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Amtrak dome to return to ‘Adirondack’ this fall
Yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!
I’ll have to try and ride it again… great photo by Kevin Burkholder. Thanks to Amtrak for bringing the great dome back again!
FUBAR! When will the west coast (Pacific Surf Liners) see a bit of an accommodation from Amtrak? Domes are outstanding from San Diego to San Luis Obispo - do you “eastern liberal MBA types know nothing” west of the Delaware Water Gap?
Amtrak needs to add some domes to their Viewliner order so that this and other scenic routes that use single level equipment can have domes full time. In some cases the dome may need to be the last car so it can be easily removed if a portion of the route doesn’t have the clearance. An example would be Chicago to Washington on the Cardinal. If they can’t get domes, at the very least, Viewliner lounges should have wrap around windows like the Superliner lounges.
Since domes are a selling point for passenger trains, Amtrak needs to think about ordering new dome cars. Seats could be sold as a premium class thus add to the revenue for equipped trains.
Way to get the Business!! ( although it took 3 organizations to do it!)
Good point, Mel. I agree.
Are they going to bring it to Chicago again this year. My son and I rode it last year to and from Milwaukee and it was really cool.
Mr. Turon: While I heartily agree the return of the dome and the keeping of this several season tradition is worth celebrating, it’s not worth the “Yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!” (I think I got the number of "a"s and exclamation points). What WOULD be worth all that would be the filling of the two hour gap between Nos.236&280 with a new train originating at Saratoga Springs.
That train would be scheduled in and of ALB in the 0900-0920 slot, exactly an hour between those others. It would occupy the same slot on Metro North that #236 falls in an hour earlier.
Given that #280 is subject to “the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune” across CSX, that first train to end a two hour gap in service can, and probably often does, widen the gap to up to three hours. Of course, that potentially puts #280 and #290 up against each other. I’ll bet lots of the passengers who book on #280, not knowing how vulnerable the train is to running late feel rather burned and and don’t come back. If Megabus, up at the north end of the Rensselaer parking lot, happens to schedule a NY trip between 0900 and 0930, they’ll wind up with the repeat business Amtrak might have gotten.
I haven’t looked at it but I’m sure we can find a marketable time for the afternoon/evening return. Currently, #291, the Ethan Allen Express, is the last chance express for any wanting north of ALB. Now this train is far more deserving of your exclamation. Maybe your Mr. Becker should use his good offices and energy to lobby for this tremendous improvement rather than celebrate the retirement from NARP of that utterly useless Ross Capon.
Of course, to implement this service enhancement, Amtrak/NYStateDOT is going to need those six additional cars Mr. Becker says is one of several critical goals he wants to achieve. Problem is I don’t see any sources for the additional cars. Do you remember Amtrak California purchasing some 12-15 Com
Maybe Amtrak could repurchase a few of these big domes then a train or two could have them on a regular basis. The Cardinal and the Adirondack would be prime candidates, not to mention the Boston secti
on of the LSL.
I would like to see a dome on the Missouri Mule.
Big deal, the car will fill up with passengers grabbing the seats and not moving. Some will be sleeping. Only a small fraction of passengers will ever enjoy the view.
The on board staff will politely request they share…
Sigh…don’t know why they bother.
I really am not a cynical person, really, but dome cars have always been a big disappointment.
Kevin
Mr. Weaver, I am not blaming Amtrak for service gaps between ALB and NYP. If you read what I wrote, I am blaming a NYState DOT and a governor who doesn’t seem to care whether Amtrak runs or doesn’t run in the state.
Amtrak will gladly operate a train dropped in the slot between Nos. 236 and 280. I got the idea of a Saratoga Springs start that would fill that gap south of ALB, with the added bang of adding service to SAR, from none other than Amtrak supervisor I’m acquainted with. What ya’ll think of that?
And it’s the states that now with the PRIIA and the newly proposed PRRIA that have to be the driving forces behind these short to medium services. If NYState decides it wants more and better service it will have to be them that goes out for equipment orders, not Amtrak. Amtrak will run with what they are given.
It’s not that NYState doesn’t want to spend on transportation. It’s where they are choosing to spend. How many trains could be equipped for the $$$ going to the new TZ/I-87 Bridge? And you’d better believe that NYState residents will be paying for generations to come for that bridge. It might even be more than the added trains would cost.
Mr. Turon: While I heartily agree the return of the dome and the keeping of this several season tradition is worth celebrating, it’s not worth the “Yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!” (I think I got the number of "a"s and exclamation points). What WOULD be worth all that would be the filling of the two hour gap between Nos.236&280 with a new train originating at Saratoga Springs.
That train would be scheduled in and of ALB in the 0900-0920 slot, exactly an hour between those others. It would occupy the same slot on Metro North that #236 falls in an hour earlier.
These comments and the ones that follow by the same poster border on ridiculous. Amtrak is providing the best ever service between Albany and New York. The service is convenient for both regular commuters and casual riders and is consistant throughout the day. There is no gap at any time during the day of greater than two hours. Compare this with earlier Amtrak timetables which at one time showed service down to only five (5) round trips between the two cities. New York Central might have had a greater number of trains at one time but most of them were geared to long distance runs and not service between Albany and New York. If you want more service out of Albany prepare to pay for it in more equipment, more locomotives and other improvements that would be necessary in this case.
Noel Weaver
Mr. Turon: While I heartily agree the return of the dome and the keeping of this several season tradition is worth celebrating, it’s not worth the “Yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!” (I think I got the number of "a"s and exclamation points). What WOULD be worth all that would be the filling of the two hour gap between Nos.236&280 with a new train originating at Saratoga Springs.
That train would be scheduled in and of ALB in the 0900-0920 slot, exactly an hour between those others. It would occupy the same slot on Metro North that #236 falls in an hour earlier.
These comments and the ones that follow by the same poster border on ridiculous. Amtrak is providing the best ever service between Albany and New York. The service is convenient for both regular commuters and casual riders and is consistant throughout the day. There is no gap at any time during the day of greater than two hours. Compare this with earlier Amtrak timetables which at one time showed service down to only five (5) round trips between the two cities. New York Central might have had a greater number of trains at one time but most of them were geared to long distance runs and not service between Albany and New York. If you want more service out of Albany prepare to pay for it in more equipment, more locomotives and other improvements that would be necessary in this case.
Noel Weaver
Mr. Turon: While I heartily agree the return of the dome and the keeping of this several season tradition is worth celebrating, it’s not worth the “Yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!” (I think I got the number of "a"s and exclamation points). What WOULD be worth all that would be the filling of the two hour gap between Nos.236&280 with a new train originating at Saratoga Springs.
That train would be scheduled in and of ALB in the 0900-0920 slot, exactly an hour between those others. It would occupy the same slot on Metro North that #236 falls in an hour earlier.
These comments and the ones that follow by the same poster border on ridiculous. Amtrak is providing the best ever service between Albany and New York. The service is convenient for both regular commuters and casual riders and is consistant throughout the day. There is no gap at any time during the day of greater than two hours. Compare this with earlier Amtrak timetables which at one time showed service down to only five (5) round trips between the two cities. New York Central might have had a greater number of trains at one time but most of them were geared to long distance runs and not service between Albany and New York. If you want more service out of Albany prepare to pay for it in more equipment, more locomotives and other improvements that would be necessary in this case.
Noel Weaver