Metroliner

Metroliner
Budd Pennsylvania Railroad Metroliner electric multiple-unit car circa 1968 before acceptance. All Metroliners, including this car, entered revenue service wearing Penn Central identification.
Overview
Service type	Inter-city rail
Status	Discontinued
Locale	Northeast Corridor
First service	1969
Last service	2006
Successor	Acela Express
Former operator(s)	Penn Central (1969-1971) Amtrak (1971-2006)
Route
Start	New York City
End	Washington, DC
Distance travelled	226 miles (364 km)
Technical
Rolling stock	Budd Metroliners (1969-1981) EMD AEM-7s (1981-2006) Amfleet coaches (1981-2006)
Gauge	4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm)
Track owner(s)	PC, Amtrak
Route map Legend 0 New York New York/New Jersey border North River Tunnels 10 mi (16 km) Newark 58 mi (93 km) Trenton New Jersey/Pennsylvania border 91 mi (150 km) Philadelphia Pennsylvania/Delaware border 116 mi (190 km) Wilmington Delaware/Maryland border 185 mi (300 km) Baltimore 196 mi (320 km) BWI Airport Maryland/District of Columbia border 225 mi (360 km) Washington

The Metroliner was a premium express train service between Washington, D.C., and New York City in the United States from 1969 to 2006.^[1][2] It was first operated by Penn Central Transportation, successor to the Pennsylvania Railroad, and later by Amtrak.

Originally operated with self-powered electric multiple unit cars, which were later replaced with locomotive-hauled trainsets, the train offered reserved business-class and first-class seating. A trip between New York's Pennsylvania Station and Washington, D.C.'s Union Station took approximately 3 hours.

Amtrak replaced Metroliner service with high-speed (150 mph or 240 km/h) Acela Express trainsets. Metroliner service was discontinued on 27 October 2006.^[3]

History

The High Speed Ground Transportation Act of 1965 started a U.S. Government effort to develop a high speed train for Northeast Corridor service. The U.S. Department of Transportation worked with the Pennsylvania Railroad, Budd Company, General Electric and Westinghouse to develop an electric multiple unit, high speed passenger train with initial service target for 1967.^[4]

After several setbacks, Metroliner service started on January 16, 1969,^[5] operated by Penn Central Transportation, successor to the Pennsylvania Railroad after its merger with the rival New York Central Railroad, using newly-developed Budd Metroliner EMUs. The initial schedules included one train daily in each direction between Washington and New York, and a second train per day in each direction was soon added; non-stop service between Washington and New York was added on April 2, 1969.^[5] Successful from the beginning, the Metroliner remained under Penn Central operation until the creation of the National Railroad Passenger Corporation (Amtrak) in 1971, upon which it was transferred, along with other premium rail services, to the new agency.^[4]

In 1981 Amtrak replaced the Budd Metroliner cars, which had developed problems with their DC motors limiting their speed, with conventional locomotive-hauled trains powered by the Swedish-developed AEM-7 locomotives pulling conventional Amfleet I and II coaches, whose design was derived from the first-generation Metroliner design, at speeds up to 125 mph (201 km/h).

Expanded Metroliner service was initiated by Amtrak when problems developed with Acela Express trainset braking systems during 2002 and 2005. As trainsets were repaired, the number of Metroliner service trains declined to a single round trip each weekday and eventually was completely discontinued and the fleet transferred to other routes in the Amtrak system. The current Northeast Regional service is equivalent to the former Metroliner service in speed (at 125 mph or 201 km/h), but not in accommodations as Northeast Regional service does not offer first class accommodations.

Equipment

The first version of the Metroliner from 1969 to 1981 was an electric multiple unit train consisting of Budd Metroliner self-propelled cars. These cars resembles Amfleet railcars.

The second incarnation of the Metroliner, then owned by Amtrak, from 1981 to 2006 was roughly equivalent to today's current Northeast Regional service trains but with Amfleet II cars hauled by AEM-7 locomotives at 125 MPH and offering first-class service.

References