Amtrak Auto Train #53 with a Friendly Engineer 1/4/09

[tom201090]

about 45 cars if i counted correct(17 Passenger, 28 Vehicle) and only 2 Diesels. Impressive. How long (in meters) is this train?

[Amtrak839]

@tom201090 Probably around 1200 meters

[kjrehberg]

They just finished the new North platform so you can get ever closer perspective of this train. See the new Woodbridge platform in my videos.

[railslave]

no im not the engineer i am a conductor on the autotrain

[railslave]

yep and the engineer is......... rodney e.

[Amtrak839]

You were the engineer on that train?

[awsomethingsmax]

Yeah, were you the engineer, or do you know him?

[losdowgg]

Im taking a train to LA this spring break

[BobWeaver112]

Looks like he was power braking

[Amtrak839]

No, he was accelerating, this is only a few miles south of LOR.

[BobWeaver112]

Well for starters, the brake lights on the Superliners are yellow, meaning the brakes are engaged. Also, just because 53 is 4 miles or so south of Lorton doesn't mean that the train is going to go straight to track speed; it could have caught a signal coming out of the terminal. Plus, from head end to the last auto carrier, he really didn't pick up any speed.

[BobWeaver112]

Also, at 1:40 you can hear the engineer call out an approach limited signal, presumably at the Rippon signals. Chances are that the train was already traveling at its designated speed.

[Amtrak839]

All very good points. Touche!

[TheGondorian]

almost! 2 horns too much

[Amtrak839]

Darn. Thanks for the info.

[calvinps]

What do you mean "2 horns too much"?? :S

[Amtrak839]

A shave and a haircut is 8 blasts of the horn.  He's saying it was 10, 2 too many for a shave and a haircut.

[NJCoastExp]

That is a long one.

[Sylvain726]

Yes,that's the longest Amtrak train in the US.

I already seen this train somewhere in Virginia close to this town. I saw this train when I was in the car of my parents when we headed back home in Canada from Florida in 2003.

Very nice video.

[Amtrak839]

Thanks!