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Amtrak to operate 165 mph test trains on Northeast Corridor, 110 mph in Illinois
It sure seems to me that the State of Illinois has it’s act together. It’s really refreshing to hear that a state is willing to provide mobility that is civilised and enviromentally friendly and that will be less dependant on fossil fuels.
Will this be a test of true “High Speed” operation under the old PRR fixed catenary, or have all the test segments been upgraded to constant tension? The ability of the original PRR electrification to support true high speeds has been in question for a long time.
I ride the Acela and Regional trains and would call the ride generally good. It could be better; like Europe, but as long as Amtrak is kept on anemic funding it will never be quite like European or Japanese systems. In all fairness the NEC is a railroad whose traffic load and diversity is unlike any one of those systems.
Perhaps Fritz (the author of the letter referenced in Howards comment) has never taken a train before let alone one traveling over 130MPH and hence found the unfamiliar motions experienced perhaps startling; definitely different than those on an airplane. Perhaps it’s because I have ridden them so much I don’t find it startling; and given passenger loads quite a few must share that sentiment.
There are some lateral jerks at speed through some interlocking’s but overall it’s not bad. I personally have never had an issue with a beverage and most people who have used the restroom on a moving train know that short of sitting down when urinating its best to take a firm stance, lean to the wall or hold onto the handicap rail so your motions mimic the trains. I do the same thing in flight.
While trains freight and passenger have derailed at far less speed, accidents can happen for many reasons even on impeccable systems as was the case with a German ICE in 1998.
I think Amtrak is safety conscious and knows what they are doing; their record in the NEC is excellent. Perhaps at some point the federal government will fund it properly so that they will be able to do even better.
Congratulations to Amtrak for finally catching up to 1960s Japanese “bullet trains” speedwise in the Northeast Corridor, and pre-diesel passenger train speeds in Illinois & Michigan. Still, Amtrak intercity passenger ridership will soar if the recently proposed doubling of auto mileage standards (CAFE) manages to finally kill off Detroit after starting to cripple the U.S. auto industry in the '70s & '80s. Who wants to share the interstate highways with 80,000-pound semi rigs in a 500-pound motorized skateboard?
About time
About time
About time
After reading the letter on page 5 of the Sept. issue by Fritz Kahn I think they should think things through about going
any faster on the North East corridor until tracks are upgraded
and maintained for any high speed trains are even tried.
Gaining a few miles per hour on limited stretches of track will not accomplish much if the train has to crawl though the maze of switches to reach stations, as is the case with the Zephyr in Denver and Salt Lake City, to name only two.
These are all just peices of a puzzle coming together with the greatest gain being the advertising of 160+ mph speeds. And even though no infrastructure has been built to accomadate these higher speeds just yet, isn’t it interesting that they are being conducted just before a big election? Wilmington to Perryville would seem a natural for such speeds - though not sure why such tests were being ran if no funding is in place. I suppose, since things were in place it was easiest to add on the tests and keep fingers crossed in preparation for any future bidding.
The track segment in New Jersey was completely upgraded with new rails and concrete ties to 175 max speeds over two years ago. The holdup has been the signal upgrade as well as replacing the existing very old catenary system with a constant tension system.