A glimpse of high-speed rail’s future in the United States is expected to pass through Toledo on Monday night when Amtrak sends a prototype for its next-generation Acela train to Colorado for testing.
The train, built by Alstom in Hornell, N.Y., is slated to leave the factory Monday morning in tow behind Amtrak diesel locomotives for a trip to the Transportation Technology Center proving ground near Pueblo, Colo., where it will undergo nine months of high-speed tests, Amtrak said in a statement announcing the move.
Its planned route to Colorado will take it through Toledo, Amtrak said, because from Buffalo to LaJunta, Colo., it will use the same tracks used by Amtrak’s Lake Shore Limited and Southwest Chief trains.
But because the train will run without need for a set schedule, the precise time it will travel the tracks that also go through Sandusky, Port Clinton, Wauseon, and Bryan, Ohio, is undetermined beyond an expected departure from Buffalo around noon Monday.
“Those who want to see or take photos of this movement are reminded to stay well away from the tracks and platforms, and should absolutely not trespass on private railroad property,” Amtrak cautioned.
The current Acela fleet, designed during the 1990s and in service for nearly two decades, operates over the Northeast Corridor tracks between Washington and Boston, powered by overhead electric wires and running at speeds of up to 150 mph.
Amtrak said the successors “will accommodate nearly 25 percent more customers while continuing the spacious, high-end comfort of the current Acela service. Each train will feature improved Wi-Fi access, personal outlets, USB ports, and adjustable reading lights, and feature sustainable components, including seating made from recycled leather.”
It made no statement about whether the new trains will be faster. The current Acela trains’ speed is constrained over most of the Boston-Washington route by limitations of the tracks they use, including sharp curves and aging bridges and tunnels.
Once the prototype train’s testing is complete, it is to return to the Hornell factory for installation of its interior. Amtrak said a copy is to be finished in March and sent to Philadelphia for testing on the Northeast Corridor.
First Published February 16, 2020, 11:34 p.m.
