I love the new Siemens charger Amtrak engines. The horn on those are modern and they sound really good. Loved the genesis. They look cleaner only because they are new.
Thank you, Mike, that was impressive with lots of locations, open fields and mills to accompany the rolling by trains. Let's hope this gorgeous locomotive will be a true heir to the iconic ''Genesis'' locomotive.
The brightlines are an improvement but this thing is horrible looking, Of all the faces to shove on an engine, I cant imagine its aerodynamic as many other prev amtrak trains, They need to look at the French TGVs and ICE trains learn what a good looking engine looks like
@@therookie9276 oh man dude since I railfans at Middletown and Washington street I can imagine them going by so hard speed and MAKING my camera stand fall XD
I rode a train pulled by one shortly after they were introduced shortly after thanksgiving last year. It broke down at the second to last stop. A brand new locomotive. That was the last time I'll ever use Amtrak.
Great video of the new SC-44 Charger locomotives in action there in the Midwest. I just might on my next Pacific Surfliner ride to & from Los Angeles be riding on a Pacific Surfliner being pulled by the new SC-44 Charger locomotive.
I'm surprised to see those Amtrak heritage baggage cars still in use I thought they have been replaced by the viewliner baggage cars as of 2015 to 2016
chidino1 I agree 100% I mean the coast Starlight already discontinued its specific parlor car services and those were the last two Santa Fe High level cars used by Amtrak they were two of the original cars that came off the Santa Fe El Capitan now they've been retired and one is in private ownership the fate of the other one I do not know but it is a relief to see those Heritage baggage cars still in use I assume they're just downgraded to the regional trains like those and taken off the long-distance trains were all the viewliner baggage cars are
The extra Heritage cars are used because of grade crossing and signal detection was not working with the short trains. Basically they are fill ins so the circuitry works properly on this route.
I'm just amazed that there's still a Phase III baggage car in circulation. Also, I'm not sure what to think of the SC-44 tbh. I want to like it, but I can't bring myself to.
Love the horns on these things! They sound like a mix of old and new! And the heritage baggage and passenger cars! Didn't know any Phase III baggage cars still existed! And the old heritage diner and other heritage car on the River Runner! Pretty sweet!
railfandude123 I think that the horns on the Siemens SC-44 Charger locomotives are either Nathan K5L or Nathan K5LA, they sound somewhat similar to those
I wish the Chargers weren’t restricted to 70 mph speed limits. If only they upgraded the track to allow for higher speeds, and enable the locomotives to be able to go full throttle at 125 mph
Budder Shark ummm they are good for 125. No where are they restricted to a speed of 70 The IC line however restricts any train with non superliner equipment to 70 over crossings from Stuenkel to Centrallia with a section of 60 over gated crossings from Mattoon to Kinmundy.
Only MARC's (Maryland's commuter rail) will have the ability to go 125 mph, as they're going to replace almost all electric operations on it's Penn (NEC) Line.
Well first they are going to have to make railroad crossings idiot proof. I can't imagine the mayhem that would occur when a train going at 125 hits anything from a Focus to an eighteen wheeler. .It's bad enough when they are travelling at 70 or below.
The brand new Chargers are just now starting to grow on me. At first glance, I absolutely hated them, but now I actually kind of like them the more I see them.
I am laughing so hard because I came here expecting a detailed informational video but just watched trains go by in different directions and listened to all their sounds for 6 minutes.
I've long thought that it would be neat to see a modern version of one, either by taking an old one and putting in new internals or by building a brand new unit designed to look like one.
The rail network in my country is so bad that we still have trains in use from the 50s on some lines. Some lines had electric trains that were built in the early 20s that were in use until 94!. I appreciate these older trains as much as newer ones but still
The Charger is powered by a Cummins 16-cylinder QSK95 4-stroke high speed diesel engine, which is designed to meet EPA Tier IV emissions standards that took effect in 2015.[4] Power output varies by model; the SCB-40 produces 4,000 hp (3,000 kW),[5][6] while the SC-44 produces 4,400 hp (3,300 kW).[7] The top speed in service as per PRIIA specifications is 125 mph (201 km/h). The engines are USA made by Cummins is an American Fortune 500 corporation that designs, manufactures, and distributes engines,
I was an LA crew base engineer when they got suckered into buying those things. They were bought by the Santa Feces and they refused them. GE conned some jackass at Amtrak into buying them for $1.75 million a pop. Using the HEP you loose 1,100 hp, only 2,200hp for traction. It added another 45 minutes more time on the LA-Vegas run. No place on that controller could you run a steady speed in power or dynamic braking. The amp needle wondering all over the dial. I've run them all, GG1s to U25s all up to the P42 techno turds. I hate them all.
I would rant about how much I hate this new locomotive, but ranting is overrated. Let me, instead, be civil about my feelings: I do not like the charger simply because of refusal to accept change; I like the Genesis and I'm going to be sad to see it go. Genesis series locomotives are very beautiful engines; they have a sort of aesthetic that the Chargers do not. By the end of the day, I'm nothing more than an overprotective father sad to see his daughter off to college. In summary: the charger is a good passenger locomotive, but it's not a pretty picture. Thank you for allowing me to share my thoughts in a civilized manner.
I believe that the P40DC and P42DC locomotives are not Tier 4 compliant, and they are starting to get up there in years for the earliest production models. That's why a variant of the SC-44 _Charger_ could start to replace the P40DC/P42DC from 2020 on. It'll be interesting to see what Amtrak will order, whether the SC-44 or the EMD F125 that Metrolink is now getting.
Awesome video Mike. I can already tell that you went to the Midwest. Did you plan on making 2 major trips like the Midwest and the southeast or just one. (I just want to know I’m a bit curious) Also if your planning on railfanning brightline please be adviced that brightline’s locomotives are a different model they are not called SC-44s they are called SCB-40s. They have 4,000 horsepower which is 400 horsepower less than the SC-44.
Thanks, Jose! The plan is to make another trip to the southeast, hopefully later this year or early next. I will definitely be heading back to the Midwest at some point too.
Sorry to see the EMD 710's go. Really going to miss that bass drum sound. Where I live in Ontario Canada, almost no EMD left for passenger to cargo. Now, so many GE units, not even the EMD 1010 4-stroke in our area.
The Amtrak Wolverine is running the Siemens Charger now. I see them all the time here in Jackson Michigan when I am mowing a lawn that's by the tracks.
@Buffalo Railfan Dual mode as usable for multiple electric power systems or as a combined diesel / electric version? The Vectron MS is a multi power electric loco - that would be the base for case 1. The Siemens Vectron as the basis of SC-44 and ACS-64 is available in AC Electric, DC Electric and MS or Multi-System Electric, as well as an electric locomotive with last-mile diesel. But loco really is only ok for last-mile operation, it has a diesel engine only with 180 kW .... And of course there is the Vectron DE for diesel-electric drive, which is the base of the SC-44. Im not sure if SIEMENS is willing to sacrifice their modularity concept - which is one of the key technologies for the Vectron family, where each component has its firm and fixed place - for the sake of the realization of a locomotive with a large diesel engine and lower electrical power.
Don't be surprised if Amtrak is looking at replacing their P42 fleet with the new SC-44 in the next several years. Two SC-44's leading the _Coast Starlight_ or _California Zephyr_ may not be such a far-fetched idea.
I just recently traveled the Missouri River Runner this weekend. I ask him why using two or three luggage cars. When everyone brings inside their own luggage. I couldn't get a clear response. I didn't see any visual loading in Kansas City Terminal. The crew is friendly except one assistant conductor. The ride was smooth. I was trying to figure out the coach and business ticket. I spend an extra $20 for the business section. You get a free non-alcoholic drink and a newspaper.
The extra baggage and dining cars are used to meet the required 30 axle minimum for all passenger trains on this line. The host railroad requires all passenger trains to operate with a minimum of 30 axles in order to make sure that the crossing warning lights and signals are activated by the train. The way this equipment works is that the signals are set up such that the train creates a short circuit when it gets close enough to a signal by allowing electricity to pass between the two rails through the axles.
Gave this a fresh watch days ago. Lovely footage. Great loco! But I gather from passengers and news reports, the Illinois Service between Carbondale and Champaign is rife with delays. Pedestrians hit, north of Cdale, at least a couple instances. Cracked rails. CN freight is King of the Rails, because CN owns the line. Trip to Chicago should be 6 hours. It's more like 8 or 9. Hopefully the issues will be addressed. Service between Carbondale and Champaign will be by bus on Jan 22, while the line is further repaired.
Yes, but until they need to be replaced Amtrak might as well keep them to shorten the running time on the Maple leaf route, even if it is only by 40 minutes.
