Cardinal Experience

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TrainLoverJoy

Lead Service Attendant
Joined
Jun 11, 2012
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280
Location
Kalamazoo, Mi.
After many westbound trips on all 4 routes this is my first 1-day trip on a viewliner.....and I have to say I'm disappointed. The capitol Limited first leg was ok but this one is one I'd call haphazardly put together. No announcements about mealtimes, smoke breaks, missing menu items etc. Is this the norm for the Cardinal?
 
We have had good experiences on the Cardinal but it depends on the SCA and the FSA. The train isn't much different than any other Viewliner train except for the "diner lite" which should soon be replaced.
 
IME, the Cardinal experience wasn't as pleasant as my experiences on other viewliner trains. Food wasn't good. It's not a viewliner thing at all, it's just that the Cardinal isn't up to par.
 
Some of the Viewliners are getting really ratty and the PAs don't work! Perhaps this is why you didn't hear announcements?

As for the Diner Lite ( Cafe/ Diner Combo), you might have noticed that one person served as the host, waiter, chef,bus person, dishwasher and custodian??!!

Not having a flatop or a real stove, that limits what can be served to heating stuff in a convection oven!

Hopefully when the New Viewliners enter service the Card will get two Viewliner Sleepers and a Real Diner!

Otherwise the scenery is great, if only it could be run daily ( and to STL or even KCY) and the equipment improved as said, this could be a Unique Amtrak LD train like the Starlight and the Zephyr( scenery)!

I've enjoyed my trips on the Card, its especially great when Ocean View is in the consist East Bound!
 
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Do you know when they expect to get the new equipment on the tracks? I have a ticket for the Card on my big trip in November. I am really looking forward to it, as I have never been that way. Of course, I am doing it for the experience (especially the views), not the food, but some new equipment would be the icing on the cake!

:wub:
 
If I was making a bet. The first trains equipped with the new order will be the Silvers. Followed by the Lake Shore Limited. Then the Crescent, and the Cardinal.
 
After many westbound trips on all 4 routes this is my first 1-day trip on a viewliner.....and I have to say I'm disappointed. The capitol Limited first leg was ok but this one is one I'd call haphazardly put together. No announcements about mealtimes, smoke breaks, missing menu items etc. Is this the norm for the Cardinal?
Another thing missing on my Cardinal trip yesterday was there were no Route Guides in any of the rooms.....I always consult them frequently on trips. ( I did download one to my phone, but how inconvenient is that to look at several times a day.) There was one thing about my first experience on a viewliner (I won't comment on the toilet situation, which has been discussed to death) that I was pleasantly surprised about .....there is more control over the temperature in your roomette than there is on a superliner. Even tho the car is very old, it works very well.
 
As Jim mentioned, its really all about the personnel that make this Cardinal ride a pleasure. We had a very good ride a couple of years ago. Our SCA was a personable man and helped out in the diner when the new woman server had some issues. The commissary had shorted them food and she was doing the best she could. The cafe guy was friendly and he helped when he was not busy as well. There were few paying passengers that trip and of course, the one sleeper at that time had both staff and revenue customers sharing the car. But the eastbound scenery was great and we did have a route guide that helped as well.

With all Amtrak rides, "you pays your money and you takes your chances" :(
 
For me the combination of the Viewliner sleeper, especially upper bed with window, and the scenery that is some of the finest in the world and seen only by persons on a train or raft, make up for the famous shortcomings of dining and lounge equipment. I can handle the prefab meals for one overnight trip,
 
For me the combination of the Viewliner sleeper, especially upper bed with window, and the scenery that is some of the finest in the world and seen only by persons on a train or raft, make up for the famous shortcomings of dining and lounge equipment. I can handle the prefab meals for one overnight trip,
I wish I'd taken the trip to DC in reverse order, then there would have been daylight when passing through the spectacular part of the scenery. (If I had, I'm sure I would have overlooked some of the short comings....) I'll make a point of giving the Cardinal another try.....some time during the year when there's daylight both ways.
 
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Even tho the car is very old, it works very well.
Old! The Viewliners are newer than the Superliners!

I gather from past readings that the Viewliner I's weren't built all that well to begin with, so it's probably harder to keep them running like new than the older Superliners. Things seem to break on them pretty often. The last time I rode one (which was actually only a few years after they were introduced), the heat went out completely, and this was in February in upstate New York. Also the coffee maker broke, which was arguably worse.

All else being equal, I think the Viewliners are as good a design for the east as the Superliners are for the west, but they just seem harder to maintain.
 
I once rode the Cardinal from DC to Chicago during a snowstorm. It was a very peaceful trip and the scenery was

really nice with the new snowfall. To me, there is something about riding the train during a snowstorm. I remember

that the car seemed quieter as if the snow under the train suppressed the normal sounds of riding the rails.

I have also recently noted that the Superliner seems to ride quieter during a snowfall, especially on smoother track

such as I've experienced between Pittsburgh and Cumberland, MD.
 
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