Amtrak Has Big Plans For 2024, But Congress Wants To Derail A Big Advantage

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I know we like to write a lot about electric cars and e-bikes around here, but that’s largely because the other options often suck in the United States. Buses and trains are often dirty, seem dangerous (or actually are), and don’t come often enough to be a serious transportation option. Even the long-distance trains have been mocked by comedians over the years, especially when Amtrak had a string of derailments in the 1990s (with at least one caused by sabotage).

But, things have improved a lot in the last few decades, and things are starting to really look up for Amtrak as the quasi-government entity goes into 2024, and a video on YouTube gives some impressive details.

With funding and support for the railroad up in the last few years, some key upgrades and improvements are going into place that could help many more travelers take it seriously.

One big thing happening is the new Avelia Liberty trainsets. Previous attempts at adding high speed European trains to the network haven’t always gone great, but things have been improving in recent years. The Acela route between Boston and Washington, DC has been a flagship of sorts for the operator, with speeds of up to 150 MPH achieved. But, the Acela trains are starting to get a little long in the tooth.

Now, a second generation of fast trains are in the works from a French manufacturer. They’ll be similar to a European model, but with changes made to make them a better fit for American rails. This will be called the Avelia Liberty. They’re supposed to provide more comfortable high speed service along the same route. Even more importantly, speeds are supposed to be increased to 220 MPH, allowing for much faster travel times. The number of trains will also be going up from 20 to 28.

The program was supposed to be done by now, but early prototypes had a number of comfort, reliability, and safety issues that needed to be ironed out before full production. 8 trains have been delivered, but they’re in storage in Upstate New York. The trains are supposed to finally go into service sometime in 2024, giving the old trains a break.

Another improvement coming are the ALC-42 locomotives. Sadly, most of Amtrak’s routes are not set up for high-speed electric trains. For the rest of the country, decades-old diesel trains are the norm. Newer trains are starting to go into service on shorter routes that have cleaner diesel engines, and those have worked out pretty well, with better performance, lower costs, and lower emissions. So, Amtrak is going to start replacing some of the long-distance trains with better diesels.

The first of these locomotives went into testing in 2021 and service in 2022. Now, 50 have been built, and are already running a number of routes, including one from Chicago to the west coast. The company is working on sorting out some of the early trains’ problems and is optimistic about putting a lot more into service in 2024, with the final trains coming into service in 2026.

Another new trainset going into service are the Amtrak Airo. Like the ALC-42, these trains have been tested on shorter state-supported routes and are now moving onto longer routes. Originally meant for use on a Florida railroad, the order was delayed and the state consortium canceled the order for double-decker train cars that go with the Airo. Amtrak took the opportunity to get more modern cars and improve Amtrak service instead. These trains have proven themselves a bit and Amtrak put in a $7.3 billion order for more to be used all over the United States.

The new trains are capable of running on either diesel or electric, so the locomotives don’t need to be switched when entering or leaving an electric service area using a specially-modified passenger car with hookups for overhead wires or batteries to support the main locomotive and run electric-only in some zones and tunnels as needed. The video goes into detail on what routes will be getting these trains and when, but I’ll go ahead and let readers go into all that if they’re curious. In short, trainsets can be assembled to meet the needs of each route and maximize efficiency.

Full service for these new trains will begin in 2026, and preparations for this will continue during 2024. All of the new trains are slated to be in service replacing older trains by 2031.

Sadly, the delays and time taken to do all of the above has left a lot of older trains in service that are getting uncomfortable for riders. To keep things running acceptably during the interim, Amtrak is working on refurbishing and repurposing cars, including converting some locomotives to passenger cars. A set of failed locomotives from 1998 are going to be used as donor vehicles for this effort.

When all of this is done, the company will have a far better and more standardized fleet of trains.

One Thing That Could Seriously Hurt The Railroad In 2024: Safety Karens In Congress

One of the big selling points of Amtrak is how convenient it is compared air travel. Without the crazy security theater that has plagued air travel since the 9/11 attacks, rail travel is almost always a more pleasant experience. Amtrak even presses this advantage in advertising:

Around here, we like to spend our time wisely. 😌⏰🚄 pic.twitter.com/Du1oG2G94J

— Amtrak (@Amtrak) December 15, 2023

An incident earlier this year in New Mexico has put this big advantage in doubt, though. One man who had boarded the train with a machete stabbed another man who he claims had a gun. The man did not, in fact, have a gun, but he did have 20 pounds of meth on him. So, the both of them got arrested by New Mexico State Police when the train made an emergency stop.

Despite the fact that incidents like this are very, very rare, safety Karens are trying to get Amtrak to put everyone through the same security indignities that air travelers have to go through, because they want very rare to become zero.

But, in the quest for absolute safety (something you can’t have in the real world), something important would be lost: convenience and dignity. Rail travel already has a tough time getting Americans to be interested, and it really can’t afford to be strangled in the crib like this. If anything, the US needs to be replace air miles with train miles.

Featured image by Amtrak.