Metroliner (train)
 Budd Pennsylvania Railroad Metroliner electric multiple-unit car circa 1968 before acceptance. All Metroliners, including this car, began revenue service with Penn Central markings. | |||||
| Overview | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Service type | Inter-city rail | ||||
| Status | Discontinued | ||||
| Locale | Northeast Corridor | ||||
| First service | 1969 | ||||
| Last service | 2006 | ||||
| Successor | Acela Express | ||||
| Former operator(s) | Penn Central (1969-1971) Amtrak (1971-2006) | ||||
| Route | |||||
| Termini | New York City Washington, DC | ||||
| Distance travelled | 225 miles (362 km) | ||||
| Average journey time | 2.5 to 3.4 hours[1] | ||||
| Service frequency | 6-10 per day each way | ||||
| On-board services | |||||
| Class(es) | Business and First | ||||
| Technical | |||||
| Rolling stock |
| ||||
| Track gauge | 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) | ||||
| Operating speed | up to 125 mph (201 km/h) | ||||
| Track owner(s) | PC, Amtrak | ||||
| |||||
The Metroliners were extra-fare express trains between Washington, D.C., and New York City from 1969 to 2006.[2][3] They were first operated by Penn Central Transportation, successor to the Pennsylvania Railroad, and later by Amtrak.
Originally using self-powered electric multiple unit cars (later replaced by locomotive-hauled cars due to decreasing reliability and other issues) the train had reserved business-class and first-class seating. A trip between New York's Pennsylvania Station and Washington, D.C.'s Union Station took 2.5 to 3.4 hours.[1]
Amtrak replaced Metroliner service with high-speed (150 mph or 240 km/h) Acela Express trainsets. Metroliner service ended on 27 October 2006.[4]
History
The High Speed Ground Transportation Act of 1965 started a U.S. Government effort to develop a high speed train for Northeast Corridor service. The U.S. Department of Transportation worked with the Pennsylvania Railroad, Budd Company, General Electric and Westinghouse to develop an electric multiple unit, high speed passenger train with initial service target for 1967.[5]
Metroliner service finally started on January 16, 1969,[6] operated by Penn Central Transportation, successor to the Pennsylvania Railroad after its merger with the rival New York Central Railroad, using newly developed Budd Metroliner EMUs. The initial schedule was one daily train each way between Washington and New York, and a second train in each direction was soon added; a non-stop between Washington and New York was added on April 2, 1969.[6] Top speed was 120 mph for the first couple of years and 100-110 mph during the 1970s. The Metroliner was run by Penn Central until taken over by the National Railroad Passenger Corporation (Amtrak) in 1971.[5]
In 1982 Amtrak finished replacing the Budd Metroliner cars, which had developed problems with their motors limiting their speed, with trains powered by the Swedish-developed AEM-7 locomotives pulling conventional Amfleet I and II coaches, whose design was based on the Metroliner, at up to 120 mph (later 125).
Amtrak expanded Metroliner service when problems developed with Acela Express braking systems during 2002 and 2005. As trainsets were repaired, the number of Metroliner trains declined to one round trip each weekday, eventually discontinued, and the fleet was transferred to other routes. The current Northeast Regional service matches Metroliner top speed but does not offer first class seating.
Equipment
The first version of the Metroliner was an electric multiple unit train of Budd Metroliner self-propelled cars. These cars resemble Amfleet railcars.
The second incarnation of the Metroliner, then owned by Amtrak, from 1982 to 2006 was roughly equivalent to today's current Northeast Regional service trains but with Amfleet cars hauled by AEM-7 locomotives at 125 MPH.
References
- ^ a b Metroliner Timetable, Penn Central, October 26, 1969, http://www.streamlinerschedules.com/concourse/track3/metroliner197002.html
- ^ "Atlantic Coast Services timetable" (PDF). Amtrak. 2007-04-02. Retrieved 2007-08-30.
- ^ "Metroliner". Amtrak. 2007. Retrieved 2007-08-30.
- ^ "Amtrak to run last Metroliner". Trains.com. 2006-09-08. Retrieved 2006-09-08.
- ^ a b Goldberg, Bruce (2006-06-30). "Metroliner's Amazing Career". Trains Magazine (June 2006). Waukesha, Wi: Kalmbach Publishing.
- ^ a b Morgan, David P. (May 1969). "Metroliners: better late than never?". Modern Railways. XXV (248): p. 248.
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External links
Media related to Metroliner (train) at Wikimedia Commons
