I was thinking about a luxurious, relaxing and fun way to travel the U.S.A and a private rail car came to mind.
My private car would have a kitchen, living room, video theater, upper deck with easy chairs and observing windows. Three or four bedrooms. An attendant-cook-housekeeper or two, with private quarters for them.
A hot tub would be nice.
If this is too much for one car, then I’ll couple a second one.
How much of the U.S.A could I realistically reach in my own private rail car?
Who would I get to handle logistics to get me there? How would that ever be done?
I saw that Amtrak rents private cars for $9,000 a day going to specific destinations, but I want my own to go where the wind blows. Hey, I can fantasize.
I’ve ridden in a few on mainline steam excursions, one of them being owned by a friend of mine ( actually, he was partial owner along with 2 or 3 other individuals ). My favorites being lounge/observation cars. Others were combo sleeper/lounge cars with some bedrooms, a galley, bathrooms, and a lounge/dining area. Fantastic way to ride.
While it sounds appealing to own one, the logistics would be a headache for somebody with “connections” so to speak of RR industry insiders. Most notable in:
Where are you going to store it when not in use?
Who is going to accomplish the outfitting and/or restoration and maintenance?
If you had one, you’d be wise to lease it out here and there so as to partially earn it’s keep.
If it were me, I’d just charter one of the many available for lease/charter. To infuse one with a sense of envy and give an idea of the level of comfort and accoutrements, here is a link to the AARPCO website section detailing the various cars and car types available for charter.
I want an old school vista dome car, so I can see forward and back, too. Amtrak observation cars only have side view.
I guess a couple bedrooms so I can bring friends, a small kitchen, and a bathroom with shower. A big screen isn’t necessary. I’m not Jim West - I don’t need to pass the time on the rails. Riding the rails IS the trip. I want to look out virtually 100% of the time.
And a big monitor with a gps display of where the car is at all times.
That site says you can only travel on a private car to places Amtrak serves, but the OP says he wants to go anywhere. Is there any reason one couldn’t contract with one of the freight railroads to pull their private car, assuming money was no object? Any rules about mixing passenger and freight cars on the same train? I could see how pulling a passenger car along with tank cars full of hazardous chemicals might be a problem. But on the other hand don’t the freight railroads have “office cars” for employees to work in while traveling?
Insurance rates went up and are very high both for the host railroad’s liability concerns, or concerns as to if said private car even indirectly causes an accident or disrupts their own freight operations. In the case of excursions, operators can operate ( for a fee ) under the umbrella of Amtrak, insurance wise.
Years ago I remember I was told that some freight carriers made it a requirement for something of a “if but not” clause ( or some such wording ) in the insurance coverage for excursion operators. The meaning being that even if there were an accident/derailment causing harm to the passengers or equipment…even if it were the host railroad’s fault…the “if but” part meant that basically “If if the accident was found to be our fault, if not for the presence of your car(s), this wouldn’t have happened to you”.
Ever since I was a kid, I was enthralled by the private train cars on The Wild Wild West.
Huh, just read that the train was dubbed “The Wanderer”, and there’s an article on it (as well as mentioning the Petticoat Junction train…).
But my needs are simple. Apparently, all I need to be awesome is a small train car, a fedora and a gin&tonic.
One of my husband’s uncles was a train buff with enough spare cash that he owned his own car - a retired pullman from what I understand. He could pay to have it added to a regular scheduled passenger train to go from point A to point B and back again as a vacation thing. I also oddly knew a guy who had a retired caboose as a pool house in his back yard.
I think a caboose would probably be the best idea, as it did have an upper observation seating area, as well as a bathroom, and bunk room for the engineering staffers. Also, while it may not be able to be the huge luxurious penthouse on wheels, for a single or couple, it would be like a studio apartment on wheels. I think one would have ot investigate the appliances and electrical use, can one just hook up to the normal locomotive for juice or would they need something of their own?
Two large windows on one side, glass French style doors on the other. When opened they reveal a wrought iron railing effectively making a large Juliette style balcony. Hardwood floors and an oriental rug.
Also, a retractable roof with a glassed ceiling for watching the stars.
Two large, soft and cushy, recliner chairs, centred between all the windows.
A buttler’s pantry with a stocked fridge, a cupboard of snacks, and a silver tea service with a kettle.
It’s good that you said money is no object for traveling non-Amtrak routes, because it will probably take an offer in the mid seven figures to get one of the Class I railroads to even answer your email. But if you can get them to agree to a special movement, you’ll want to lease a passenger locomotive equipped with “head-end power” that can supply electricity. Nowadays, though, anything but your HVAC and cooking can probably be done off a set of modern batteries that are periodically recharged.
Several years ago I was invited to attend a trip on the local dinner train by its owner, along with the regional manager and one of the VP’s of the host railroad. This dinner train is owned by a company that also purchased a few miles of track, but they actually run it on a different railroad on Saturday’s when said host railroad doesn’t operate. They have a direct connection to one another and no breaks in ownership, which simplifies things.
That said, they were talking about how to operate special excursion trains, and how difficult it was. Since the collapse of passenger rail traffic in the 1960s, plus the whole Penn Central, Conrail, Amtrak, and deregulation situation, track ownership has become highly fragmented. That in itself isn’t necessarily an insurmountable problem, but it’s compounded by the fact that many tracks are no longer insured for passenger travel, nor are the host railroads obliged to allow it. Since track ownership can change over just a few hundred feet, say at a junction, bridge, yard, or even a passing siding, it only takes one intransigent railroad company to stop a passenger train at their border. While the train itself may be able to proceed, the passengers (and crew besides the engineer) need to get out and walk, or they’re put on a bus and get back on at the nearest available intersection. Not a great experience for sure.
If guys who actually own and operate railroads have this much trouble, then woe to the average Joe, even if he does have a big wallet. Sticking to established Amtrak routes, even if not attached to an Amtrak train, would seem to be the path of least resistance. That’s still going to be a pain compared to the past when there were numerous passenger trains going every which way that your private car could be coupled to with no significant hurdles.
