From Amtrak: “They grow up so fast! Amtrak’s new Acela fleet, set to enter service in 2021, continues its progression at Alstom’s facility in Hornell, NY, and the first train, out of 28 trainsets, will be moving to Pueblo, CO in mid-February for further testing. This video shows off the new trains in action, highlighting the dynamic, sleek and modern exteriors that customers can expect to see along the Northeast Corridor.”
— From an Amtrak news release. Jan. 22, 2020
Tuesday, 17MAR: Acela 21 move scheduled for today Hornell-PHL.
What is supposed to happen to the existing Acela trainsets, just recently refurbished? Not much of a return on that investment. (Unless they planned for production delay)
Yes, the colors remind me of B & O and MoPac back in the day. I recently took a side trip to see the Alstom plant from the outside. The diesel switcher reminds me of UP always putting a diesel in the consist of the 4014… I also noticed the pans. Chances are this was a “power on” test, but not self-propelled.
BTW, Penelope… the B-747 is still in production as I write this, albeit at a reduced and declining rate as the company producing the fuselage tubes has sold off the tooling for making them.
Reminds me of the “Flying Blue Beer Can” UA Turbo Trains of the 60’s that were an unfortunate failure
Looks a bit Eastern Bloc.
Ugly!
The new Acelas will have more seats than the current trains. Note the cars are indeed shorter than we’re used to and the train is one articulated train set, not individual cars.
Andrew Seldon; have you read Robert McGuire’s comment yet?
Lordy, Lordy; all these super fast train sets and no track to run them on at speed. How dumb are we in this country. Go to [https://www.solutionaryrail.org/].
These trains can’t arrive soon enough. I have never seen the NEC trains so crowded. Acela passengers are reporting that even with reservations they have had to stand. This happened to my wife and I back in early December from Philadelphia to NYC. there are not enough available seats to accommodate passengers with reservations and those passengers that don’t have Acela tickets but get on anyway hoping for a free or reduced fare ride. A week ago I tried for a first class upgrade using a coupon but was unsuccessful because the train was completely sold out. This, of course, is not the case for all trains but additional equipment will be needed soon. And then you have an EB Empire Builder leaving Seattle recently with only 68 people (less than 2 busloads). Makes one wonder where their priorities lay.
The cars look a lot like NYC’s Xplorer of 1956.
what a FUGLY train this is !!!
The new paint scheme on the second generation ‘Acela Express’ is a refreshing change from red and white incorporated with blue to mimic America’s patriotic colours. The blue and silver mist are reminiscent of the blue and grey streamlined paint schemes on passenger trains of the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad and Missouri Pacific Lines.
Nonetheless, I do wish that Amtrak’s contract for the new Acela fleet had gone to Siemens instead of Alstom. Railway vehicles built by Siemens are well styled and engineered. From the S70 light rail cars to the high speed trains of Europe Siemens demonstrates style and efficiency can be combined.
The front end of each power car on the new Acela prototype built by Alstom resembles the cockpit of a Boeing 747 which I was never fond of from the very beginning. Production on the Boeing 747’s had ceased in 1998; and now this.
The best HSR your tax dollars can buy. The best trainset any committee can design.
The control cabs look ugly.
A colossal waste of taxpayers’ money, when the existing Acela trains can’t sell 40% of their seat-miles. They should be reducing capacity to match demand, not expanding it on a hope.
This appears to be a composite. At the beginning, no front pan, at the end both front and rear pans are up, but there is a shop engine which appears to have been pushing it.
They really need the silver paint with red white and blue stripping on all new equipment.