Viewliner

This article is about the Amtrak passenger car. For the former Disneyland attraction, seeViewliner Train of Tomorrow.

TheViewlineris a single-level railroad car type operated byAmtrakon most long-distance routes operating east ofChicago.The first production cars, consisting of an order of 50sleeping cars,entered service in 1994. From 2015–2016, 70 Viewliner IIbaggage carsentered service. The new baggage cars are used on all Amtrak trains with full baggage cars, both single-level and bi-level, and replaced all of theHeritage Fleetbaggage cars that Amtrak inherited from the freight railroads when it was established in 1971. From 2016–2019, 25 Viewliner II dining cars entered service, which replaced all of the Heritage Fleet dining cars. In 2019, 10 Viewliner II baggage-dormitory cars entered service. The last cars to enter service were 25 Viewliner II sleeping cars in 2021.

Viewliner
From left: a partially visible Viewliner I sleeper, a Viewliner II sleeper and a Viewliner II baggage car
A Viewliner II roomette
Manufacturer	Budd Company(prototypes) Morrison-Knudsen(Viewliner I) CAF(Viewliner II)
Constructed	Prototypes: 1987–1988 Viewliner I: 1995–1996 Viewliner II: 2012–2021
Entered service	1988–present
Number built	Prototypes: 3 Viewliner I: 50 Viewliner II: 130
Number in service	Viewliner I: 35 (October 2023) Viewliner II: 108 (October 2023)
Fleet numbers	Prototypes: 2300, 2301 (Sleeping) 8400 (Dining) Viewliner I: 62000–62049 (Sleeping) Viewliner II: 61000–61069 (Baggage) 62500–62524 (Sleeping) 68000–68024 (Dining) 69000–69009 (Baggage/Sleeping)
Capacity	Viewliner I sleeper:30 Viewliner II sleeper:28
Operators	Amtrak
Specifications
Car body construction	Stainless steel
Car length	85.33 ft (26.01 m)
Width	10 ft 6 in (3.20 m)
Height	14 ft (4.27 m)
Floor height	51 in (1,300 mm)
Platform height	51 in (1,300 mm) (high) 17 in (430 mm) (low)
Maximum speed	Prototypes/ViewlinerI: 110 mph (177 km/h) Viewliner II: 125 mph (201 km/h)
Power supply	480VAC60Hz
Bogies	GSI 70
Braking system(s)	Air
Coupling system	AAR
Track gauge	4 ft8+1⁄2in(1,435 mm)standard gauge

Early design

One of the prototype sleeping cars at the Wilmington, DE shops in 2012. Note thePhase IIIpaint scheme.

In the 1980s, Amtrak was looking to replace itsHeritage Fleetrailcars, which had been in service as far back as the 1940s. While newSuperlinercars were built starting in 1979, those cars were too tall to run on Amtrak's eastern routes because of clearance issues in and around bothNew York Pennsylvania StationandBaltimore Pennsylvania Station.

Working with theBudd Company,Amtrak drafted plans for new single-level sleeping anddining carsthat utilized a modular design where the interiors of the cars, especially the sleepers, were built in units separate from the exterior shell. These units contain all fixtures, electrical components, sewage and fresh water handling internally and are then mated with the car exterior shell upon assembly. This approach allows for easier maintenance and reconfiguration through removal and replacement of individual units. Access for this purpose is via a removable hatch on the side of the car, a distinguishing feature of the Viewliner series. Unlike theSuperliners,occupants of both bunks in the bedrooms have an outside view. The design of the cars was created by Amtrak's design group, which received input from every department in the company. At the time of their introduction into service, Amtrak planned to assemble a fleet of over a thousand cars during the ten years after their introduction.

The prototype Viewliner cars were assembled at Amtrak'sBeech Grove ShopsinBeech Grove, Indiana,in 1987–1988 from Budd components. Two sleeping cars (2300 and 2301) were built, as was one dining car (8400). These cars were tested on theCapitol Limitedbeginning in 1988.They were also tested on other trains, such as theNight Owland theAuto Train.The prototypes were in regular service until 2002.

The prototype Viewliner dining car, number 8400, was later rebuilt with stimulus funding and restored to revenue service in October 2011and given the nameIndianapolis.Originally a prototype dining car with experimental trucks built during the Viewliner design phase in the late 1980s, the car was completely rebuilt at Amtrak'sBeech Grove Shopsand currently serves on Eastern long distance trains. Information learned from building and using this car was applied to the dining cars included in the new order of Viewliner II cars.

Production

Viewliner I

Viewliner I sleeping car

The first production Viewliners were built in 1995–1996 by Amerail (nowAlstom)/Morrison-Knudsen.Amtrak's original intention in the 1980s was to order 500–600 new cars, of which 100 would be sleepers and the rest coaches, diners, and lounges. This would have enabled Amtrak to replace its remainingHeritage Fleetequipment and run trains with solid Viewliner consists.Ultimately, Amtrak awarded a contract for 50 sleeping cars with an option for 227 cars of various types toMorrison-Knudsen,who were also building the newCalifornia Carsbased on the Superliner design.Morrison-Knudsen unveiled the first Viewliner shell at itsChicagoplant on October 26, 1994.The first entered service on theLake Shore Limitedin November 1995.All Viewliner I cars were Alpha betically named in the "View"series to signify their uniqueness as a new car type, starting withAmerican Viewand finishing withWinter View.Prototype sleeper 2301 was renumbered to 62091 and given the nameEastern Viewat this time as well.

After Morrison-Knudsen was placed in bankruptcy, the outstanding orders were completed by Amerail with final delivery in 1996 alongside the California Car fleet. After the first 50 cars were delivered, none of the remaining 177 options were exercised. The 50 Viewliners arrived just in time to retire most of Amtrak's remaining Heritage sleeping cars, which were coming under increasing environmental pressure due to their use ofnon-retention toilets.Since 1995, Viewliner sleepers have operated on East Coast single-level trains in concert withAmfleetcoaches and Heritage diners (and eventually Viewliner diners).

When Amtrak decided on the names for the new Viewliner II sleeping cars, they also announced new names for the Viewliner I sleepers. TheViewseries was to be replaced by the newRiverseries, named Alpha betically after major rivers east of theMississippi.Starting withAltamaha Riverand finishing withPearl River,they were to match the incoming cars.Amtrak had removed the "View"series names from the Viewliner I cars in the mid 2000's, however, only two would be renamed into the"River"series; 62014 was renamedCroton RiverfromImperial Viewand 62043 was renamedNew RiverfromSunset View.New Riveris also the only Viewliner I sleeper painted in Amtrak'sPhase IIIBpaint scheme.

In 2024 Amtrak plans to launch a refresh program for the Viewliner I cars in order to bring their interiors in line with the Viewliner II sleeping cars.

Viewliner II

Viewliner II diner

On July 23, 2010, Amtrak ordered 130 Viewliner II cars – 55baggage cars,25dining cars,25sleepers,and 25baggage-dormitories– with an option for up to 70 additional cars.The five-year order, worth $298.1 million, was placed with CAF USA inElmira, New York,a fully owned subsidiary ofConstrucciones y Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles.According to former Amtrak presidentJoseph Boardman,CAF was selected overAlstom,the only other bidder, due to CAF's lower bid and it being able to construct the entire car at its factory, rather than relying on subcontractors.In August 2014, the order was modified by swapping 15 baggage-dormitories for 15 baggage cars, changing their totals to 10 and 70, respectively.

The interior of a Viewliner I sleeping car bedroom with the lower bed down

The first car from the order was originally scheduled to roll off the assembly line in October 2012, but was delayed by more than a year, with field testing beginning in June 2014.CAF had multiple issues, including failure to detect defects in the baggage cars, and quality issues with initial construction of the diner and sleeping cars.Amtrak also experienced project management challenges in addressing these faults.While all 130 cars were originally expected to be delivered by the end of 2015,by December 2016 only the baggage cars and one diner were in service.The final cars were delivered in August 2021.

Viewliner II cars feature an updated version of Amtrak's olderPhase IIIpaint scheme, known as Phase IIIB.The baggage cars are numbered 61000–61069 and the baggage-dormitories are numbered 69000–69009.The dining cars, numbered 68000–68024, are named Alpha betically after thefirst 25 state capitalseast of theMississippi Riverstarting withAlbanyand finishing withTallahassee.Prototype Viewliner I diner 8400 was rebuilt and namedIndianapolis.The sleeping cars (62500–62524) are Alpha betically named after major rivers east of the Mississippi, starting withPortage Riverand finishing withWestfield River.This continues from the planned renaming of the Viewliner I sleepers.Unlike theroometteson Viewliner I sleepers, the Viewliner II roomettes do not have in-room toilets; instead, there are two shared restrooms. Because of this, the Viewliner II sleepers have one fewer roomette than the Viewliner I sleepers – 11 versus 12.

Inspection cars

American View,Amtrak's business and inspection car

Both prototype sleepers would be rebuilt into company inspection cars in the 2010's. In March 2014,number 2301 (which had been renumbered to 62091 and renamedEastern View)was converted into an inspection car and renumbered 10004 as well as given the nameAmerican View.This inspection car has rear-facing seats and a large glass window at the end that allows passengers to observe the tracks.American Viewis used by maintenance crews to visually inspect the tracks for defects and by the Amtrak president and other executives for official purposes. Number 2300 was rebuilt into a track-geometry car in October 2020.

Future cars

In 2022, Amtrak announced that they would be replacing all of their currentSuperliner,Amfleet II,and Viewliner I passenger cars used for long-distance service by 2032.Amtrak issued a request for information from ten manufacturers in December 2022. In December 2023 Amtrak issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) for Bi-Level equipment to replace current Superliner equipment.No concrete plans for Viewliner I and Amfleet II replacement exist yet as of March 2024.

Service

Viewliner passenger cars are designed for use on Amtrak's long-distance routes in the Eastern United States: theCardinal,Crescent,Lake Shore Limited,Silver MeteorandSilver Star.This is due toclearance restrictionsin and aroundNew York Pennsylvania StationandBaltimore Pennsylvania Stationthat prevent tall bi-level cars from clearing the tunnels.

Viewliner baggage cars are used on all Superliner and single-level trains which use full baggage cars on the Amtrak system. The first Viewliner baggage cars entered service on March 23, 2015 on multiple Eastern routes, with the last entering service in December 2016.

References

• Johnston, Bob (February 1996). "Viewliners debut on Lake Shore Limited".Trains.Vol. 56, no. 2. pp. 16–17.ISSN0041-0934.
• Johnston, Bob (January 2012). "Viewliner diner rides again!".Trains.Vol. 72, no. 1. pp. 22–23.ISSN0041-0934.
• Johnston, Bob (February 2014). "First Viewliner II cars emerge".Trains.Vol. 74, no. 2. pp. 22–23.ISSN0041-0934.
• Solomon, Brian (2004).Amtrak.Saint Paul, Minnesota: MBI.ISBN978-0-7603-1765-5.

Further reading

• Ingles, David J. (February 1993). "A View of the future? Sleeping well on Amtrak's Viewliner".Trains.Vol. 53, no. 2.ISSN0041-0934.
• Johnston, Bob (April 1996). "Viewliner beats the odds".Trains.Vol. 56, no. 4.ISSN0041-0934.

External links

• Viewliner 3D TourArchivedMarch 24, 2015, at theWayback Machine