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Dtowncitylover
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Username: Dtowncitylover

Post Number: 456
Registered: 02-2008
Posted on Tuesday, January 27, 2009 - 4:50 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

I saw the mid afternoon Amtrak today with Superliner cars...or double decker passsanger cars. I wonder why this was?
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Alan55
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Username: Alan55

Post Number: 2549
Registered: 09-2005
Posted on Tuesday, January 27, 2009 - 7:50 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

I have read that Amtrak in Michigan is capacity-constrained by not having enough rolling stock to handle the increase in passengesr they have experienced in the last several years. The article said that Amtrak would have served even more passengers than the record they had in 2008 if they had the cars.

I suspect what you witnessed was Amtrak pressing every available railroad car into service.
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Scs100
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Username: Scs100

Post Number: 1458
Registered: 12-2006
Posted on Tuesday, January 27, 2009 - 9:27 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

It's also possible the Horizon cars were frozen. The Superliner cars don't freeze, so they occasionally replace Horizon or Budd cars.
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Dtowncitylover
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Username: Dtowncitylover

Post Number: 459
Registered: 02-2008
Posted on Tuesday, January 27, 2009 - 10:26 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

That's probably why Scs, when I took Amtrak a few weekends ago to Chicago, they cancelled our 7 am train (went by bus instead :-() because of the freezing. For a moment I thought Detroit had commuter rail.
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Gravitymachine
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Username: Gravitymachine

Post Number: 1673
Registered: 05-2005
Posted on Wednesday, January 28, 2009 - 4:18 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

what do you mean by "freezing"? what freezes?

which cars are which?

(Message edited by gravitymachine on January 28, 2009)
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Dtowncitylover
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Username: Dtowncitylover

Post Number: 464
Registered: 02-2008
Posted on Wednesday, January 28, 2009 - 4:31 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Superliner=double decker
Horizon=one floor

Also, I don't remember a Cafe Car, but perhaps that was intergrated with one of the cars. But Gravity, I don't know either. Perhaps the rails or the engine...that's all they told us.
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Gravitymachine
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Username: Gravitymachine

Post Number: 1674
Registered: 05-2005
Posted on Wednesday, January 28, 2009 - 4:51 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

i was wondering what the distinction was between horizon and budd cars was. i know some times trains are made up of some cars with a square cross section and larger windows, and others with a more trapazoidal cross section with smaller windows. just wondering if scs100 knew which was which and if he had more info on them
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Raptor56
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Username: Raptor56

Post Number: 730
Registered: 05-2007
Posted on Thursday, January 29, 2009 - 4:54 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Engines fill with snow. Lavatory pipes freeze. Rail Switches freeze and have to be cleared.

http://articles.latimes.com/20 08/dec/24/nation/na-winter-oha re-amtrak24
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Scs100
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Username: Scs100

Post Number: 1459
Registered: 12-2006
Posted on Friday, January 30, 2009 - 8:17 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Horizon cars have one contiguous window (the long piece of glass). Budd cars look like aluminum cans and have separated windows (the bar in the middle of the window).

Budd




Horizon


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Reddog289
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Username: Reddog289

Post Number: 881
Registered: 08-2007
Posted on Saturday, January 31, 2009 - 2:20 am:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Saw the superliner cars myself, and I swear it wasn,t the 1st time.

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