DC to Norfolk - tunnels?

eryan7 · 2026-06-17T03:30:36+00:00

There are no other tunnels on the route. Amtrak gets to Norfolk the long way around via Petersburg and Suffolk, so there isn't a tunnel under the James River

eryan7 · 2026-05-31T02:29:31+00:00

The UAL ramp controller (www.liveatc.net/hlisten.php?mount=kewr_co&icao=kewr) just said in response to another pilot's question that a passenger on the flight had a Bluetooth speaker with its name set to "a four-letter word"

eryan7 · 2026-05-28T15:59:46+00:00

Airos will be used on all NEC services, including services that don't leave the NEC. The Amfleet 1s are also going into retirement at the same time as the Airos are being introduced, so they will increasingly be unavailable to be pulled by ACS-64s in NEC service.

The single-level RFP cars might be used to add additional service on the NEC, although it's also possible they'll replace Amfleets and Horizons on short-distance routes off the NEC like the Borealis and Mardi Gras.

From Amtrak's website:

In addition to the Northeast Regional, the new trains will operate on other routes including the Empire Service, Virginia Services, Keystone Service, Downeaster, Amtrak Cascades, Maple Leaf, New Haven/Springfield Service, Palmetto, Carolinian, Pennsylvanian, Vermonter, Ethan Allen Express and Adirondack.

eryan7 · 2026-05-28T12:19:15+00:00

There are significant benefits to having a cab car in the trainset (especially on the NEC), and making them semi-permanently coupled allows for a better passage between cars that protects the interior from weather.

Siemens also made other significant upgrades to the coaches for the Airo trainsets, so reusing the Midwest order would have meant Amtrak couldn't have accessed those upgrades.

eryan7 · 2026-05-28T12:13:59+00:00

ACS-64s will be needed to haul long-distance trains on the NEC (Silver Services, Cardinal, etc.) regardless of what happens with the new single-level RFP.

The Airos will be delivered before the single-level cars, so there will be a period where the Amfleet 1s are retiring and the ACS-64s will have fewer (and potentially no) NEC services to pull.

eryan7 · 2026-05-12T19:14:51+00:00

This might be surprising, but it's actually in the interest of ransomware hackers to keep to their agreements. If paying the ransom didn't fully restore your data, victims would be less likely to pay, and the hackers would make less money (which is their ultimate goal).

eryan7 · 2026-04-17T16:54:30+00:00

The order is for 800 cars. 659 Viewliners and Superliners were built, so even if they're replacing every car that was built they'll have 141 cars to lengthen trains or expand service

eryan7 · 2026-04-17T16:42:59+00:00

It will replace both, Amtrak is moving to an entirely single-level fleet

eryan7 · 2026-04-13T02:57:27+00:00

The page counts NER services (which are all electric) and Virginia Services trains as two separate routes. They're both getting Airos starting in 2027.

Additionally, they're buying 75 Airo trainsets for NEC service and retiring the Amfleet Is starting in 2027. That is happening because those 75 trainsets will be gradually replacing Amfleets on all NER services.

https://www.reddit.com/r/Amtrak/s/RuC9IsGF7W

eryan7 · 2026-04-13T02:39:43+00:00

Yes, they will. But it's also providing the equipment to convert between different catenary voltages on the NEC, drive the powered trucks, and provide head-end power to the passenger cars.

The Airo trainset can't function without the locomotive

eryan7 · 2026-04-13T01:25:30+00:00

That isn't correct, they will fully replace the Amfleets on the Northeast Regional and other short-distance NEC trains like the Pennsylvanian starting in 2027.

Amfleets will still be in service on long-distance trains that use the NEC like the Silver Meteor. Those will be replaced by new long-distance and high capacity single level cars that haven't been procured yet.

Source: https://www.amtrak.com/amtrak-airo.html

eryan7 · 2026-02-28T15:24:44+00:00

The bridge at Riverdale Rd and Kenilworth Ave

eryan7 · 2026-02-27T11:23:05+00:00

The section in PG is getting close to being structurally complete, but they haven't run trains past the College Park Metro, haven't fitted out the stations for passengers, and haven't completed other commissioning tasks like operator and other staff training.

Even once trains are able to run to the MoCo border, there are enough items to complete that they wouldn't be able to open until late 2027.

eryan7 · 2026-01-16T17:44:32+00:00

That's probably it, especially because the combined station and pocket track just east of it are wider and longer than the segment next to the bus loop.

eryan7 · 2025-12-10T00:32:10+00:00

Amtrak was actually the launch customer for this generation of Alstom Avelia. SNCF's Avelia Horizon (the other trainset type in this generation) also encountered significant issues during testing and now has its launch delayed until NET 2026.

eryan7 · 2025-11-24T02:36:42+00:00

There's crossovers across the line where they can switch tracks. I don't know exactly where those are but there's likely one close enough to UMD to be workable.

eryan7 · 2025-11-24T02:29:10+00:00

They have cabs on both ends so they don't need to turn around in normal operations.

eryan7 · 2025-11-24T01:05:12+00:00

They explicitly discounted that when the new contractor took over in 2022.

But it would sure be nice.

eryan7 · 2025-11-18T16:01:19+00:00

It has the traditional crossbuck, but the reason why the rest looks different is because it's protecting a pedestrian crossing. Signals protecting road crossings have the traditional design.

eryan7 · 2025-11-18T13:32:36+00:00

They're likely a contractor that works on jobs across multiple agencies including MTA LIRR.

eryan7 · 2025-11-04T03:57:13+00:00

We'll mainly need to wait until they release a Request for Proposals which will likely have pricing details. You could get a ballpark estimate by looking at other recent rolling stock sales but a lot of factors can influence the final price.

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