by Literalman
"The last overnight train between L.A. and S.F. ran in 1968": actually, in the early 1980s Amtrak ran the state-subsidized Spirit of California overnight between San Francisco and Los Angeles.
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Moderator: lensovet
Dreamstar Lines: Back to the Future?
During the “Golden Age of Railroading” in the middle of the past century, the Southern Pacific’s Lark was the train to take between Los Angeles and the San Francisco Bay Area, at least for folks who could afford it. The train was one of the great “streamliners” of the era, and it carried only sleeping cars; 13 of them in 1946 plus two more to Oakland on the line that now hosts Capitol Corridor trains. There was a triple-unit food service car with diner and lounge, but no coaches. Even after coaches were introduced into the train’s consist in the 1950s, the dining car served only sleeping car passengers. Running a roughly twelve-hour schedule for the entire route, the old Lark was luxury on rails. It was discontinued on April 8, 1968, more than 55 years ago.
Today, a private-sector entity wants to start a train on the same route that will give contemporary sleeping car passengers a similar experience on equipment that originally ran during that time. Dreamstar Lines, based in Newport Beach in Orange County, Calif., is the company working on putting the proposed train on the rails. The company’s website, www.dreamstarlines.com, is not long on details yet, but conveys a vision of bringing back the feel of the luxurious trains of the past. It says: “Dreamstar Lines is preparing a premium overnight ‘hotel train’ passenger train service. Board our trains in a city center or convenient suburban station … fall asleep in a private room … and wake up at your destination.” Dreamstar’s slogan is “Go to bed. Wake up there.”
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Plans for private San Francisco-Los Angeles overnight sleeping car service revived
Dreamstar says service could begin in summer of 2025
NEWPORT BEACH, Calif. — The company seeking to start a luxury sleeping car train between downtown San Francisco and Los Angeles Union station says it has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Union Pacific “formalizing the parties’ negotiations toward a comprehensive final agreement” to begin operations by 2025.
A press release issued by Dreamstar Lines Inc. on March 23 says “the service will feature state-of-the-art sleeping cars with private rooms with lie-flat beds, en-suite showers, high-speed internet connectivity, on-board food, beverage, and hospitality services and “last mile” transportation, ensuring a seamless, peaceful, and hassle-free passenger experience.”
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lensovet wrote: ↑Thu Apr 04, 2024 6:33 pm LAUPT is owned by LACMTA,There's probably a deeper analysis required on this issue. LAUPT may be owned locally but Amtrak probably has a contract saying they manage certain aspects of the operation that might include veto power over certain issues. Do they control the tower and thus the traffic in? Perhaps they own the tracks and LACMTA owns the ground underneath? They definitely own the yard and shops down the river a bit.