner service was provided in Horizon dinettes. I experienced this on several trips and found it surprisingly nice. However the food was prepared in convection/microwave ovens. There was nothing really prepared fresh on-board.
Ride: Moderately bouncy, but not much worse than Amfleet I. However as a conventional car design the Horizon Fleet was not intended to run at speeds in excess of 105mph--the same restriction that applies to "Heritage Fleet".
Car Flaws: Like most Pullman-built equipment the car-bodies are somewhat rust prone. In addition the smooth-sided car shells typically stain and look dirty even after washing. Finally as originally delivered there was inadequate insulation for the extreme cold of midwest winters. Even after 20+ years of service Horizon cars still suffer more than Budd equipment from freeze-ups.
I can't answer the questions on numbers of cars/trainsets in the Lincoln service pool. However the reference to adding cars to the Silver Meteor is a bit confusing. Amtrak is short not of Amfleet 1 (non-leg rest) coaches. What is in short supply is the larger window, lower capacity Amfleet 2 leg-rest cars intended for long-haul trains like the Silver Meteor.
Amtrak had a substantial number of Amfleet 1 cars in storage. Stimulus funds and increased business have brought many of these back. It's reasonable to expect that Horizon Cars may appear on the eastcoast in selected services, perhaps the Empire Service, replacing Amfleet 1 moved to the midwest. It's just as likely that Amtrak would like to retire the bulk of the Horizon cars.
Carl Fowler
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