National Train Day 2011 at Chicago Union Station
May 7, 2011 was National Train Day. What's National Train Day? Why, it's an annual event organized by Amtrak in order to spread information about everything passenger trains have to offer. Amtrak has been holding it all across United States since 2008. This year, National Train Day was particularly special because it coincided with the 40th anniversary of the establishment of Amtrak. Considering just how many times it came close to being disbanded, Amtrak is quite happy to have survived this long - so it celebrated in style.
I wasn't originally going to do a write-up, but there have been requests, so...
In Chicago, the National Train Day was held at the city's Union Station. It was the only place it could be held - Amtrak owns the building and its tracks, and it has more room than any other Chicago rail terminal.
The Grand Hall was turned into a huge exhibition space. Amtrak set up a number of displays, including a table full of models of every single train car and locomotive Amtrak ever used and a display describing the history of dining cars, among other things. Most notably, it had a chef demonstrating what kind of food you (theoretically) could cook in a dining car kitchen. They occasionally handed out samples, but I didn't stick around long enough to try any of them.
Radio Disney set up a stage that played host to various kid-orientated, train-themed performances
Other rail-related organizations set up booths and exhibits of their own. The Midwest High-Speed Rail Initiative set up a multi-media display:
There was a display for Midwest Amtrak corridor services - mid-range Amtrak routes that (with one exception) start in Chicago and extend into the nearby states. Except for the Wolverine route, they are all partially funded by whatever states they run through.
Just to give you an idea of how far the Midwest corridor services extend, here is a photo of a map in the middle of the display
In a few years, Illinois should get two new corridor routes - the Quad City Rocket, which will run between Chicago and Quad Cities, and Blackhawk Express, which will run between Chicago, Rockford, Galena and Dubuque, Iowa.
Private companies were out in force. Several tourist railroads advertised their routes, and local railfan organizations did their best to recruit members. There was even a booth where you could buy train-themed paintings.
As I exited the Grand Hall, I saw a paramedic standing by. Given the crowds inside, it was probably prudent.
But the most interesting part of the National Train Day were, well, the trains. And boy were there many of them.
Union Pacific Railroad brought out a locomotive that was painted in logos and colors of Chicago & North Western Railroad, which it acquired back in the 90s. Chicago & North Western Railroad turned hundreds of small northern and northwestern settlements into commuter suburbs. Without it, the famously rich North Shore suburbs wouldn't exist and places like Arlington Heights would never grow past a few houses.
Canadian National Railroad, one of the biggest railroad companies in North America, brought in its executive train. The train originally belonged to another notable Chicago railroad, the Illinois Central Railroad (which, you guessed it, was acquired by CN). Executive trains are typically used to hold business meetings, company events and inspection tours. They really bring home the point that trains are basically rooms on wheels - if you have thousands of dollars to burn, you can really make them cool on the inside. This train was no exception.
The locomotive:
Train cars:
And, some inside pics.
The lounge car:
A phone built into the lounge car:
The people who ride it get to sleep in comfortable rooms that wouldn't be out of place in a hotel. Each room has a bathroom with a sink and a toilet.
And a bathroom with paintings, bookshelves, closets and a full-length bed. Some even had dressers. And here is the most remarkable thing - each room was custom-designed.
The CN executive train also had an amazingly ornate meeting/dining car
And another lounge car
With a built-in bar
I don't care how you feel about railroads. You have to admit - this train is awesome.
Amtrak brought out a train of its own - a composite set made up of all major types of train cars it currently uses. First was the Amfleet coach class - the same type of train car I rode to and from New York City. I didn't feel a need to take a picture of it (since it would be redundant), but I did take a picture of one of the coach seats in "sleep" mode.
Next was a Horizon cafe/business car. It's a pretty common feature on corridor trains. Like the lounge car on the New York Limited, it's split into three sections, except in this case, you get a regular Amtrak lounge sitting on one side
A cafe in the middle:
And some business class seats on the other side.
Unlike coach class seats, which are arranged in rows of four, business class seats are arranged in rows of three, so you get two seats on one side and a single seat on the other side.
All Business-class passengers get complimentary copies of newspapers from whatever major city they are arriving in.
Curiously, I saw four seats arranged to face each other, Metra-style (except unlike Metra seats, they can't be flipped).
Next, we went up to the Superliner crew sleeper. This sleeper car was designed for bi-level Superliner trains - except unlike all other cars in Superliner trains, it comes with a special connector that allows it to link up to single-level cars.
Inside, they look kind of like regular Superliner sleepeers, except more austere. Superliner sleepers have roomettes and larger bathrooms on the top floor and family rooms and shower facilities on the lower floor. Crew sleeper only has roomettes on the upper floor floor and one family-sized room on the lower floor. It means that most crew members have to use the common showers, The lower floor also had a small lounge for the crew. It had two tables. The rest was empty space.
One interesting thing about this train was that Amtrak personal left some rooms in "day" mode and some rooms in "night" mode, so we got to see what happens when the seats are folded down into the lower bunk...
... And the upper bunk folds down from the wall
Next, we went into a Superliner diner. On Superliners, the tables are on the upper floor and the kitchen is on the lower floor. We didn't get to see the kitchen - but we did get to see some of the meals that are prepared on various Amtrak trains.
Breakfast:
Lunch
Dinner:
Sweets:
One of the kids behind me asked if he could get some of that food. The dining car attendant gently told him that the food has been out for hours, so it probably wouldn't be too good now.
Finally, we went to see a regular Superliner sleeper
Bedroom:
Bedroom beds in "night" mode
In Superliner bedrooms, the shower and the toilet are located in the same compartment. If you want to take a shower, simply lower the seat and turn on the showerhead.
One of the odder Superliner bedroom features is that every bedroom gets a chair. Just one bolted-down, swirling chair.
I also went to the lower floor and tried to get a few shots of the family room
And a common shower. In this case, the toilet and the shower are in separate rooms.
From there, we continued to probably the most unique train in the station - an old Milwaukee Road train.
To make a long story as short as I can, Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad (better remembered as Milwaukee Road) was another major Chicago area railroad. It is best remembered for the frequent trains between Chicago, Milwaukee and Minneapolis. After the railroad went bankrupt, railroad enthusiasts everywhere bought as many Milwaukee Road train cars as it could. One such group, the Milwaukee-based Railroading Heritage of Midwestern America managed to put together an entire Milwaukee Road train. And they brought that train to Chicago for National Train Day.
Now, this was all well and cool - except the train was so badly overcrowded that everybody moved at a snail's pace. That's enough to dishearten even the most fanatical train enthusiast. By the time we were coming to the end, we all just wanted to get off.
The first stop on our tour was the St.Croix Valley Lounge Car. It had nice chairs
Ceiling fans
Some booths..
... With vintage posters
A coffee-making area
And a surprisingly nice bathroom
Next, we went to a baggage car. Now, you may ask - what's so special about a baggage car? Well, the folks at RHMA converted it into their mobile souvenir shop, adding carpets and counters - which, in my opinion, is pretty damn clever
The "menu" had a list of all the items visitors could buy - and some of them did.
Next, we went to the Super Dome 53 train car. During the mid-20th century, dome cars were considered the height of luxury. They offered 180-degree views of the passing scenery, the cutting-edged kitchens on the lower level provided food and they often came with built-in bars. If you were riding a Milwaukee Road train, Dome cars had the best seats money could buy.
It had some small tables and a bar:
Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, we visited the Cedar Rapids Observation Car. It was basically a lounge car where the seats were designed to give passengers a "tail-end" view of their surroundings.
Couch-like seats at the end
A view out the window
After I left the Milwaukee Road train, I headed to the other side of the station to see a Pennsylvania Railroad train. As you may recall from my NYC trip log, Pennsylvania Railroad was a major East Coast railroad. The train itself was actually build in Chicago's famous Pullman shops. Unfortunately, the train was closed to visitors, but I was able to take a few pictures of its exterior.
Locomotive:
Baggage car:
Parlor car:
And a few pictures through the windows
Inside the parlor car:
Inside the lounge car:
Finally, I got a shot of the anniversary locomotive - a modern Amtrak locomotive painted in Amtrak's original color scheme.
And special inscriptions
All and all, the National Train Day proved to be an interesting experience. Crowded, but interesting. Of course, with all the people that attended it this year, I can't help but wonder how many will attend next time around.
I wasn't originally going to do a write-up, but there have been requests, so...
In Chicago, the National Train Day was held at the city's Union Station. It was the only place it could be held - Amtrak owns the building and its tracks, and it has more room than any other Chicago rail terminal.
The Grand Hall was turned into a huge exhibition space. Amtrak set up a number of displays, including a table full of models of every single train car and locomotive Amtrak ever used and a display describing the history of dining cars, among other things. Most notably, it had a chef demonstrating what kind of food you (theoretically) could cook in a dining car kitchen. They occasionally handed out samples, but I didn't stick around long enough to try any of them.
Radio Disney set up a stage that played host to various kid-orientated, train-themed performances
Other rail-related organizations set up booths and exhibits of their own. The Midwest High-Speed Rail Initiative set up a multi-media display:
There was a display for Midwest Amtrak corridor services - mid-range Amtrak routes that (with one exception) start in Chicago and extend into the nearby states. Except for the Wolverine route, they are all partially funded by whatever states they run through.
Just to give you an idea of how far the Midwest corridor services extend, here is a photo of a map in the middle of the display
In a few years, Illinois should get two new corridor routes - the Quad City Rocket, which will run between Chicago and Quad Cities, and Blackhawk Express, which will run between Chicago, Rockford, Galena and Dubuque, Iowa.
Private companies were out in force. Several tourist railroads advertised their routes, and local railfan organizations did their best to recruit members. There was even a booth where you could buy train-themed paintings.
As I exited the Grand Hall, I saw a paramedic standing by. Given the crowds inside, it was probably prudent.
But the most interesting part of the National Train Day were, well, the trains. And boy were there many of them.
Union Pacific Railroad brought out a locomotive that was painted in logos and colors of Chicago & North Western Railroad, which it acquired back in the 90s. Chicago & North Western Railroad turned hundreds of small northern and northwestern settlements into commuter suburbs. Without it, the famously rich North Shore suburbs wouldn't exist and places like Arlington Heights would never grow past a few houses.
Canadian National Railroad, one of the biggest railroad companies in North America, brought in its executive train. The train originally belonged to another notable Chicago railroad, the Illinois Central Railroad (which, you guessed it, was acquired by CN). Executive trains are typically used to hold business meetings, company events and inspection tours. They really bring home the point that trains are basically rooms on wheels - if you have thousands of dollars to burn, you can really make them cool on the inside. This train was no exception.
The locomotive:
Train cars:
And, some inside pics.
The lounge car:
A phone built into the lounge car:
The people who ride it get to sleep in comfortable rooms that wouldn't be out of place in a hotel. Each room has a bathroom with a sink and a toilet.
And a bathroom with paintings, bookshelves, closets and a full-length bed. Some even had dressers. And here is the most remarkable thing - each room was custom-designed.
The CN executive train also had an amazingly ornate meeting/dining car
And another lounge car
With a built-in bar
I don't care how you feel about railroads. You have to admit - this train is awesome.
Amtrak brought out a train of its own - a composite set made up of all major types of train cars it currently uses. First was the Amfleet coach class - the same type of train car I rode to and from New York City. I didn't feel a need to take a picture of it (since it would be redundant), but I did take a picture of one of the coach seats in "sleep" mode.
Next was a Horizon cafe/business car. It's a pretty common feature on corridor trains. Like the lounge car on the New York Limited, it's split into three sections, except in this case, you get a regular Amtrak lounge sitting on one side
A cafe in the middle:
And some business class seats on the other side.
Unlike coach class seats, which are arranged in rows of four, business class seats are arranged in rows of three, so you get two seats on one side and a single seat on the other side.
All Business-class passengers get complimentary copies of newspapers from whatever major city they are arriving in.
Curiously, I saw four seats arranged to face each other, Metra-style (except unlike Metra seats, they can't be flipped).
Next, we went up to the Superliner crew sleeper. This sleeper car was designed for bi-level Superliner trains - except unlike all other cars in Superliner trains, it comes with a special connector that allows it to link up to single-level cars.
Inside, they look kind of like regular Superliner sleepeers, except more austere. Superliner sleepers have roomettes and larger bathrooms on the top floor and family rooms and shower facilities on the lower floor. Crew sleeper only has roomettes on the upper floor floor and one family-sized room on the lower floor. It means that most crew members have to use the common showers, The lower floor also had a small lounge for the crew. It had two tables. The rest was empty space.
One interesting thing about this train was that Amtrak personal left some rooms in "day" mode and some rooms in "night" mode, so we got to see what happens when the seats are folded down into the lower bunk...
... And the upper bunk folds down from the wall
Next, we went into a Superliner diner. On Superliners, the tables are on the upper floor and the kitchen is on the lower floor. We didn't get to see the kitchen - but we did get to see some of the meals that are prepared on various Amtrak trains.
Breakfast:
Lunch
Dinner:
Sweets:
One of the kids behind me asked if he could get some of that food. The dining car attendant gently told him that the food has been out for hours, so it probably wouldn't be too good now.
Finally, we went to see a regular Superliner sleeper
Bedroom:
Bedroom beds in "night" mode
In Superliner bedrooms, the shower and the toilet are located in the same compartment. If you want to take a shower, simply lower the seat and turn on the showerhead.
One of the odder Superliner bedroom features is that every bedroom gets a chair. Just one bolted-down, swirling chair.
I also went to the lower floor and tried to get a few shots of the family room
And a common shower. In this case, the toilet and the shower are in separate rooms.
From there, we continued to probably the most unique train in the station - an old Milwaukee Road train.
To make a long story as short as I can, Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad (better remembered as Milwaukee Road) was another major Chicago area railroad. It is best remembered for the frequent trains between Chicago, Milwaukee and Minneapolis. After the railroad went bankrupt, railroad enthusiasts everywhere bought as many Milwaukee Road train cars as it could. One such group, the Milwaukee-based Railroading Heritage of Midwestern America managed to put together an entire Milwaukee Road train. And they brought that train to Chicago for National Train Day.
Now, this was all well and cool - except the train was so badly overcrowded that everybody moved at a snail's pace. That's enough to dishearten even the most fanatical train enthusiast. By the time we were coming to the end, we all just wanted to get off.
The first stop on our tour was the St.Croix Valley Lounge Car. It had nice chairs
Ceiling fans
Some booths..
... With vintage posters
A coffee-making area
And a surprisingly nice bathroom
Next, we went to a baggage car. Now, you may ask - what's so special about a baggage car? Well, the folks at RHMA converted it into their mobile souvenir shop, adding carpets and counters - which, in my opinion, is pretty damn clever
The "menu" had a list of all the items visitors could buy - and some of them did.
Next, we went to the Super Dome 53 train car. During the mid-20th century, dome cars were considered the height of luxury. They offered 180-degree views of the passing scenery, the cutting-edged kitchens on the lower level provided food and they often came with built-in bars. If you were riding a Milwaukee Road train, Dome cars had the best seats money could buy.
It had some small tables and a bar:
Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, we visited the Cedar Rapids Observation Car. It was basically a lounge car where the seats were designed to give passengers a "tail-end" view of their surroundings.
Couch-like seats at the end
A view out the window
After I left the Milwaukee Road train, I headed to the other side of the station to see a Pennsylvania Railroad train. As you may recall from my NYC trip log, Pennsylvania Railroad was a major East Coast railroad. The train itself was actually build in Chicago's famous Pullman shops. Unfortunately, the train was closed to visitors, but I was able to take a few pictures of its exterior.
Locomotive:
Baggage car:
Parlor car:
And a few pictures through the windows
Inside the parlor car:
Inside the lounge car:
Finally, I got a shot of the anniversary locomotive - a modern Amtrak locomotive painted in Amtrak's original color scheme.
And special inscriptions
All and all, the National Train Day proved to be an interesting experience. Crowded, but interesting. Of course, with all the people that attended it this year, I can't help but wonder how many will attend next time around.