Is it just me or are track conditions deteriorating?
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i’ve done this trip before but don’t remember it being so rough. Any insight from anyone?
In August last year, I rode to Florida on the Star and back on the Meteor. Maybe I slept through the rough spots that only the Star covers, I don't know. But on the Meteor, there were several very strong sideways jolts that I had to stop to consider if we were on the ground or not. Northbound on the Meteor, I recall them being mostly between 7 and 9 PM give or take.
Last September, a round trip Chicago to Denver reminded me that the former CB&Q STILL has it's rough riding. More of a choppiness than major jolts. But it HAS improved in the past 30-40 years. In the '70s, it was non-stop choppy enough to make drinking anything from a glass or cup in the diner difficult. But then, in the late '70s, all parts of Penn Central were so rough that even holding a 1/2 full glass was difficult without sloshing over. One of my friends commented back then that the only time his butt was in the seat is when it came up to meet him! I agreed wholeheartedly.
In April 2018, I took the City of New Orleans CHI-NOL. Between the incessant horn with no cars between the sleeper and the locomotive and the non-stop choppiness seemingly all the way until Memphis or so, I've put that train on my 'avoid' list for the next 10 years or so.
And there are stretches on the NEC, mostly between WAS and PHL, that are just plain rough. Rougher still at 125mph. Slowly, but surely, some areas seem to have gotten worse while others have gotten better.
It all comes down to money. As with very small exception, all Amtrak routes outside the NEC are railroad owned and the railroads have little need to give commodities, automobiles, or anything else a glass-smooth ride. So they only spend what's needed to maintain desired speed and safety levels. The NEC is a money pit for maintenance. At least it's much better than it was in 1971 or so when I first rode it aboard a Metroliner.