Federal, Night Owl, Twilight Shoreliner (Trains 65, 66, 67)

Simply Railway did a review of the Night Owl:



In short: Everything was okay except for the squeaky equipment and the... is that even a breakfast?

It also makes me wonder where they're getting the Viewliner I from.

I believe the Viewliner I is being rotated on/off the Boston segment of the Lake Shore Limited.

Amtrak would be wise to put a Viewliner II on this route ASAP. These just might be first time Amtrak and sleeper passengers and you want to give them the best experience so that they will return and also spread the word about it.

Agreed. If the rumors are true and the LSL is next in line to get VIIs after the Silver Service then eventually we'll see the VIIs in use on this route.

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V-2s are being kept close to MIA so any problems in design or poor workman ship can be fixed on all cars either in service or being prepped for service.

I think we should all still be sitting back in amazement at the end of the sleeper car grouchy on the NEC.

How are the sales looking? Are the fares still consistently high?

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I just feel Amtrak messed this re-launch up majorly. The advertising and marketing seemed pretty on point and positive. From what I saw on the East Coast it even referenced a lot of things "new" with the sleeper and private room service being offered on the NEC. One would think Amtrak - or any private company - would want to put best foot forward - meaning, lets put the "best" in service.

NOPE!

Amtrak's operations department failed. They stick a derelict Viewliner I on the consist two cars away behind the electric motor so one gets to hear the horn all night for a premium fare. And no, the sleeper is NOT switched in/out at Washington DC, it stays fixed within the consist. So it could have been placed at the rear.

Even though ridership numbers and room occupancy has been high - largely due to COVID (private room option, mask can come off) and likely the strong advertising, will it last comments that passengers are making? Squeaky noises all night. Rattling between the walls and doors. Door handles falling apart. Garbage left behind. This is the Acela Express First Class option at 9 pm shouldn't it have the same protocol, especially since people are "buying" private rooms while Acela is languishing! Business travelers are Zooming!

Amtrak came out with a robust advertising plan, in my opinion, to relaunch this service, and their own operations department did a dis-service by sticking an aged Viewliner I in the consist. The Viewliner I's have not aged well at all - that's well known. It's also well known that Boston maintenance department doesn't like to deal with anything too "foreign." Horizon anything coming in on the Lake Shore Limited - get it out of here! I realize they have to "rotate" the sleeper, but "something" could have been thought of that should have allowed this RESTORED service to launch with the advertised - what should have been a Viewliner II Sleeper.

Worse yet - this premium car proceeds on to Newport News as a deadhead car. And if I wanted to book a sleeper from Williamsburg to Boston - it shows sold out, even though in Washington DC the sleeper space opens up, and the whole time I would be onboard since Williamsburg, the sleeper is in tow. If people board in Washington DC and they are noticing trash in their sleeper - where is the sleeper being COVID cleaned?

One has to wonder after a while - would this stuff be tolerated in the private industry - NO!

Amtrak killed this service before it even had a chance.

Alphaboi wrote: ↑Mon May 10, 2021 12:10 pm Agreed. If the rumors are true and the LSL is next in line to get VIIs after the Silver Service then eventually we'll see the VIIs in use on this route.

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How can this be possible? Amtrak is resuming daily operation. Amtrak has only 20 of the Viewliner II sleepers delivered, with a total of 25 to come onto the roster. Daily service for the Silver Star and Silver Meteor will require 12 sleeper for the Silver Meteor and at least 8 sleepers for the Silver Star (3 sleepers per train set per Silver Meteor, 2 sleeper per train set per the Silver Star). So that's 20 Viewliner II's right there assigned. That leaves five left, and the Lake Shore Limited would require 9 (NINE) Viewliner Sleepers for daily service (3 sleepers per train set per Lake Shore Limited).

The Viewliner II's were meant to augment service for the Viewliner I's. So when daily service resumes - we should see additional Viewliners on the Meteor, Star, Crescent, Cardinal, and Lake Shore Limited. Want to take bets to see if this will happen? It should because the sleeping car ridership from what I've been experiencing has been VERY strong (was recently on the Lake Shore, Capitol, and Empire Builder).

- Empire Builder has rooms for sale in the Dorm car and they awaiting the addition of the second Seattle sleeper - coming at the end of the month

- The Lake Shore added back its second NY Sleeper ahead of what was scheduled, per staff. Amtrak was planning to run just one sleeper for Boston and NY section and that's it, but the second NY Sleeper has been around now for a while!

- Capitol Limited's consist is presently inconsistent but one Superliner sleeper as planned, doesn't work.

All three trains had announcements that Amtrak will be booking at 100% capacity by the end of May so it is "very important for all passengers to still be wearing masks, now and for the future."

The V-1s will continue on the silvers due to the need to rotate them thru the MIA maintenance facility. Eventually we will probably see 2 V-1s and 1 V-2 on each of the silvers? As to the V-2s on the night owl really depends if V-2s are assigned to the CHI - BOS train. If not no V-2s on night owl.

Wasn't there a plan for rehabbing the V1's, removing the in-cabin toilets on the roomettes and turning a room or two into a restroom and shower?

^ That’s how I remember it: Customer is considered the toilet more a bug than a feature and it would pay handsomely in reliability to have fewer toilets

STrRedWolf wrote: ↑Thu May 13, 2021 5:18 pm Wasn't there a plan for rehabbing the V1's, removing the in-cabin toilets on the roomettes and turning a room or two into a restroom and shower?

That was the plan when Boardman was there. But I had heard that plan was scrapped. I think the best one could hope for is a refurb of the Viewliner I Sleeper, even though it should be a “rebuilt” from top to bottom that would include the elimination of the in-room toilets at the roomettes and two communal restrooms where the attendant’s room used to be etc.

THere’s been no real discussion on future deployment of Viewliner II Sleepers (augmenting service, which trains/train sets, etc.) nor the Viewliner Bagg/Dorm and Viewliner II Diner.

The Viewliner Bagg/Dorms are largely assigned to the Cardinal (2) and Crescent (4 when daily). So that’s 6 of the 10 assigned, but considering all the baggage cars available and Viewliner I sleepers that could substitute. Why not put three on the Lake Shore to outfit it when it goes daily. Leave one in Sunnyside for reserve. Brand new cars so they shouldn’t be shopped right?

Supposedly they are working on a mock-up of a Viewliner II Diner that essentially reduces the kitchen area and puts in a service area for a cafe counter (like the Amfleet Cafe/Lounge or Amfleet II Diner Lite - to become the sole food service car and putting in a few additional tables from where the kitchen was modified. We’ll see how all that works out......I would think if Amtrak modifies the Viewliner II in any substantial way - the warranty would be considered null and void. But they probably don’t care!

In the mean time most of the Viewliner II order remains idle with cars sitting in reserve awaiting some sort of fate.....

This is going to be addressed ... I am confident it is only a matter of time. I have to completely agree the Viewliner IIs should be on the NEC. The Silver Service can run just fine with Viewliner Is. If that means the Lake Shore Limited runs with Viewliner IIs then so be it.

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Why not have both on each train , and charge more for the V2's.