Amtrak's High-Speed Train Debuts
W A S H I N G T O N, Dec. 11, 2000 -- The high-speed Acela Express train, a first for the nation that Amtrak hopes will renew interest in rail travel and lure business travelers from airlines, entered regular service today with a trip that began in Washington before dawn and reached Boston by noon.
The snub-nosed train, which has a top speed of 150 mph and seats304, had 114 people on board when it crawled out of Washington’s Union Station, on time, at 5 a.m.
The train picked up additional passengers at stops includingBaltimore and Philadelphia before arriving at New York’s PennStation at 7:47 a.m. — just three minutes behind schedule. Thescheduled Washington-New York run is 16 minutes faster than the old3-hour Amtrak timetable.
The train reached Boston at 11:41 a.m., 10 minutes late, after aride of three hours, 38 minutes — about 80 minutes faster than asimilar trip a year ago.
In all, the train covered 457 miles and made 11 stops in sevenstates before reaching Boston’s South Station.
“This is a special day,” said Amtrak President GeorgeWarrington, who boarded the train at its first stop,Baltimore-Washington International Airport. “It took us a longtime to get here, and it took us a long time to get America here.”
‘It’s About Time’
Chronicling the historic trip with two cameras, one for stillpictures and one for video, was Bob Rollins, a retired NASAemployee from Boonsboro, Md., who became enamored of European-stylehigh-speed trains while working overseas two decades ago.
“It’s about time. We need an interstate railway just like wehave a highway system,” said Rollins, who planned to travel toBoston, have a leisurely afternoon, then take the same high-speedtrain back to Washington late in the day.
John Lewis, who lives with his family in Washington but justbegan working for a nonprofit foundation in New York City, said hemay make Acela Express his regular means of commuting at the startand end of each work week.
Flying, he said, “is more expensive, and there could be delays.If this works, it’s easier.”
Randolph Becker, a minister from Williamsburg, Va., rode thetrain from start to end.
“It was my birthday today so I decided to treat myself instyle,” he said as he exited the train in Boston. “It wasfabulous, much faster, and the windows are much larger. You get agreat view.”
20 by Summer
The eight-car train carrying Acela Express’s first payingpassengers is the same one that carried VIPs from Washington toBoston on an inaugural run Nov. 16. The train is the first of 20that Amtrak is receiving from manufacturers BombardierTransportation of Canada and Alstom Ltd. of France.
Amtrak took possession last week of a second train that is beingheld in reserve as a backup. It will enter service when a thirdtrain arrives next month.
All 20 Acela Express trains should be operating by next summer.If the service proves popular in the Northeast, Amtrak hopes tooffer high-speed service elsewhere in the country.
Acela Express incorporates the electric propulsion system of theFrench TGV, manufactured by Alstom, with Bombardier’s advanced tilttechnology, which allows the train to take curves at higher speeds.
The top speed for most passenger trains outside the NortheastCorridor, the area between Washington and Boston where tracks havebeen modernized, is 79 mph.
Speed and Comfort
Acela Express provides faster speeds and more amenities. It has32 conference tables spread throughout its eight cars, enclosedoverhead bins, video news programming, pub-style cafe cars withexpanded menus and three audio music channels with headphoneoutlets at each seat. First-class passengers can have mealsdelivered to their seats.
The high-speed rail service, America’s first, was supposed tobegin operating in October 1999, but problems with the tilttechnology and premature wheel wear forced a series of delays.
Amtrak, which has received $23 billion in federal operatingsubsidies since its inception in 1971, is under orders fromCongress to become financially self-sufficient by 2003. High-speedrail plays prominently in its survival plans.
Service in the Northeast Corridor is projected to earn $180million a year. Amtrak says it was $484 million short ofself-sufficiency in 1999, a year in which it posted record revenuesof $1.84 billion.
The Cost of High-Speed Travel
A one-way coach ticket between Washington and New York is $143on Acela Express, compared with $122 on the Metroliner service itis replacing. A one-way Acela Express coach ticket between Bostonand New York is $120, compared with $57 on conventional Amtraktrains, which will continue to run in the Northeast Corridor.
The biggest time gain is expected between Boston and New York.As recently as last year, the ride took five hours, which includeda stop at New Haven, Conn., to switch between electric locomotivesand diesels.
Track improvements and the completion of electrification betweenNew Haven and Boston, cut the trip to just under four hours earlythis year. The Acela Express train is scheduled to connect the twocities in three hours, 28 minutes. Next year, Amtrak plans tointroduce a nonstop train that will shorten the trip to threehours, 15 minutes.
Initially, Acela Express will make stops at Baltimore-WashingtonInternational Airport; Baltimore; Wilmington, Del.; Philadelphia,and Trenton and Newark, N.J., before reaching New York.
On the northern leg, stops are scheduled at New Haven,Providence, R.I.; and Route 128 and Back Bay stations in Bostonbefore the final stop at Boston’s South Station.
As more Acela Express trains enter service, some trains will addstops at New Carrollton, Md.; Metropark and Princeton Junction,N.J.; and Stamford and New London, Conn.