Superliner I's & II's

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-Late Shore-

Train Attendant
Joined
Sep 29, 2002
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35
Hey All,

How can you tell the difference between a Superliner I or a Superliner II sleeping car, other than by the state names. Is that how you distinguish the difference, with the state names on the side of the rail car, I mean? For me, it's just too hard to tell as I personally have never been within a state or two of a Superliner car being from Mass. :lol:

I think if Amtrak made some major construction changes, maybe we could get the Superliner train cars to come into South Station in Boston, and to NY Penn as well? :unsure:

Also, while we are on the subject of speed, does anyone have a guess to estimate maybe the average speed of the LSL out of Boston thru to Chicago. Is it 79 mph. after Schenectady, NY or... :unsure: ?
 
Late Shore,

You are correct that one way to tell the difference is the fact that all II's have state names. There are other differences between the two models, including interior colors and other small items. You can click here to go to a page from TrainWeb that lists all the differences between the I's and the II's.

Now while I'm not positive, I do believe that there is no reason that Superliner's can't get into South Station. The only reason that Amtrak doesn't send them there is the fact that they can't send them south to NYC and Amtrak's biggest market. Sending a Superliner train from Chicago to Boston would mean that Amtrak would have to make a seperate train from the LSL, or not serve NYC.

As for Superliner's in Penn, that's something that if we ever see it, will be years in the future. The problem is that the cars won't fit through the tunnels under the East River, nor the tunnels under the Hudson River. You can't just enlarge these tunnels, one would need to build new tunnels. Now there is talk that perhaps by 2015 to 2020 there might be 2 new tunnels from NJ under the Hudson. There however is no reason for new tunnels under the East River. So I don't think that we will ever see Superliner's in Penn.

That said, I suppose that it might actually be possible to sneak a Superliner into Penn from the Empire Connection via Albany. While I'm not 100% positive, this tunnel is newer and therefore may have enough clearance. This also assumes that the bridge at Spuyten Duyvil, which is at the top of Manhattan and connects to the Bronx has enough clearance. Even if you can get into Penn from the Empire Connection however, you would then have no way to get the cars to the yard for servicing and cleaning.

I'm not really sure of the LSL's speeds. I do know that it does hit 79 in places, but just how much of the route is run at that speed I'm not sure.
 
Also does BOS have any Low-Level Platforms left? Otherwise you'd have a pretty difficult time entering/exiting them.

As for the Superliner I's here are some easy ways to Identify them. All Have Sleeping Car, or other type of car Written next to the door while the II's don't. Also on all I's the number appears like this "32000 Sleeping Car" while a II would appear "32070 SLEEPING CAR" the one exception is the Auto Train FC lounges which have "LOUNGE" they're former I diners. Hope this helps. B)
 
Viewliner said:
Also does BOS have any Low-Level Platforms left? Otherwise you'd have a pretty difficult time entering/exiting them.
Good point, I didn't even think about that. No I don't think that there are any low-level's left. That would also be a problem at Penn too.
 
Amfleet's barely even make it under that parking garage at South Station so Superliners definetly would not make the cut. There have not been any low-level platforms at South Station since the early '90's, but before all this big dig crud was going on a Superliner could most easily make it into Southie. B)
 
Amfleet said:
Amfleet's barely even make it under that parking garage at South Station so Superliners definetly would not make the cut.
Well the "T" manages to get their double decker cars into South Station, and they've got to be taller than an Amfleet.
 
OK, I exagerated a bit, but those double duckers barely make it in and are only about 2 feet higher than a single level. When you campare one level of the MBTA commuter car to one level on a Superliner the head room in a Superliner is about one foot more. B)
 
Amfleet said:
double duckers
Ok, now I understand. Those are a new type of car that ducks under the parking garage. :D

Sorry I just couldn't pass up that spelling mistake, it was just to good of an opportunity to miss. :lol:
 
What is the height of the MBTA's bi-levels in re;ation to those on the LIRR or being propsed for use by NJT?
 
They are 14' compared to the 16' Superliner. I think 14' is the same hieght as the ones used by LIRR, but are of different types. MARC and VRE use the same type of "double ducker" as the MBTA.
 
I don't know the height exactly of the Hudson River tunnels but I would be willing to guess that they are the same or substantially similar to the East River tunnels so I would guess that they were approx. 15 feet high.
 
tp49 said:
I don't know the height exactly of the Hudson River tunnels but I would be willing to guess that they are the same or substantially similar to the East River tunnels so I would guess that they were approx. 15 feet high.
I'm not sure what the exact dimensions of the tunnels are, but I can tell you that NJT is facing tighter restrictions than the LIRR does. The following is from an NJT Press Release which you can find by clicking here.

The bi-level car must be designed to comply with the clearances of all NJ TRANSIT rail lines including those of Amtrak. The clearances of the 10th Avenue Tunnel on the Northeast Corridor are more critical than the restrictions encountered by the Long Island Railroad.
I'm still looking to see if I can't find the actual numbers.
 
For some reason I was always under the impression that the East River tunnels were smaller than the Hudson. Apparently I was incorrect in that assessment. Now I'm really curious as to the height of both the East and Hudson tunnels but as of yet I cannot locate the figures.
 
Ok, taking this in a completely different direction. I'm thinking of taking advantage of rail sale prices and heading east for a few days. Do superliner coaches have outlets at the seats for laptops, scanners, etc.? How about the equipment on the LSL do the Amcans have outlets at all the seats as I plan on trying to get a decent amount of work done? This will determine whether I do this or not.
 
Only Certain Superliner Seats have Outlets, and if you use them bring a Surge Protector. I believe (not positive) Amfleet II's do have outlets. Enjoy your trip if you choose to go. :)
 
Thanks, I do have a portable surge protecter best $30 I ever spent. :)
 
You're Welcome :) I probably have to get one for my camcorder and radio scanner between now and my Silver Meteor trip in March, which I can't wait for. B)
 
I know the ex-metroliner cars they ran on the Adirondack had outlets at every seat but I am wondering if they ran those on the LSL. Also, with the NEC problems of the past couple of months I wonder if the ex-metroliner equipment is running anywhere but the NEC.
 
The Acela Express woes have baisicly been sorted out and most service restored. The Lake Shore Limited uses Amfleet II coaches and I doubt you'll find ex-Metroliner coaches outside the Northeast.
 
regarding the original question - 32000-32069 are Superliner I sleepers, 32070-32118 are Superliner II. 3 of the I's have been scrapped, and 9 more are wrecked and out of service. 4 of the II's are out of service
 
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