In the years that I have been following Amtrak affairs, i.e. since A-Day, I cannot recall when Amtrak has ever received such a cornucopia of favorable "press":
Incidentially, the stage prop behind VP Biden is P-42 #79
Posts: 9976 | From: Clarendon Hills, IL USA (BNSF Chicago Sub MP 18.71) | Registered: Apr 2002
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And there's a new Auto-Train station in Sanford just for you, GBN!
Posts: 2236 | From: Evanston, Ill. and Ontonagon, Mich. | Registered: Feb 2007
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May have missed it, but I was surprised it did not mention funding for the new sleepers, diners, and baggage cars that have been the topic of discussion.
I did see at another site that the Viewliner model will be used for the new cars and the sleepers will be little changed from present ones (except to correct known problems). This will eliminate the need to 'go back to the drawing board' for a new equipment design.
Posts: 2397 | From: Camden, SC | Registered: Mar 2006
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quote:Originally posted by palmland: May have missed it, but I was surprised it did not mention funding for the new sleepers, diners, and baggage cars that have been the topic of discussion.
Mr. Palmland, the supplemental appropriation received by Amtrak under ARRA '09 is "stimulus"; that means Amtrak and any other recipient Federal agency were directed to select projects that meet President Obama's dictum of "shovel ready". This surely means projects on which the engineering work as well as all the various "clearances", i.e. EIS, ADA, EEO, whatever, have been obtained. In the case of Amtrak, presumably these were projects that were ready to go, save hiring additional workers.
I commend Amtrak for selecting projects to improve the infrastructure, there is nothing glamorous about infrastructure and improvements to the NEC electrical distribution system will be largely unseen. Shiny new trains will have to wait for future appropriations, but with the visibility Amtrak has gained since the Obama administration took office, I think equipment orders will not be in the far off future`.
Finally, here is video of VP Biden's announcement made at Wash Union Station with P-42 #79 as stage prop (in place of the usual "wall of people"):
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Gil -- I cannot send you a further reply to your original PM of 3/10 until you reply to my message of 3/13 (that's what the PM page says!) -- I do have further info, so please reply!!
Posts: 2428 | From: Grayling, MI | Registered: Mar 2002
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The clip Mr. Norman references above is better than some others I have seen of this "event" in that it uses shots of ordinary people boarding the train while he is speaking.
However, other clips of the event reveal that it was staged for the cameras and there was no audience for Mr. Biden -- the audience was half a dozen other politicians, all Democrats except for Senator Specter.
Posts: 41 | From: South Dakota | Registered: Sep 2008
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