"Great Dome" on Illinois Zephyr

[rickycourtney]

With all the excitement this morning with the media preview event for the Viewliner II this Amtrak press release got overlooked...

“GREAT DOME” CAR ON AMTRAK ILLINOIS ZEPHYR NOVEMBER 5-22

See the fall harvest and the change of seasons between Chicago and Quincy

CHICAGO – Passengers riding Amtrak Illinois Zephyr trains between Chicago and Quincy will have a unique opportunity this fall to view the change of seasons when the historic “Great Dome” rail car is part of Trains 380 and 383 from Nov. 5 to Nov. 22.

With its partner at the Illinois Department of Transportation (Illinois DOT), Amtrak worked to bring its only Dome Car back to the Prairie State. The car features an upper level with windows on allsides to provide passengers with panoramic views of the changing colors of the trees, farmers in their fields and the picturesque communities along the route, including LaGrange, Naperville, Plano, Mendota, Princeton, Kewanee, Galesburg and Macomb.

There is no additional charge for riding the Illinois Zephyr during this period and seating in the Great Dome car is unreserved.

[snip]

About the “Great Dome” Car:

The only remaining dome car in Amtrak service, car number 10031, is a Great Dome car previously used on the Chicago-Seattle Empire Builder when the train was operated by the Great Northern Railway and the Chicago Burlington & Quincy Railroad (later the Burlington Northern Railroad). It was built in 1955 by the Budd Company for the Great Northern and carried the name “Ocean View,” car number 1391. It was conveyed to Amtrak in 1971, with this car first being given the number 9361. It was renovated in 1985, renumbered 9300, and used in daily service on the Amtrak Auto Train to and from the Washington, D.C., and Orlando, Fla., areas through 1994 It was further refurbished in 1999, renumbered to 10031, and has been used in Amtrak services including the Pacific Surfliners and other charters and excursions. The “Ocean View” name has been restored to the car, which has a dome section that runs its full length, a rare feature, even when dome cars were more numerous on the nation’s railroads. In addition, it was re-painted in honor of the Amtrak 40th Anniversary in 2011 and wears equal red, white and blue stripes, symbolic of Amtrak being America’s Railroad®. Amtrak reserves the right to make equipment substitutions, if needed.

Original press release posted here.

 

[Railroad Bill]

Although wife and I had the opportunity to ride it on the Adirondack this fall, it would have been nice to have it in Chicago for the Gathering.

Wondering how many leaves will still be colorful on this route in November?

 

[Nathanael]

Wow. They're rotating the Dome car through pretty much every route, seems like... With the repeated use and advertisement of the Dome car, I'm beginning to think Amtrak would have benefitted from saving a few other dome cars.

Given the current situation, though, it would perhaps make the most sense to Amtrak to build a full set of Viewliner Lounges with panoramic wraparound windows like the Superliner Lounges have. Ones which fit through the tunnels into NY. I've never found the end windows on a dome terribly usable for looking at anything, but the panoramic windows are really nice.

 

[John Bredin]

It would allow more people to ride the dome car if it was on the Carl Sandburg (CS) rather than the IL Zephyr. Then, people from metro Chicago, and people coming to Chicago on other Midwest routes (Hiawatha, the Michigan trains, etc.), could do a same-day round trip, either taking the CS-with-dome both ways (doable for Chicago-area riders) or taking a Cal Zephyr/SW Chief to Galesburg and then the CS-with-dome back to Chicago or vice-versa (CS west & CZ/SWC east).

As it is, with the dome on the IZ, people coming from Chicago and points east will pretty much have to stay overnight or drive one way.

 

[fredevad]

Not to mention that after daylight saving time ends in early November, the run from Chicago will be almost completely in the dark and the leaves will pretty much be gone.