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US RAIL ABOUT AMTRACK IN 2025 ... WorldwideRailfan and 5008 Creations BIG Changes Coming to Amtrak in 2026 (Next Generation Equipment) Original article: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T8lkT9EbYC0
BIG Changes Coming to Amtrak in 2026 (Next Generation Equipment) WorldwideRailfan and 5008 Creations Dec 11, 2025 25,954 views ... 1.6K likes 🚂 Become a channel member for early access to videos and exclusive content! / @worldwiderailfan 🚂 Hi. I'm Sam, a railfan based out of Eastern Massachusetts. I film trains from all around the world and make narrated videos explaining how the railroad works. Thanks for watching and I'll see you out on the mainline! ▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀ TIMESTAMPS ▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀ 0:00 - Intro 0:48 - NextGen Acela 4:35 - Airo Intercity Trains 9:36 - Long-Distance Routes 13:20 - State-Supported Routes 15:33 - State Supported Routes (California) 22:43 - Miscellaneous Equipment Updates 24:32 - Outro ▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀ MY SOCIAL MEDIAS ▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀ YouTube: / @worldwiderailfan Instagram: / worldwiderailfan ▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀ SONGS USED ▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀ Outro song: lost/url - avalon ▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀ RAILFANNING EQUIPMENT ▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀ iPhone 13 Pro Canon EOS 90D (Canon 18-135mm USM) DJI Mavic Mini WorldwideRailfan uses a specific system for locomotive model classifications. Further details can be viewed at the following link. https://docs.google.com/document/d/1j... All opinions expressed are my own. All WorldwideRailfan videos are kid-friendly. ©2025 WorldWideRailfan How this was made Auto-dubbed Audio tracks for some languages were automatically generated. Learn more Chapters View all Transcript Follow along using the transcript. Show transcript WorldwideRailfan 27.2K subscribers Videos About Instagram 5008 Creations 11.1K subscribers Amtrak's 2026 upgrades extend beyond the NextGen Acela. The video details various modernization projects, including new locomotives and passenger cars across different routes. Explore planned replacements for aging equipment and new high-speed trainsets. Peter Burgess COMMENTARY Peter Burgess Transcript 0:00 Intro 2025 was a big year for Amtrak. It saw the long-awaited debut of the next genella trains, the introduction of an allnew route in the Gulf Coast, and a second consecutive all-time ridership record. If anything is clear, it's that the future of Amtrak is bright. And as such, over the course of the next few years, nearly every train in its fleet will be replaced systemwide. Today, we'll be taking a look at each of Amtrak's equipment modernization projects, ranging from their new high-speed trains to locomotives, corridor train sets, and state supported fleets. Before we jump in though, YouTube tells me that only around 20% of people who watch my videos are subscribed. If frequent videos covering news in the rail industry are something you're interested in, definitely consider subscribing so my videos show up in your feed. And if you want bonus content, as well as early access to my videos, consider becoming a channel member for just $1 a month. Perhaps the 0:48 NextGen Acela most anticipated milestone of 2025, not just on Amtrak, but throughout North American railroading, was the introduction of NextGen Asella trains. The Asella is Amtrak's flagship service running high-speed trains along the 1:00 Northeast Corridor between Boston and Washington DC. Built in collaboration between French manufacturers Alustin and Bombardier between 1998 and 2000, each Asella Express train set consisted of two Alam TGV derived power cars and six Bombardier LRV derived coaches. Since then, 20 of these high-speed trains have traveled millions of miles up and down the East Coast, moving passengers at speeds of up to 150 mph. By the mid-2010s, the Asellas were beginning to show their age. And in 2016, Amtrak announced their replacement. 28 brand new high-speed train sets built by Alam, branded as the Avelia Liberty. With improved aerodynamics and efficiency and a longer nine-car configuration, these new models would increase seating capacity from 304 to 386 with the ability to add more cars in the future. And with a top speed of 160 mph thanks to their active tilting system, they were slightly faster, too. Additionally, their interiors would outclass the outgoing models as well with modern ADA accessible passenger cabins. You've 2:00 already heard the stories, though. The process of getting these trains rolling didn't go as smoothly as planned. The first train set arrived in 2020 and began testing as all new equipment does. Pretty quickly, Amtrak discovered a wide range of issues, some having to do with poor build quality and some having to do with the first of its kind nature of this train. Weather seals would routinely fail, leading rainwater into the trains. Panagramraphs displayed signs of premature wear and had to be redesigned. The tilting system didn't work properly. Windows would break and trains were already beginning to corrode. This, along with the all too common software bugs seen on most new equipment, meant that not only did the testing process take longer than anticipated, but half a dozen trains would have to be returned to Alustin's factory in upstate New York to be modified. Simply put, since Amtrak was the launch customer of the new Aelia platform, it absorbed the brunt of these teething problems. Luckily, after nearly half a decade of testing and redesign, the next Genella finally entered revenue service on August 28th, 2025. The verdict: mixed bag. On the first day of service, the first train from Washington 3:01 DC encountered issues with its automatic door system and arrived in Boston roughly an hour behind schedule. Additionally, though, the interiors are a huge improvement over the 25-year-old trains. They already seem slightly outdated, such as the use of USBA charging ports, which have been largely ditched for USBC's since the train was built. Regardless, the next gen have been a hit with passengers and with reliability improving over time, and 3:23 Amtrak committing to installing USBC 3:26 ports in place of USBA, the new trains 3:28 are a very welcome change. As of right 3:30 now, they continue to be rolled out on 3:32 the cell of services. And with eight 3:34 currently in service, five on property 3:35 being prepped for their entry to 3:37 service, and the remaining 15 at Alam's 3:39 factory being completed, they are on 3:41 track to gradually replace the OG 3:42 Asellas fully by 2027. Speaking of the 3:45 original trains, their need to be 3:47 replaced has never been more urgent. By 3:49 now, all remaining trains have been kept 3:50 in service well past their planned 3:52 retirement, and their mechanical 3:54 condition reflects that. Anecdotally, 3:56 engineers have told me that their 3:57 25-year-old cab signal software 3:59 constantly fails. They run at reduced 4:01 power most of the time, and vital 4:03 components such as air compressors are 4:04 on their last legs. Several train sets 4:06 have already been retired, some being 4:08 cannibalized for parts, and one being 4:10 sidelined just last week after catching 4:11 on fire in Rhode Island. Today, seven of 4:14 the original 20 trains have been retired 4:16 with the remaining 13 operating to 4:18 varying degrees of reliability. As the 4:20 28 next gen replace the original 20, not 4:23 only will passenger comfort and train 4:25 reliability increase, but the additional 4:27 eight trains will allow Amtrak to 4:29 increase the cella frequency to near 4:30 hourly intervals, all while carrying 40% 4:33 more passengers per train. The debut of 4:35 Airo Intercity Trains nextgella was the big story of 2025, but one that'll be just as relevant and arguably even more impactful in the next few years is the introduction of the new Aero inner city train sets. Since its beginning, Amtrak's inner city trains have mostly been made up of Amfleet 1 coaches, the undisputed backbone of the fleet. Since their introduction, they've been incredibly reliable, but nowadays they're 50 years old. Additionally, aging fleets such as the late8s era 5:00 Horizon cars, which were recently pulled 5:02 from service due to corrosion, and the 5:04 late60s era Metroliner cab cars, which 5:06 are still used on routes like the 5:07 Keystone and Hartford line, are also due 5:09 for replacement. In 2021, Amtrak placed 5:12 an unprecedented $7.3 billion order with 5:15 Seaman's Mobility to build the fleet of 5:17 the future, consisting of 83 inner city 5:20 train sets marketed as Arrow. These 5:22 trains, based on the proven venture 5:24 platform, are configured as 5:25 semi-permanmanently coupled sets with 5:27 modern ADA accessible interiors, cabs 5:30 for quick turnarounds, and most uniquely 5:32 dual mode locomotives. Diesel electric 5:34 ALC 42E locomotives will be capable of 5:37 operating as both low emissions tier 4 5:39 diesel locomotives or electric 5:41 locomotives thanks to the car 5:43 immediately behind them being an 5:44 auxiliary power vehicle or APV for 5:46 short. This APV will have either a 5:49 panagramraph to capture overhead 5:50 electricity or a battery cabinet 5:52 providing electricity to the ALC 42E via 5:55 a DC connection on the rear of the 5:57 locomotive. Aside from the obvious 5:59 environmental benefits of running in 6:00 electric mode, the dual mode capability 6:02 of these trains will greatly reduce 6:04 dwell time in stations like Washington 6:06 DC or New Haven, Connecticut, where 6:08 trains frequently have to spend upwards 6:10 of half an hour to transition between 6:11 diesel and electric power or vice versa. 6:14 Arrow will replace AMP Fleet 1, 6:16 Metroliner and Horizon cars, and even 6:18 some 30-year-old Genesis locomotives in 6:20 the Northeast. Let's break it down. No, 6:22 not like that. Anyway, of the 83 train 6:25 sets, 75 will be used in the Northeast. 6:27 We'll talk about the other eight in a 6:28 little bit because they're for the 6:29 Cascades route out west. So, of the 75 6:32 train sets on order for the Northeast, 6:34 there are a few different 6:35 configurations. First off are the 32 6:37 train sets specifically for the 6:38 Northeast regional route. Today, the 6:40 regional, which is Amtrak's most popular 6:42 service, uses ACS-64 locomotives between 6:45 Boston and Washington. But trains that 6:47 terminate in Springfield, Massachusetts, 6:48 or anywhere in Virginia, have to switch 6:50 to diesel power where electrification 6:52 ends. Additionally, they lack cabs, so 6:55 they currently have to spin the whole 6:56 train around to change directions. With 6:58 this order of 32 arrows, both of these 7:00 issues will be resolved, with 7:02 transitions between power being almost 7:03 instantaneous, and cab cars eliminating 7:05 the need to turn trains around. These 32 7:08 train sets will consist of one ALC 42E 7:10 locomotive, an APV/ businessclass car, a 7:14 cafe car, five coach cars, and one coach 7:16 cab car. In other words, a locomotive 7:18 and eight cars in total. Another 26 AOT 7:21 train sets will go to other key 7:22 Northeast services like the Carolinian, 7:24 Down Easter, Hartford Line, Keystone, 7:27 Palmetto, Pennsylvania, Valley Flyier, 7:29 and Vermonter. These trains will operate 7:31 just the same as the eightcar northeast 7:33 regional consists, just with two fewer 7:35 coach cars. Additionally, some of these 7:37 sets will feature extra space for 7:38 checked baggage in the cab car, leading 7:40 to 18 fewer seats on some sixcar sets. 7:43 Finally, 17 train sets will be built for 7:45 New York State services. These will also 7:47 be made up of six cars, but instead of 7:49 an APV capable of capturing electricity 7:51 from overhead wires, they'll use a 7:53 battery electric APV for operation into 7:55 the tunnels under Manhattan. The current 7:57 plan is to test battery operations, and 7:59 if it's found to be unreliable, the sets 8:01 will be able to be converted to capture 8:03 electricity from a third rail, which is 8:05 already installed along the Empire 8:06 connection. These sets will run on the 8:08 Empire service, Ethanon Express, the 8:10 Maple Leaf, and the Aderondac. 8:12 Additionally, as mentioned before, eight 8:14 conventional dieselonly aerot train sets 8:16 are being built for the Cascades route, 8:18 which operates between Eugene, Oregon 8:19 and Vancouver, British Columbia. More 8:21 details on that in a little bit. The 8:23 first aerot train set destined for the 8:25 Cascades arrived on Amtrak property in 8:27 October 2025 after completing a few 8:30 months of testing at MXVL's proving 8:32 grounds in Colorado. And this set is now 8:34 undergoing dynamic testing in the 8:35 Philadelphia area. The first of these 8:37 trains are expected to enter service on 8:39 the Cascades next year. And the first 8:41 eight car Northeast regional arrows will 8:42 be delivered to Amtrak for testing and 8:44 eventual entry to service in 2027. The 8:47 sixcar northeast corridor sets will 8:49 follow coming online in 2029. And 8:51 finally, the New York State trains will 8:53 begin their battery testing in 2030. By 8:55 roughly 2033, the grand totals will look 8:57 like this. eight sixcar cascade sets, 32 9:01 8car northeast regional sets, 26 sixcar 9:04 northeast corridor sets, and 17 sixcar 9:07 New York sets, making for a grand total 9:10 of 562 cars and 77 ALC 42e locomotives. 9:14 This is by far the largest equipment 9:16 procurement in Amtrak's history and 9:18 likely one of the biggest for mainline 9:20 passenger rail in American history. Over 9:22 the next decade or so, Arrow will 9:24 completely transform service on dozens 9:26 of major routes, benefiting passengers, 9:28 reducing emissions, and dramatically 9:30 increasing operational efficiency with 9:32 less time spent switching locomotives 9:34 and turning trains around. Now, let's Long-Distance Routes 9:36 take a look at what's happening with 9:37 Amtrak's long-distance equipment. 9:39 Long-distance routes aren't as flashy as 9:41 the much more popular corridor routes, 9:43 but they provide an essential transit 9:44 link to countless rural communities 9:46 across 46 states, and they're a great 9:48 way to see the country. First off, let's 9:50 talk locomotives. Up until recently, 9:53 most long-distance trains on Amtrak were 9:55 powered by General Electric Genesis 9:56 locomotives built in the mid1 1990s. 9:59 They've been very reliable, but nowadays 10:01 are showing their age with deteriorating 10:03 bodywork, horrible emissions compared to 10:05 modern engines, and increasingly 10:07 frequent breakdowns. Back in 2018, in 10:09 anticipation of the end of their useful 10:11 service lives, Amtrak placed an order 10:13 for 75 Seaman's Charger locomotives 10:15 built for long-distance service. These 10:17 ALC42s or Amtrak long-d distanceance 10:20 chargers at 4200 horsepower, are highly 10:23 computerized, and are EPA Tier 4 diesel 10:25 emissions compliant, making for 90% less 10:28 emissions than their predecessors, while 10:29 achieving a 10% reduction in fuel burn. 10:32 These locomotives are also very similar 10:34 to the aforementioned ALC 42E, minus the 10:37 DC power connection for an APV. The 10:39 first Chargers entered service in 2022, 10:41 and despite some issues, especially in 10:43 colder weather, Amtrak increased its 10:45 order from 75 to 125 units. As of when 10:48 this video is being made, 79 of these 10:51 125 units have been delivered to Amtrak 10:53 with deliveries expected to continue 10:54 through 2029. ALC42s are already in 10:58 service on the Autotrain, Borealis, 11:00 Cardinal, City of New Orleans, Coast 11:02 Starlight, Crescent, Empire Builder, 11:04 Fidian, Silver Meteor, and the new Marty 11:06 GR service, as well as temporarily in 11:09 service on the Northeast Regional, 11:10 Carolinian, and Palmetto south of 11:12 Washington DC before the Aerotin sets 11:14 enter service in 2028. Rollout is 11:16 expected to continue throughout 2026 11:19 with more engines being delivered and 11:20 routes like the California Zephyr, 11:22 Lakeshore Limited, Southwest Chief, 11:24 Sunset Limited, and Texas Eagle being 11:26 the remaining routes slated to see their 11:28 entry to service. Locomotives are 11:30 important, but the rail cars are what 11:31 really matter, especially on 11:33 long-distance routes where passengers 11:34 can spend upwards of two days on board. 11:37 Long-d distanceance equipment on Amtrak 11:38 is split between the East Coast, which 11:40 uses single-le trains, and the West 11:42 Coast, which uses Blelin Liner 11:44 equipment. Starting out west, the super 11:46 liners, which were introduced in 1975, 11:49 are definitely showing their age. 11:50 Electrical problems, dated interiors, 11:53 and signs of corrosion are particularly 11:54 evident on older super liners. And 11:56 across all cars of this type, they 11:58 aren't fully ADA accessible. In late 12:00 2023, Amtrak issued a request for 12:02 proposals asking car builders to respond 12:05 with designs for BLE cars that could 12:07 replace the Super Liners. This time, not 12:09 as single cars, but as married pairs of 12:11 up to four cars. Additionally, these 12:13 cars would have to be fully accessible 12:15 and call for the use of onboard 12:16 elevators, something only seen a few 12:18 times on passenger trains before. These 12:21 cars are planned to enter service 12:22 sometime in the 2030s, but so far the 12:24 industry response has been lukewarm 12:26 since many of Amtrak's requests add 12:28 engineering complexity. As a result, 12:30 Amtrak has revised its specifications 12:32 for these cars quite a bit and remains 12:34 confident that it'll be able to award a 12:36 contract to a car builder in 2026. 12:38 Definitely stay tuned. On the East 12:40 Coast, clearance limitations mean that 12:41 Amtrak has to use single-le equipment 12:44 consisting of View Liner sleepers, 12:45 diners, and baggage cars, as well as 12:47 Amfleet 2 coaches. Some of the View 12:49 Liners, namely the View Liner 2s, are 12:51 relatively new, all having been built in 12:53 the last decade, but the original View 12:55 Liners as well as the Amfleet 2OS are 12:57 getting up there in age. In the summer 12:59 of 2025, Amtrak released another request 13:02 for proposals for a new single-le fleet. 13:04 This time, Amtrak specifications were a 13:06 lot more conventional, calling for 13:08 single cars with modern, spacious, ADA 13:10 accessible interiors, as that project 13:12 started a couple of years after the 13:14 Super Liner replacement one did. A car 13:16 builder may not be chosen until 2027 or 13:18 later, if I had to guess. Next up are 13:21 State-Supported Routes the state supported routes, higher 13:22 frequency services that are operated by 13:24 Amtrak, but are funded partially or in 13:26 some cases entirely by the states they 13:28 operate in. Starting with the Midwest, 13:30 Amtrak has been replacing its Amfleet 13:32 and Horizon cars, the latter of which 13:34 were all pulled from service back in 13:35 March. Since 2022, Seaman's Ventures, 13:38 cars similar to those used on the new 13:40 Aerot trains, have been slowly phased in 13:42 across the region in various 13:43 combinations of coach, business, and 13:45 cafe cars. A new addition in 2026 is 13:48 three cabs intended to free up 13:50 non-powered control units on the Hayawa, 13:52 allowing for quick turnarounds between 13:54 Chicago and Milwaukee. Heading out to 13:56 the Pacific Northwest, the Cascades 13:57 route is in dire need of new equipment. 14:00 Following a derailment that was found to 14:01 be caused by the Togo 6 train sets, 14:03 Horizon cars took over and allowed for 14:05 their retirement in 2019. Similarly, in 14:08 2025, corrosion forced the Horizons to 14:10 be pulled from service. And nowadays, 14:12 aside from the two newer Talgo 8 trains, 14:15 the Cascades is forced to poach AMP 14:16 Fleet 1 cars from other routes that need 14:18 them. Luckily, this issue will soon come 14:20 to an end. Beginning in 2026, eight new 14:23 aerot train sets will be delivered to 14:25 the Pacific Northwest, freeing up the AM 14:27 fleets for routes in the Northeast. But 14:28 more importantly, there'll be modern, 14:30 comfortable cars for passengers and 14:32 provide some muchneeded stability for a 14:34 corridor that's struggled with equipment 14:35 issues for nearly a decade. Of the eight 14:38 trains, two will come delivered with new 14:39 ALC 42E charger locomotives, while the 14:42 remaining six will be delivered without 14:44 locomotives and will operate with the 14:45 existing SC44 Chargers built in 2017. 14:49 Additionally, the two Togo 8 trains will 14:51 remain in service. Over in North 14:52 Carolina on the Piedmont service 14:54 operated by NC DOT, they're operating 14:56 the oldest trains on Amtrak's network 14:58 with cars built as early as the 1950s. 15:01 In October of 2024, the state received 15:03 an $157 million federal grant, which the 15:07 state will match to purchase muchneeded 15:08 new trains. They're looking to buy 26 15:11 brand new cars and six new locomotives, 15:13 replacing all current equipment, and 15:14 will likely end up purchasing them as 15:16 part of the Amtrak Arrow order. No 15:18 formal order has been placed, but if I 15:20 had to guess, that's because they're 15:21 waiting for the new Seaman's plant in 15:23 Lexington, North Carolina to open so 15:25 they can purchase equipment made in 15:26 state. With the facility set to get into 15:28 the full swing of things in 2026, I 15:30 wouldn't be surprised if an order is 15:32 coming soon. And finally, there's 15:34 State Supported Routes (California) California. Given how many different 15:36 state supported routes operate there, 15:38 though, I think I should hand it over to 15:39 someone much more well-versed than I. 15:41 Here's 5000 Creations with an update. 15:44 Odin, hello everyone. And because if 15:46 there's one man on YouTube who knows how 15:47 to yap about rail in California, it 15:49 would be me. I'm here to cover the 15:51 California segment of this video as 15:53 there is a good amount to go over. I'll 15:55 be splitting my segment into two parts. 15:57 The happenings in SoCal and the 15:59 happenings in NorCal. So, let's begin. 16:02 Starting off in SoCal, the main Amtrak 16:04 service in the area, Pacific Surfliner, 16:06 had one hell of a time from April 2024 16:09 to June 2025. I'll start with the 16:12 positives before I move over to the 16:14 negatives. First off, we got our 16:16 equipment mostly working. While we still 16:19 haven't gotten Loco 217 in cabar 6953 16:22 back, which let's be honest, it'll be a 16:24 while. Everything else that was broken 16:26 is now back, and we are making some good 16:29 progress on refurbishing the Surfliner 16:31 cars for a second time. I know we're 16:33 doing anything but finding replacement 16:35 to those things. I don't know the status 16:37 of the coaches, but every cab car except 16:39 6901 and the three Calrans own cabs have 16:42 been refurbished. And it's safe to say 16:44 01 will probably be getting a reverb 16:46 soon enough. Now, on to the negatives. 16:49 16:51 First up, for the first half of 2025, Surfliner was not doing too hot because of those mechanical issues I mentioned. If I went into full detail, we'd be here for ages. But basically, our backup 17:00 equipment that we borrowed from Norcal and then hilariously broke was seen so frequently, I can't even be bothered to go out anymore when it comes out cuz 17:09 back then it was a 60% chance that if 17:11 you went trackside, you'd see it 17:13 alongside one of our 3-8s. But as I 17:16 mentioned in the positives, we mostly 17:19 got this issue fixed, and it appears 17:21 Lost has been stepping up their game 17:23 with keeping maintenance up and 17:24 breakdowns low. Granted, there are still 17:27 definitely some bad days, but those bad 17:29 days are no longer weekly occurrences 17:31 like they were at the start of this 17:32 year. Now, the last topic that some may 17:35 see as positive, but I see as negative 17:37 is the recent announcement, which was 17:39 Surfliner will be receiving a pilot 17:41 service for Stadler Hydrogen Zus. 17:44 This would be a small fleet of longer 17:46 versions of the ZMU that recently 17:48 entered service along Metling's adopted 17:50 child, Arrow. This unit hasn't had any 17:53 serious issues to my knowledge, but 17:55 hydrogen is still a very untested, 17:57 costly, and potentially dangerous 17:59 technology. Yeah, let's just say you 18:02 wouldn't want that center power car to 18:03 get hit cuz if it did, nearby residents 18:06 would be getting a very cool light show 18:07 right before realizing the entire train 18:09 is a blaze. Both I and Worldwide Rail 18:12 fan have expressed how much we do not 18:14 like hydrogen and battery power because 18:16 it's untested, less reliable, and more 18:19 costly in the wrong rather than 18:21 electrification. But back to the topic 18:23 at hand, these ZMUs are expected to 18:26 begin service in around 2028/2029 18:29 and will probably enter service in 18:30 around the early 2030s, assuming 18:33 everything goes right. It's safe to say 18:35 Surfliner has had one hell of a year. 18:37 And while it doesn't seem like next year 18:39 will be the most eventful, things will 18:41 certainly be getting interesting near 18:43 the end of the decade. Next up is 18:45 NorCal. I'm going to save the elephant 18:47 in the room for this one for now cuz I 18:49 need some time to repress my emotions 18:51 relating to what I'm witnessing here. So 18:53 instead, I'll look into some other 18:54 things. First up is the most major news 18:57 relating to rolling stock in NorCal. The 18:59 Sanwaqen. No, I'm not saying it. Venture 19:01 cabs sort of entering service. In July 19:05 2024, these started testing in the 19:07 general northern central valley area 19:09 near Stockton. I'm not too aware of how 19:12 frequent these tests were. All I know is 19:14 they ran in some of the most baffling 19:16 configurations. But a little over a year 19:19 after testing began, the first set 19:21 entered service kind of. Basically, 19:25 these cab cars still aren't certified on 19:27 the full route yet, but the actual train 19:30 sets they were attached to were. So to 19:33 continue to get more California cars 19:34 onto Capital Quarter and Surfliner, the 19:36 SJJPA put a California cab car in front 19:39 of the venture cab car. It is certainly 19:42 a weird look, but hey, whatever works. 19:44 It's not officially stated when these 19:46 venture cabs will go into full service, 19:48 but it will hopefully be soon. The next 19:51 major piece of info brings us back to 19:53 hydrogen where Calrans put in a 19:55 presentation that they were apparently 19:57 planning to convert the older F59 PHI 20:00 locomotives to hydrogen power to expand 20:02 their lifespans to give them dear god 20:05 any reason not to talk to seamans again. 20:07 Everything I said about the ZMUs for 20:09 Surfliner applies here just in 20:11 locomotive form. It will be expensive 20:13 and if one of these things gets into a 20:15 major accident, the F59 will be 20:17 transformed into a burnt pile of scrap 20:19 metal. In the same document, it is 20:21 revealed that Cal Trans plans to give 20:23 the California and Surfliner cars a 20:26 third refurbishment. This one being 20:28 significantly more major with a paint 20:30 scheme that I pray every night isn't 20:32 finalized cuz if it is, that will be one 20:35 of the biggest downgrades in passenger 20:37 rail history. Past all that, there isn't 20:40 anything else past the obvious relating 20:42 to Sanwaqen. And genuinely, Capital 20:45 Corridor has been the most consistent 20:47 out of all three stateup supported 20:48 Amtrak services over the past 2 years. 20:51 And I hope that stays that way. So now 20:53 it's time to bring up the most major 20:55 announcement out of Norcow. The Sanwaqen 20:59 being renamed to Goldrunner. I'll save 21:02 my thoughts on the name cuz I don't 21:04 think I have to explain them to you. You 21:06 already know what they are. But 21:07 basically, the rename is meant to mark a 21:09 new chapter in the service's life. 21:11 According to the main operators of the 21:12 service, the SJJPA, 21:14 there are two main plans to this. The 21:17 first is the Valley Rail project, which 21:19 will expand GoldrRunner and a service 21:21 throughout the valley to give better 21:22 service in general and as a bonus, give 21:25 California highspeed rail some helpful 21:26 connections, and the rumored split the 21:29 SJJPA's planning from Amtrak. 21:32 Apparently, the SJJPA wants to at least 21:35 only be connected to the state at some 21:37 point in the future. Why this is could 21:39 be amounted to several reasons, but it's 21:41 most likely just so they can have more 21:43 freedom with what they can do with the 21:44 service going forward. I'd imagine the 21:46 SJJPA will continue to coincide with 21:48 Amtrak in general scheduling and 21:50 ticketing ways, but past that, they will 21:52 be their own thing. On a more in-depth 21:55 level, GoldrRunner will be receiving a 21:57 food cart service similar to the one 21:58 used on Bright Line to finally solve the 22:00 lack of a cafe car issue and will be 22:03 receiving business class, which I don't 22:05 exactly know if it'll just be 22:06 reconfiguring existing venture coaches 22:08 or purchasing brand new ones. But it 22:11 will allow for GoldrRunner to be a more 22:13 for everyone service. So, with all that 22:15 being said, there's all I have to say 22:17 for what's been happening in California 22:19 over the past year. I definitely missed 22:21 some very major stuff, but if I went 22:23 over all of these, the segment would be 22:25 like 45 minutes long, and I don't want 22:27 to make this video any longer than it 22:29 probably already is. So, I'll be taking 22:32 my leave now to head back to doing 22:33 anything but going trackside for another 22:35 2 months. Bye. Thanks, 50008. Definitely 22:39 go check out his channel if you haven't 22:41 already. He's been one of my favorite 22:42 creators in the space lately. Anyway, 22:44 Miscellaneous Equipment Updates that's about it for major Amtrak equipment modernization projects. You know me, though. I've still got a little more to talk about, so here are some miscellaneous updates. As mentioned before, all Horizon cars were sidelined systemwide earlier this year, leaving them stored in a handful of yards across the country. After a careful assessment 23:01 of the Horizons, a handful of the least corroded were sent to Austin's plant in Canona, New York, where they'll be rebuilt and hopefully returned to service in 2026. For the most part, Amtrak just wants these cars to hold on for a few more years until the Arrows are delivered. But given how many new routes they've been creating as of late, they might stick around longer as a reserve fleet being used to expand service to new corridors. Speaking of temporary equipment, Amtrak has announced loose plans for two routes to temporarily lease passenger equipment from two different commuter railroads. At some point in 2026, we may see both Minneapolis Northstar equipment being used on the Midwest's Hayawa route and Caltra equipment being used on the Capital Corridor. Across the board, existing fleets, even the ones due for retirement in the next few years, are getting their regularly scheduled interior refreshes. And on the outside, many cars are now receiving a phase 7 livery, which improves passenger wayfinding with color-based service class markings. Green near the doors denotes coach class, blue business class, and red will mean first class/ser 24:00 cars. And finally, new types of non-powered control units are now being used on certain routes to eliminate the process of turning trains around. This again is a temporary measure until the new Aerot trains are deployed. But for now, there are five HHP8-8C cabs planned to go online on pushpull Northeast regional trains between New York and Washington, freeing up the ACS 64 electric locomotives that are currently used and 18 P42C's that have already come online on the Empire service and will likely see time spent on other routes in the region such as the Hartford line and down Easter. And 24:33 Outro with that, we've made it to the end. That's a comprehensive list of every next generation equipment project currently being undertaken by Amtrak. 2025 was another record-breaking year for America's passenger railroad. And while the main focus was the introduction of the next genella trains, I think in 2026, the rollout of the first aerot trains will be just as exciting and will have an even larger impact systemwide. Hopefully, at the same time, the railroad will continue to show strong ridership growth and we'll see even more investment in new 25:01 equipment and routes. So, with that, thanks for watching, and if you're new, consider subscribing or even joining the channel membership program. I cover rail industry news, including new Amtrak equipment, in my railroad quarterly series, as well as making frequent videos about a wide variety of rail industry topics. [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] Down.

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