Heritage-scheme locomotive launches Amtrak

The National Railroad Passenger Corp., Amtrak, began operating on May 1, 1971, with a fleet of aging equipment inherited from the freight railroads, which had been relieved of their obligation to operate intercity passenger services by the federal government. Forty years later, Amtrak is hauling record numbers of Americans, providing intercity service, including high speed service on the Northeast Corridor.

Preparations are under way for several activities to commemorate Amtrak’s 40th anniversary. The first of these is the first of four General Electric P-42 diesel-electric locomotives dressed up in one of four historic Amtrak paint schemes. The locomotive, no. 145 (pictured), wears the Phase III scheme; it entered regular revenue service on Jan. 30.

All four locomotives will be in service by the end of April and will operate on trains across the Amtrak national network. As each becomes available for service, Amtrak will issue a Twitter message at twitter.com/Amtrak and post a photo in the Photos tab on its Facebook page at Facebook.com/Amtrak.

Among other commemorative activities is a book entitled Amtrak: An American Story. Written with the help of former presidents of Amtrak and current employees, among others, the book discusses the railroad’s history and its plans for the future, and contains an employee-generated photo essay of 24 hours in the life of the railroad. In addition, a documentary DVD illustrating the history of Amtrak and its importance to the country is being produced.

Also, a special 40th anniversary exhibit train debut at the National Train Day event in Washington, D.C. on May 7, 2011, and then travel across the country for a one-year period. It will have two locomotives with historic paint schemes and use renovated baggage cars to display educational exhibits focusing on each decade of the railroad’s existence, with vintage advertising, past menus and dinnerware, period uniforms, photographs, and other memorabilia. There will be no charge for the public to tour the exhibit train. Dates and locations of when and where it will travel will be announced soon. In addition, a special anniversary website will be launched this spring with historical information about Amtrak, a schedule of celebration activities, a photo archive and video library, and a virtual tour of the exhibit train with a map that will track its journey across the country. The book and documentary DVD will be available for purchase this spring along with other anniversary merchandise in the retail center aboard the exhibit train and at the Amtrak online store, among other locations.

Additional information about celebration activities will be provided as the May 1 anniversary date approaches.