Amtrak BRAND NEW Siemens coaches - Lincoln service
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Date: 2024-01-09
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Comments and reviews: 35
-nancyogard6722
I'm an avid train rider & have ridden most if not all Amtrak's trains. The station in Chicago is beautiful but the workers are, most of them, are rude & not help especially those with disabilities & elderly, as I am both. Those seats your sitting in now do not look very comfortable, even for a short ride but taking the train from Seattle to Miami could be a rough ride, I've done that several times. My favorite train is the California Zepher, the scenery is awesome. I take the Empire Builder & during the winter going through Glazier National Park with all the snow gives off a feeling of calm & tranquility. I would hope that that all Amtrak could put in newer seats. The smartest upgrade they did was add 2 electrical outlets for every seat. But one thing is all the cut backs which reduce attendance help, it use to be one for every car but now it's one for every 2 cars. Maybe in time Amtrak change things back to one per car.
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I'm an avid train rider & have ridden most if not all Amtrak's trains. The station in Chicago is beautiful but the workers are, most of them, are rude & not help especially those with disabilities & elderly, as I am both. Those seats your sitting in now do not look very comfortable, even for a short ride but taking the train from Seattle to Miami could be a rough ride, I've done that several times. My favorite train is the California Zepher, the scenery is awesome. I take the Empire Builder & during the winter going through Glazier National Park with all the snow gives off a feeling of calm & tranquility. I would hope that that all Amtrak could put in newer seats. The smartest upgrade they did was add 2 electrical outlets for every seat. But one thing is all the cut backs which reduce attendance help, it use to be one for every car but now it's one for every 2 cars. Maybe in time Amtrak change things back to one per car.
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train
my son and i take the texas eagle to st. louis and the lincoln service (older coaches-) back to chicago a few times every year, and we gave never had a worse experience than we had riding in these new cars. we enjoy the comfort of riding the train rather than being squeezed into a plane seat, and these seats are terrible for someone who is used to the older coach comforts. they hardly recline, they are hard and small. we prefer the comfort, and are nor so concerned about the restrooms. we don-t usually spend five hours in them admiring the amenities. our old computer train we take to get to union station from the suburbs is more comfortable than these cars are.
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my son and i take the texas eagle to st. louis and the lincoln service (older coaches-) back to chicago a few times every year, and we gave never had a worse experience than we had riding in these new cars. we enjoy the comfort of riding the train rather than being squeezed into a plane seat, and these seats are terrible for someone who is used to the older coach comforts. they hardly recline, they are hard and small. we prefer the comfort, and are nor so concerned about the restrooms. we don-t usually spend five hours in them admiring the amenities. our old computer train we take to get to union station from the suburbs is more comfortable than these cars are.
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-phronsiekeys
It will be a negative experience adjusting from the Amfleet coaches to these European style seats for a 5+ hour ride. The look similar to what I took 2nd class on Eurostar--miserable! Otherwise the cars look wonderful with wheelchair accessible aisles, bike storage and stairs doing away with those awful little yellow platform stools. The great tragedy to me of this video is that the grand station that used to be in St Louis, sending traffic all over the US as a major rail hub with a mighty glass train shed, is now a combo shopping mall entertainment complex, instead of a real station. How the mighty have fallen.
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It will be a negative experience adjusting from the Amfleet coaches to these European style seats for a 5+ hour ride. The look similar to what I took 2nd class on Eurostar--miserable! Otherwise the cars look wonderful with wheelchair accessible aisles, bike storage and stairs doing away with those awful little yellow platform stools. The great tragedy to me of this video is that the grand station that used to be in St Louis, sending traffic all over the US as a major rail hub with a mighty glass train shed, is now a combo shopping mall entertainment complex, instead of a real station. How the mighty have fallen.
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-tomgauger949
You mentioned a -bad crew- on the CHI -STL run. On my trips crew attitude varies widely and is particularly uncaring on the NE corridor. Some of the attitude problems may be due to unions making discipline difficult and termination almost impossible. Many car attendents could care less about the passenger.
However, NE corridor passengers can really be rude and downright nasty and not respectful of fellow passengers or crew. Almost as bad as airline passengers.
Unlike airlines, Amttak can stop in the middle of nowhere and kick passengers off.
They have been known to do that!
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You mentioned a -bad crew- on the CHI -STL run. On my trips crew attitude varies widely and is particularly uncaring on the NE corridor. Some of the attitude problems may be due to unions making discipline difficult and termination almost impossible. Many car attendents could care less about the passenger.
However, NE corridor passengers can really be rude and downright nasty and not respectful of fellow passengers or crew. Almost as bad as airline passengers.
Unlike airlines, Amttak can stop in the middle of nowhere and kick passengers off.
They have been known to do that!
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-FlaThunderstorm
Stephen Gardner, the CEO of Amtrak from January 2022, seems to be responsible for the many improvements that Amtrak has made and with future improvements on the way. Maybe he will finally bring America's railroads into the 21st century. If so we should all give this man a round of applause. With the huge size of the US it is diffcult, if not impossible, to match the railroads of Europe or Asia that have so much smaller areas to work with. My country could truly use high speed rail to compete with airlines and automobiles and to provide a comfortable safe way to travel.
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Stephen Gardner, the CEO of Amtrak from January 2022, seems to be responsible for the many improvements that Amtrak has made and with future improvements on the way. Maybe he will finally bring America's railroads into the 21st century. If so we should all give this man a round of applause. With the huge size of the US it is diffcult, if not impossible, to match the railroads of Europe or Asia that have so much smaller areas to work with. My country could truly use high speed rail to compete with airlines and automobiles and to provide a comfortable safe way to travel.
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-de-fault_de-fault
Honestly I'm a pretty large person and even I find the Amfleet seats comically oversized. They're comfortable, obviously (better in Amfleet 1 with the refurb a few years ago than in Amfleet 2, but so are the much smaller Acela seats, so all that bulk is not really necessary, as long as you have good support. The Venture seats look to have better headrests, which I will definitely appreciate once they reach the east coast. I'm not concerned at all that the seats are a -downgrade, - honestly. It really seems to be an overblown issue.
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Honestly I'm a pretty large person and even I find the Amfleet seats comically oversized. They're comfortable, obviously (better in Amfleet 1 with the refurb a few years ago than in Amfleet 2, but so are the much smaller Acela seats, so all that bulk is not really necessary, as long as you have good support. The Venture seats look to have better headrests, which I will definitely appreciate once they reach the east coast. I'm not concerned at all that the seats are a -downgrade, - honestly. It really seems to be an overblown issue.
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-mrvwbug4423
Now they need to update the big double decker sleeper cars they run out west, and work on getting line speeds up on the western lines, though I'm not sure UPRR or BNSF has any interest in helping Amtrak get the line speeds up to 125mph on the California Zephyr or Empire Builder. Both railroads also go out of their way to oppose ANY effort to electrify their lines, the feds could literally promise to pay 100% of the costs to convert the UPRR and BNSF freight mainlines to electric and they would still refuse.
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Now they need to update the big double decker sleeper cars they run out west, and work on getting line speeds up on the western lines, though I'm not sure UPRR or BNSF has any interest in helping Amtrak get the line speeds up to 125mph on the California Zephyr or Empire Builder. Both railroads also go out of their way to oppose ANY effort to electrify their lines, the feds could literally promise to pay 100% of the costs to convert the UPRR and BNSF freight mainlines to electric and they would still refuse.
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-MrGeforcerFX
the car would be closer to 30kg of CO2, most modern cars average 2kg per 25 miles. If you have a modern high efficiency or hybrid electric (toyota Prius style) then you could be around 10kg for the trip. Then you have those mad lads with full electric, they are prob beating the train. Also fun part to calculate if you want to get really intricate is how much of your CO2 emission is surface carbon vs fossil fuel, since the US especially in the midwest uses added ethanol, that would be surface carbon.
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the car would be closer to 30kg of CO2, most modern cars average 2kg per 25 miles. If you have a modern high efficiency or hybrid electric (toyota Prius style) then you could be around 10kg for the trip. Then you have those mad lads with full electric, they are prob beating the train. Also fun part to calculate if you want to get really intricate is how much of your CO2 emission is surface carbon vs fossil fuel, since the US especially in the midwest uses added ethanol, that would be surface carbon.
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-UnshavenStatue
In Chicago Union, the passenger lounge was the standard waiting place for many years, then in like 2015 or 2018 or something, I can't remember, they made the Great Hall the standard waiting room and made the lounge reserved only for special needs passengers (families/seniors/disabled/etc. Of course, the Great Panic of 2020 greatly reduced the passenger load, making the extra space of the Great Hall redundant again. Maybe ridership will rebound, but I doubt it.
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In Chicago Union, the passenger lounge was the standard waiting place for many years, then in like 2015 or 2018 or something, I can't remember, they made the Great Hall the standard waiting room and made the lounge reserved only for special needs passengers (families/seniors/disabled/etc. Of course, the Great Panic of 2020 greatly reduced the passenger load, making the extra space of the Great Hall redundant again. Maybe ridership will rebound, but I doubt it.
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-ravibetzig7849
I loved your review! I was lucky enough to ride in one of the Siemens Venture coaches on Lincoln Service 301 a few weeks ago. The Amtrak employees on the train told me that the Illinois Services will see the cars first and they will be coming to the Michigan Services and the Hiawatha Service within two years. I think the Missouri River Runner will get them too. The Siemens Venture cafe car+business cars are coming in a bit as well, according to the employee.
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I loved your review! I was lucky enough to ride in one of the Siemens Venture coaches on Lincoln Service 301 a few weeks ago. The Amtrak employees on the train told me that the Illinois Services will see the cars first and they will be coming to the Michigan Services and the Hiawatha Service within two years. I think the Missouri River Runner will get them too. The Siemens Venture cafe car+business cars are coming in a bit as well, according to the employee.
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-rx7cl
Kool video man, sucks about the Crew. I'd like to take this trip for sure. just for the hell of it. went with my parents to st. louis back when I was 11. I'm 46 now remember when we arrived by automobile it was raining but we made it, we went in the Arch it was windy I remember and it was swaying, I remember the elevator's we're barrels if I remember correctly. I like that you wrote everything instead of talking pretty Koo man. take care. thanks --.
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Kool video man, sucks about the Crew. I'd like to take this trip for sure. just for the hell of it. went with my parents to st. louis back when I was 11. I'm 46 now remember when we arrived by automobile it was raining but we made it, we went in the Arch it was windy I remember and it was swaying, I remember the elevator's we're barrels if I remember correctly. I like that you wrote everything instead of talking pretty Koo man. take care. thanks --.
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-ZILOGz80VIDEOS
I hope the superliners don't get replaced with something like this. The fact that every car has a private space in the downstairs and very 70s features like the observation car make traveling on Amtrak worth it over the plane. I know their core mission on the long distance routes is to provide service to small towns since they loose money either way but the superliners are actually a nice place to be stuck for a few days.
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I hope the superliners don't get replaced with something like this. The fact that every car has a private space in the downstairs and very 70s features like the observation car make traveling on Amtrak worth it over the plane. I know their core mission on the long distance routes is to provide service to small towns since they loose money either way but the superliners are actually a nice place to be stuck for a few days.
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-stevetalkstoomuch
I took the morning Lincoln Service last weekend from Joliet to STL. Trip was 3: 40 and only 1 minute late despite a few slowdowns for freight and northbound Amtraks. We hit 110mph at least 1/3 the trip. Train was about 60% full going down and easily 90% full coming back that afternoon. More than I expected.
The Ventures were very smooth the whole way. The only change I'd make is better lumbar support in the seats.
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I took the morning Lincoln Service last weekend from Joliet to STL. Trip was 3: 40 and only 1 minute late despite a few slowdowns for freight and northbound Amtraks. We hit 110mph at least 1/3 the trip. Train was about 60% full going down and easily 90% full coming back that afternoon. More than I expected.
The Ventures were very smooth the whole way. The only change I'd make is better lumbar support in the seats.
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-1955mlynch
Informative video. As one or two others have noted, route 66 follows the railroad, not the other way round. The one aspect of the new equipment that I like over the amfleet cars are the larger (taller) windows. The amfleet (and metroliner) cars always give the impression of riding in an armored car, which is intentional going back to the mid 1960's when throwing rocks at trains was a fashionable past time.
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Informative video. As one or two others have noted, route 66 follows the railroad, not the other way round. The one aspect of the new equipment that I like over the amfleet cars are the larger (taller) windows. The amfleet (and metroliner) cars always give the impression of riding in an armored car, which is intentional going back to the mid 1960's when throwing rocks at trains was a fashionable past time.
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-pacificostudios
We will be seeing Siemens Venture coaches in California soon. They will supplement the double-deck California cars we have now, and probably replace them eventually. Amtrak has learned that double-deck cars don't function as well when trains stop as frequently as they do in California. These are definitely nicer than the old Horizon cars, which I think are the worst cars Amtrak ever bought.
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We will be seeing Siemens Venture coaches in California soon. They will supplement the double-deck California cars we have now, and probably replace them eventually. Amtrak has learned that double-deck cars don't function as well when trains stop as frequently as they do in California. These are definitely nicer than the old Horizon cars, which I think are the worst cars Amtrak ever bought.
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-mplsmark4132
I rode Amtrak Empire Builder last weekend. Asked the conductor about the new Siemens Locos. He said they are slated to replace the Superliner coachs with Siemens built replacements in the near future. Main reason is ADA accessibility. The new coach-s will allow people in wheelchairs to access the entire coach. I suspect that is the reason for the wide center isle on these units too.
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I rode Amtrak Empire Builder last weekend. Asked the conductor about the new Siemens Locos. He said they are slated to replace the Superliner coachs with Siemens built replacements in the near future. Main reason is ADA accessibility. The new coach-s will allow people in wheelchairs to access the entire coach. I suspect that is the reason for the wide center isle on these units too.
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train
What were you expecting? The British Pullman or the Orient Express? It looks like you had a better ride than any Greyhound bus or even any commuter flight would have given you. $31. 00? I just filled my mom's car in OKC and it cost $61. 00. A great comparison would be the cost of a flight from Chicago to St. Louis with Amtrack. Also, the passengers seem to be much better behaved on trains.
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What were you expecting? The British Pullman or the Orient Express? It looks like you had a better ride than any Greyhound bus or even any commuter flight would have given you. $31. 00? I just filled my mom's car in OKC and it cost $61. 00. A great comparison would be the cost of a flight from Chicago to St. Louis with Amtrack. Also, the passengers seem to be much better behaved on trains.
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-henrivanbemmel
WHY. oh. WHY do railroads insist on having small toilets especially when the bathroom is this large. So, now people have little choice but to drag their private parts on the these surfaces. Really? I could see it when the bathrooms were really small. I think we need to make all the toilets in the executive bathrooms this type and then things will change! Really frustrating.
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WHY. oh. WHY do railroads insist on having small toilets especially when the bathroom is this large. So, now people have little choice but to drag their private parts on the these surfaces. Really? I could see it when the bathrooms were really small. I think we need to make all the toilets in the executive bathrooms this type and then things will change! Really frustrating.
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train
The Joliet Station was used by the Santa Fe then Amtrak for many years. It is now a civic venue but was a very pretty station in its day.
Amtrak was building some Frankenstein of a single platform station across the tracks. I need to go back and see if it was ever finished.
On Amtrak - ALWAYS get the cheese tray! It is a little smaller now than 20 years ago-
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The Joliet Station was used by the Santa Fe then Amtrak for many years. It is now a civic venue but was a very pretty station in its day.
Amtrak was building some Frankenstein of a single platform station across the tracks. I need to go back and see if it was ever finished.
On Amtrak - ALWAYS get the cheese tray! It is a little smaller now than 20 years ago-
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train
NO NO NO! Way too many glitches. The bathrooms didn't work, had to delay to fix that. The banners telling the stops did not work. The main car door would not open. The talk in the yard is that the Siemens coaches are lemons. Too many gadgets and THE SEATS DON'T RECLINE! Puke on the floor from the previous passenger on the previous run. Sorta kinda cleaned up.
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NO NO NO! Way too many glitches. The bathrooms didn't work, had to delay to fix that. The banners telling the stops did not work. The main car door would not open. The talk in the yard is that the Siemens coaches are lemons. Too many gadgets and THE SEATS DON'T RECLINE! Puke on the floor from the previous passenger on the previous run. Sorta kinda cleaned up.
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-yeeye3395
One thing that I will never understand about Amtrak is that they don't have doors that can be opened/closed by passengers. This doesn't really make sense as the trains that run along the NEC have frequent stops, and button operated doors that could be opened by passengers would make a lot of sense, and take less time from the conductor.
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One thing that I will never understand about Amtrak is that they don't have doors that can be opened/closed by passengers. This doesn't really make sense as the trains that run along the NEC have frequent stops, and button operated doors that could be opened by passengers would make a lot of sense, and take less time from the conductor.
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-tedalexander6592
Wish they would use these beautiful new cars on the NEC! It would defiantly make up for the lack of the new Acela trains that were suppose to be coming in 2022 but didn't. Not says the should be used to replace the current Acela just the standard old coaches on the Northeast Regional and such.
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Wish they would use these beautiful new cars on the NEC! It would defiantly make up for the lack of the new Acela trains that were suppose to be coming in 2022 but didn't. Not says the should be used to replace the current Acela just the standard old coaches on the Northeast Regional and such.
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-cats0182
Sorry--when Americans have to ride on foreign designed/built railroad cars, it just turns my stomach. We allowed US manufacturers to go out of business, then outsourced what we eventually needed offshore. And, I don't give a damn about -greenhouse gases-.
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Sorry--when Americans have to ride on foreign designed/built railroad cars, it just turns my stomach. We allowed US manufacturers to go out of business, then outsourced what we eventually needed offshore. And, I don't give a damn about -greenhouse gases-.
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-mareerogers364
The new seats are a big let down. Limited leg room, visually they look, uncomfortable and cheap. Amtrak why make a trip uncomfortable? The northeast Regional have new large comfort leather/plether seats with lots of leg room. What a mess!
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The new seats are a big let down. Limited leg room, visually they look, uncomfortable and cheap. Amtrak why make a trip uncomfortable? The northeast Regional have new large comfort leather/plether seats with lots of leg room. What a mess!
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train
Amazing I-m traveling from Mexico and this is going to be my very first time in the U. S. A. I-m going to a summer camp in St. Louis and I-m going to fly to Chicago. Thanks to u now I know how to travel from Chicago to St. Louis! -
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Amazing I-m traveling from Mexico and this is going to be my very first time in the U. S. A. I-m going to a summer camp in St. Louis and I-m going to fly to Chicago. Thanks to u now I know how to travel from Chicago to St. Louis! -
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-superiorjr154
The only thing I don-t like about these new venture coaches are the seats. they don-t recline like they used to and are quite uncomfortable. Other than that, it-s very modern and more roomy.
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The only thing I don-t like about these new venture coaches are the seats. they don-t recline like they used to and are quite uncomfortable. Other than that, it-s very modern and more roomy.
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train
It-s about time! I love the updated and spacious feel! It-s gonna be crazy when the 449, Vermonter, and Downeaster gets these. Weren-t some of the amfleets old Budd SPV 2000 diesel cars?
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It-s about time! I love the updated and spacious feel! It-s gonna be crazy when the 449, Vermonter, and Downeaster gets these. Weren-t some of the amfleets old Budd SPV 2000 diesel cars?
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-sampadnag2928
Why are amtrak locos so weird looking? Meaning, European and Asian locos have a symmetry between them that makes them look beautiful but locos in US are so ugly in that sense.
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Why are amtrak locos so weird looking? Meaning, European and Asian locos have a symmetry between them that makes them look beautiful but locos in US are so ugly in that sense.
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train
Your very lucky that you rode on that train when you did, now they took these cars out of service because of the tables at the seats, what was your experience with the tables?
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Your very lucky that you rode on that train when you did, now they took these cars out of service because of the tables at the seats, what was your experience with the tables?
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-3506Dodge
The coaches are closed so that no one will use them. Amtrak likes to prevent passengers from using it's services and facilities. It save Amtrak a lot of spending.
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The coaches are closed so that no one will use them. Amtrak likes to prevent passengers from using it's services and facilities. It save Amtrak a lot of spending.
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-Ryan-he2qz
European style beautiful i wish americans sometimes embrace european innovation they are great and proven. See the changes this is a real passenger rail service.
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European style beautiful i wish americans sometimes embrace european innovation they are great and proven. See the changes this is a real passenger rail service.
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-d. e. b. b5788
I'm six foot four; doesn't look as if I-m going to have any legroom. SAme as planes, my knees will be jammed up against the seat in front of me. Sad.
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I'm six foot four; doesn't look as if I-m going to have any legroom. SAme as planes, my knees will be jammed up against the seat in front of me. Sad.
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-natesnautical
Wow, the American infrastructure is like a million years old. Perhaps spend less money on war, and actually building services for your citizens.
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Wow, the American infrastructure is like a million years old. Perhaps spend less money on war, and actually building services for your citizens.
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train
Lovely station in Chicago but very empty vs the crush of demand at O Hare. Train platform seems a poor experience (excl airport boarding gate lunacy)
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Lovely station in Chicago but very empty vs the crush of demand at O Hare. Train platform seems a poor experience (excl airport boarding gate lunacy)
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-samtrak1204
I hope this car rides better than it looks. Amtrak should have gone with the -California Car- to replace Amfleet and ugly Horizon coaches.
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I hope this car rides better than it looks. Amtrak should have gone with the -California Car- to replace Amfleet and ugly Horizon coaches.
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