Amtrak's 40th Anniversary Display Train

This past Saturday I had the opportunity to go into Boston to see Amtrak's 40th Anniversary display train. Starting on National Train Day this past May and going until April 2012, the train has been touring the country, stopping in different places and opening up for a show and tell. The train tells all about Amtrak's history through plaques, mannequins showing old uniforms, old seats, model trains, and vintage advertising. The best part is, the train doesn't cost a thing.

The train consists of P40 822, NPCU (ex-F40PH) 406, 10-6 Sleeper "Pacific Bend", three baggage cars that have been converted to display cars, and an Amfleet cafe that has been converted to a gift shop. All the equipment wears Amtrak's phase 3 paint scheme or a variation of it. The equipment was all hand picked from Beech Grove's deadline and fixed up and converted for this special use with stimulus funds. For the modeler in you, Athearn and Walthers are producing HO scale models of the train, available only through Amtrak's online store, coming in November. The 40th anniversary logos come as separate decals so you can use the models as revenue equipment or as the 40th anniversary train.

The self-guided tour began in the baggage car closest to the locomotives. It began in 1970, when the idea for RailPax was first introduced on Congress. The act was passed, the name was changed at the last minute (which was a good idea in my opinion) and Amtrak was born on May 1, 1971 with a southbound Clocker train out of Penn Station to Philadelphia at 12:05AM. The first few years were known as the "Rainbow Era" because Amtrak inherited passenger equipment from virtually all the railroads in the country, and didn't have time to paint it all overnight. Trains ran in a variety of paint schemes from previous owners until everything had been painted. The display train had a model of a typical rainbow era train on display. Amtrak ordered some new equipment, including Amfleets, which were based off Penn Central's Metroliners, and Superliners, which were based off Santa Fe's El Capitan equipment. These, of course, were all painted in Amtrak colors and the rainbow era came to a close. The display train had models of typical Superliner and Amfleet trains as well. In 2000, Amtrak began running the famous Acela trains, which was the last model on display on the train.

There were also lots and lots of old ads on display. These advertisements were all about poster size and depicted trains such as the Empire Builder, Lake Shore Limited, and Southwest Chief. They were very interesting, and showed how Amtrak advertising has changed over the years. Some advertisements introduced new things such as the Superliners, the Talgo equipment, Amtrak California, and of course the Acela Express service. There was even an ad for the North America Rail Pass, a predecessor to today's USA Rail Pass.

There were a few other displays as well. A display of train horns that Amtrak has used in the past explained how each one worked and had a button that plays the horn so you can listen to each of them. Displays of old seats from Superliners and Amfleets showed how the patterns in the upholstery changed over the years. Another display showed how the track, catenary, and pantograph systems all work. There was also an old diesel control stand that visitors could play around with.

At the end of the tour was the gift shop, which is in an Amfleet cafe car. They had t-shirts, mugs, hats, and other souvenirs available. They also had a big display of Walthers models of Superliners, Amfleets, and other Amtrak models for sale. Finally, they had the preproduction models of Athearn's three Amtrak heritage locomotives. These were not for sale, but they sure made me want all three when they become available! Amtrak models will be available through Amtrak's online store in November.

The display train is open most weekends between now and April. It is touring the country, so it will probably stop in a station near you. To see a schedule, go to www.amtrak40th.com. All the photos in this post, and others, can be seen in a Facebook photo album, viewable here.