Amtrak Siemens ALC-42 First Trip

FIlmed February 14, 2022.

Two of Amtrak's newest locomotives made their maiden voyage on Amtrak's Empire Builder from Chicago to Seattle/Portland & return. This was the first revenue run of any long-distance "Charger" locomotive, known as an ALC-42.
The ALC-42 is a modified version of the already in-service SC-44s which operate on regional Amtrak routes. Unlike the SC-44, the ALC-42 is designed for long-distance routes, including the Empire Builder.

The fanfare, however, was short-lived. PTC issues in Chicago & Minneapolis, a fire on-board one of the Superliners, and a grade-crossing collision with a vehicle all made for a memorable maiden voyage. Not sure if Titanic had this many problems.

Nevertheless, the two ALC-42s and their two P42DC counterparts trudged on and continued the round trip. It made for a very colorful consist of power, as each locomotive wore a different paint scheme.
AMTK 302 ("Phase 6"), AMTK 301 ("Day 1"), AMTK 161 ("50th Phase 1"), & AMTK 48 ("Phase 5").

In this video, watch the eastbound Empire Builder (8/28) make its station stop in St Cloud, MN, which is also a crew-change point for Amtrak crews.
The train was running over 9 hours late.

Because the station platform is not long enough for the entire train, the train must make multiple moves to accommodate the train, this allows for an opportunity to listen to the new ALC-42s idle. AMTK 302 also has a beautiful horn that definitely gets the point across.

Видео Amtrak Siemens ALC-42 First Trip канала NorthlandTrains