How do you become an Acela Locomotive Engineer?

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matt.bratton

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Oct 9, 2014
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I'm currently a Conductor for a regional freight railroad. I was wondering how one gets that job. It must be an awesome job (no throwing switches, working in a climate controlled cab, not much walking or climbing, mostly clear signals lol), though I would imagine the responsibility is huge! Are Acela crews higher in seniority, since that train runs mainly during the day?
 
You'll have to start as a conductor and work you're way to engineer. Keep in mind that you'll need to be a certified Class I engineer. Conductors just need certification. My suggestion is to get a job as a conductor first.

Sent from my iPhone using Amtrak Forum
 
I'd take OBS advice since they work for Amtrak!

Best to become a Certified Engineer by going to work for a Railroad!

Start out as a Freight Conductor and work your way up, then transfer to Amtrak!!

There are trade schools where you can become certified but they are pricey!!
 
jimhudson said:
I'd take OBS advice since they work for Amtrak!

Best to become a Certified Engineer by going to work for a Railroad!

Start out as a Freight Conductor and work your way up, then transfer to Amtrak!!

There are trade schools where you can become certified but they are pricey!!
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Jim, the OP is already a conductor.. He could transfer to Amtrak as a conductor put time in as a conductor and goto engineer.

My suggestion to the OP is do exactly that. While he could become an Engineer with his current railroad. Since it's a Short Line it's most likely a Class II or III. To run any Amtrak train he'll need a Class I Engineers Certification.

But Jim getting on with any railroad is hard. Railroads look first for people with prior railroad experience, then comes Vets Preference since they have the don't say no attitude, then third is the rest of the world. Learned that at school..

For the OP it wouldn't make much sense to goto any trade school to get an engineer's cert.. And there's only one that does that AFAIK.. MODOC where I'm going currently. And the guy who runs the program won't take anyone who is already working for a railroad to get them an Engineers Cert. Simply cause he and the other guy don't wanna deal with the "well this is how we do it at ABC railroad" attitude. Which has happened to him.
 
Acela150 said:
But Jim getting on with any railroad is hard. Railroads look first for people with prior railroad experience, then comes Vets Preference since they have the don't say no attitude, then third is the rest of the world. Learned that at school..
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This is an attitude which the railroads are going to have to shake off and give up.

With the massive boom in railroading, there aren't nearly enough people with prior railroad experience.

Vets... well, there are a lot of them (unfortunately -- there shouldn't be), but let's just say that if I were hiring I sure wouldn't preference vets from recent wars. Nothing against them as people, but it shows very poor judgment and lack of safety-consciousness to have signed on post-Iraq. And a "don't say no" attitude is actually all wrong if you're trying to create a safety culture... what do you do when you're given illegal orders to violate the rulebook? Mmm-hmm.

The railroads need to hire people off the street, so to speak. The unemployed are eager and willing to work, but not necessarily abused to the point where they'll obey illegal orders.
 
neroden said:
Acela150 said:
But Jim getting on with any railroad is hard. Railroads look first for people with prior railroad experience, then comes Vets Preference since they have the don't say no attitude, then third is the rest of the world. Learned that at school..
Click to expand...
This is an attitude which the railroads are going to have to shake off and give up.

With the massive boom in railroading, there aren't nearly enough people with prior railroad experience.

Vets... well, there are a lot of them (unfortunately -- there shouldn't be), but let's just say that if I were hiring I sure wouldn't preference vets from recent wars. Nothing against them as people, but it shows very poor judgment and lack of safety-consciousness to have signed on post-Iraq. And a "don't say no" attitude is actually all wrong if you're trying to create a safety culture... what do you do when you're given illegal orders to violate the rulebook? Mmm-hmm.

The railroads need to hire people off the street, so to speak. The unemployed are eager and willing to work, but not necessarily abused to the point where they'll obey illegal orders.
Click to expand...
Totally agree with the main point you said -

Railroads have to fix their hiring algorithm. They gotta figure what experience will get them a good engineer or conductor after a few years. Without "prior rail experience" without "vet's preference".

//start rant "Vet's preference -- sheesh - "Vet's preference" -- don't get me started -- my mom and dad and most of my cousins and aunts and my best high school buddy and my daughter are all veterans (ranging O6 to E3). So are a lot of unusable trash that never gave a damn and use the "vet" thing for their own psychopathic exploitative reasons -- should have got a dishonorable but the service gave them a general discharge.

//end rant.

But after decades of not hiring much -- the ancient fossilized class I railroads have absolutely zero clue on how to hire.

It'll probably take a decade for the class I railroads, few as they are now, to learn how to hire people who can take the "extra board" and the 256 rules to memorize and apply, etc . etc.

Sadly, I don't think any class I has a quarter of a clue how to hire for expansion. They really really don't.
 
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matt.bratton said:
I'm currently a Conductor for a regional freight railroad. I was wondering how one gets that job. It must be an awesome job (no throwing switches, working in a climate controlled cab, not much walking or climbing, mostly clear signals lol), though I would imagine the responsibility is huge! Are Acela crews higher in seniority, since that train runs mainly during the day?
Click to expand...
So basically, you want the "Creme de la creme" - the best operating job on the railroads -- yeah?

Good luck to ya -- even with the diminished state of the railroads now, there's a few thousand others who want that job.

Again -- good luck to ya.
 
NW cannonball said:
But after decades of not hiring much -- the ancient fossilized class I railroads have absolutely zero clue on how to hire.

It'll probably take a decade for the class I railroads, few as they are now, to learn how to hire people who can take the "extra board" and the 256 rules to memorize and apply, etc . etc.

Sadly, I don't think any class I has a quarter of a clue how to hire for expansion. They really really don't.
Click to expand...
I think you're right. And it's unfortunate. :-( Among other reasons, because I own stock in these companies! If they can't handle expansion properly, I'm not going to get my money's worth!

Maybe Amtrak can be the first to break the mold and learn how to hire the right sort of people. Amtrak is, frankly, more nimble as an organization than the Class I freights, and seems to have successfully hired for some expansions.
 
Do you really think a railroad wants to hire someone fresh off the street? I don't blame them for being so picky. The turnover rate at the 1 year mark is absolutely horrendous. Reason number 1 why railroads want people with Prior Railroad experience is they know what the job requires. The guy off the street has not one clue what their getting into. Most folks don't like the concept of being on call for 5 or 6 years and possibly even longer.
 
Random somebody off the street, no. no way.

But there just aren't enough people with prior railroad experience after decades of shrinking railroad workforce.

What they need to be looking for is people who have learned to handle crazy hours and lots of rules (maybe nurses, Navy propulsion crew, some truckers, some law enforcement etc etc)

Because there just aint enough people with railroad experience, and many of them will be retiring soon.
 
NW cannonball said:
Random somebody off the street, no. no way.

But there just aren't enough people with prior railroad experience after decades of shrinking railroad workforce.

What they need to be looking for is people who have learned to handle crazy hours and lots of rules (maybe nurses, Navy propulsion crew, some truckers, some law enforcement etc etc)

Because there just aint enough people with railroad experience, and many of them will be retiring soon.
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Quote my own self, but

Just talked to my ex-Navy nuke-qualified daughter, and -- yes -- she says -- "lotsa us who don't wanna be nukes any more (the 9-month deployments, the learning a few thousand rules, the 90 days without seeing sunshine - yeah) we get on the railroads -- :)

On the one hand, super-qualified non-railroad people get hired --

But - that leaves a few thousand job openings - that the Class I's have totally zero clue how to hire for --

So what would you look for - if you were trying to hire potential conductors and engineers?
 
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Attitude, first -- must really be willing and comfortable to serve "on call" on crazy hours -- must actually want to memorize a few thousand rules -- must like extremely repetitive jobs --

Hmm. This says, hire folks with autism spectrum disorders. :) They already are hiring them, probably, but I doubt they're explicitly selecting for them. (Firms hiring computer programmers often *do* actually explicitly select for them.)

That'll do fine for freight and for engineers. On the other hand, passenger conductors have to have a lot more people skills.
 
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Just have to say it: "Conductors become engineers by walking to the front of the train and opening the door of the cab, if unoccupied".

YMMV.

Sent from my iPhone using Amtrak Forum
 
neroden said:
Vets... well, there are a lot of them (unfortunately -- there shouldn't be), but let's just say that if I were hiring I sure wouldn't preference vets from recent wars. Nothing against them as people, but it shows very poor judgment and lack of safety-consciousness to have signed on post-Iraq.
Click to expand...
Because there was nothing else going on like Afghanistan. But yeah let's just runs things like you think is appropiate, when people only serve when they like the president and his or her policies. Let's see how that works out.

And a "don't say no" attitude is actually all wrong if you're trying to create a safety culture... what do you do when you're given illegal orders to violate the rulebook? Mmm-hmm.
Click to expand...
Perhaps you should provide some sort of evidence that railroads are hiring vets to circumnavigate regulation, as opposed to merely asserting it. Frankly, based on my actual experience as a vet working in a civilian transportation industry, I see why they would like us. We don't call in sick because we don't like the pairing or because we want that perfect weekend or our sports team is playing on TV. In the military you learn to show up on time and pull your weight whether the job is tough or the schedule inconvenient.

NW cannonball said:
//start rant "Vet's preference -- sheesh - "Vet's preference" -- don't get me started -- my mom and dad and most of my cousins and aunts and my best high school buddy and my daughter are all veterans (ranging O6 to E3). So are a lot of unusable trash that never gave a damn and use the "vet" thing for their own psychopathic exploitative reasons -- should have got a dishonorable but the service gave them a general discharge.

//end rant.
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Hey moron no one gets hired because they're a veteran without any other kind of consideration. Some file clerk who served a year before getting a general discharge isn't going to be competitive anywhere. The ones I know who've gone on to railroad careers had good paperwork and relevant trades such as engine troops, hydraulics, fields of that nature. If having a DD 214 guaranteed getting a career then the veteran unemployment rate wouldn't be as high as it is.

Delta Air Lines likes veterans too, didn't mean I got called to an interview the day after I seperated.
 
XHRTSP said:
neroden said:
Vets... well, there are a lot of them (unfortunately -- there shouldn't be), but let's just say that if I were hiring I sure wouldn't preference vets from recent wars. Nothing against them as people, but it shows very poor judgment and lack of safety-consciousness to have signed on post-Iraq.
Click to expand...
Because there was nothing else going on like Afghanistan. But yeah let's just runs things like you think is appropiate, when people only serve when they like the president and his or her policies. Let's see how that works out.

And a "don't say no" attitude is actually all wrong if you're trying to create a safety culture... what do you do when you're given illegal orders to violate the rulebook? Mmm-hmm.
Click to expand...
Perhaps you should provide some sort of evidence that railroads are hiring vets to circumnavigate regulation, as opposed to merely asserting it. Frankly, based on my actual experience as a vet working in a civilian transportation industry, I see why they would like us. We don't call in sick because we don't like the pairing or because we want that perfect weekend or our sports team is playing on TV. In the military you learn to show up on time and pull your weight whether the job is tough or the schedule inconvenient.

NW cannonball said:
//start rant "Vet's preference -- sheesh - "Vet's preference" -- don't get me started -- my mom and dad and most of my cousins and aunts and my best high school buddy and my daughter are all veterans (ranging O6 to E3). So are a lot of unusable trash that never gave a damn and use the "vet" thing for their own psychopathic exploitative reasons -- should have got a dishonorable but the service gave them a general discharge.

//end rant.
Click to expand...
Hey moron no one gets hired because they're a veteran without any other kind of consideration. Some file clerk who served a year before getting a general discharge isn't going to be competitive anywhere. The ones I know who've gone on to railroad careers had good paperwork and relevant trades such as engine troops, hydraulics, fields of that nature. If having a DD 214 guaranteed getting a career then the veteran unemployment rate wouldn't be as high as it is.

Delta Air Lines likes veterans too, didn't mean I got called to an interview the day after I seperated.
Click to expand...
Unfortunately, there are a lot of "hiring creeps" who do not give a damn. Who are paid to hire the cheapest, and management will screw the hires later :)

This happens to holders of DD214 and everybody else. The low-level HR underpaid screening people and their (really crappy, mostly, software) have no clue about the skills or rates, or ratings of any veteran.

I'd place a bet that (outside the shrinking Nuc power industry, or the Health care Industry) the quals of an LPO Nuc, or a HM1, or an EODT count for nothing at all.

But a few of those specialties might make damn fine railroad workers.

But do the railroads have a clue?

I know first-hand that health-care hires military HM's and they can get equiv civilian quals and pay after a year or two.
 
matt.bratton said:
I'm currently a Conductor for a regional freight railroad. I was wondering how one gets that job. It must be an awesome job (no throwing switches, working in a climate controlled cab, not much walking or climbing, mostly clear signals lol), though I would imagine the responsibility is huge! Are Acela crews higher in seniority, since that train runs mainly during the day?
Click to expand...
Getting back to the OP

Yup, it is a prime job driving Acela.
 
Hey, I'm certainly not saying that veterans should be discriminated *against*. But giving deliberate preference in hiring to any and all veterans -- which some places apparently do -- is, frankly, stupid, unless you're trying to organize a paramilitary or mercenary corps.

Don't get me started on the recent wars. Really, don't. I stand by my statement that anyone who signed up *after the government illegally and dishonestly invaded Iraq* (as opposed to before that) was, at best, extremely and unforgivably ignorant. Those who signed up before that were horribly mistreated.
 
Veteran preference in Government and Civil Service hiring is a long time established preference that has been upheld by courts!

It doesn't guarantee you will get the job, it gives you a slight bonus in systems that use screening tests but overall the complete screening system including background checks and several

interviews is the ultimate factor in who is hired!

This is most prevelant in Federal and State Governments andPolice and Fire Departments that have Civil Service!
 
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neroden said:
Hey, I'm certainly not saying that veterans should be discriminated *against*. But giving deliberate preference in hiring to any and all veterans -- which some places apparently do -- is, frankly, stupid, unless you're trying to organize a paramilitary or mercenary corps.

Don't get me started on the recent wars. Really, don't. I stand by my statement that anyone who signed up *after the government illegally and dishonestly invaded Iraq* (as opposed to before that) was, at best, extremely and unforgivably ignorant. Those who signed up before that were horribly mistreated.
Click to expand...
This is an ignorant statement and a broad generalization. People join the military for all types of reasons and not everyone that joins and serves is in complete agreement with the choices our government makes. You saying that at best everyone that joins is ignorant is like me saying that everyone in upstate New York is, at best, bleeding-heart liberals.

Full disclosure I'm active duty Navy and I joined in 2006 because I got kicked out of college and didn't want to spend the rest of my life working at Applebee's and living in my moms basement. I disagreed with the war in Iraq when we invaded and I disagree with it's entire premise now. I joined because the USN was my opportunity to get out of NJ, make some money, see the world and gain some experience that would serve me well when I moved on.
 
jimhudson said:
Veteran preference in Government and Civil Service hiring is a long time established preference that has been upheld by courts!

It doesn't guarantee you will get the job, it gives you a slight bonus in systems that use screening tests but overall the complete screening system including background checks and several

interviews is the ultimate factor in who is hired!

This is most prevelant in Federal and State Governments andPolice and Fire Departments that have Civil Service!
Click to expand...
A big job that gets Veteran Preference is Firefighting. In Philadelphia their testing is based on a "points" system. The thing that gets the most is Vets Preference. It's a whopping 10 points IINM. EMT and FFI is 5 I think. Police I have no idea. But where I live I think about 1/4 of the force are vets.
 
NW cannonball said:
matt.bratton said:
I'm currently a Conductor for a regional freight railroad. I was wondering how one gets that job. It must be an awesome job (no throwing switches, working in a climate controlled cab, not much walking or climbing, mostly clear signals lol), though I would imagine the responsibility is huge! Are Acela crews higher in seniority, since that train runs mainly during the day?
Click to expand...
Getting back to the OP

Yup, it is a prime job driving Acela.
Click to expand...
Anyone who works on the NEC can be Acela crew. All crew will be trained on Acela. Crew is bid on by seniority but that does not mean that higher seniority will pick Acela. Often what higher seniority considers to be the better job is not on an Acela. The prime job might not be Acela. The person you see as crew on Acela might be the least senior person.

As for being hired as an engineer, anyone can be hired for a posted job opening at Amtrak. People have been hired off the street. Yes, veterans will be given preference.
 
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