Auto Train is an 855-mile-(1376-km-)long scheduled train service for passengers and their automobiles, operated by Amtrak between Lorton, Virginia (near Washington, D.C.) and Sanford, Florida (near Orlando). Although there are similar services around the world, the Auto Train is the only one of its kind in the United States. Specialized equipment enables customers to take along their automobile, van, sport utility vehicle, motorcycle, small trailer, and/or jet-ski as they travel up or down the East Coast. Passengers ride in either wide coach seats or private sleeping car rooms while their vehicles are safely carried in enclosed auto carriers, called autoracks. The train includes lounge cars and dining cars. The Auto Train service offers its passengers dual benefits: they avoid the long drive on busy Interstate 95 in Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida, and instead of the expense and unfamiliarity of a rental car they have the convenience of the use of their own vehicle upon arrival. Amtrak, is the brand name of the intercity passenger train system created on May 1, 1971 in the United States. ... Lorton is a census-designated place located in Fairfax County, Virginia. ... Washington, D.C. is the capital city of the United States of America. ... Sanford is a city in and the county seat6 of Seminole County, Florida, USA. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 38,291. ... Skyline of Orlando at night, from across Lake Eola The city of Orlando is the county seat of Orange County, Florida. ... // Original meaning and etymology The original meaning of the term coach was: a horse-drawn vehicle designed for the conveyance of more than one passenger — and of mail — and covered for protection from the elements. ... The interior of a Pullman car on the Chicago and Alton Railroad circa 1900. ... An autorack, also known as an auto carrier, is a specialized piece of railroad rolling stock used to transport unladen automobiles. ... A typical restaurant in uptown Manhattan A restaurant is an establishment that serves prepared food and beverages to be consumed on the premises. ... Interstate 95 (abbreviated I-95) is an interstate highway that runs 1907 miles (3070 kilometers) north-south along the east coast of the United States. ... State nickname: Old Dominion Official languages English Capital Richmond Largest city Virginia Beach Governor Mark R. Warner (D) Tim Kaine (D-Governor Elect) Senators John Warner (R) George Allen (R) Area  - Total  - % water Ranked 35th 110,862 km² 7. ... State nickname: Tar Heel State; Old North State Official languages English Capital Raleigh Largest city Charlotte Governor Michael Easley (D) Senators Elizabeth Dole (R) Richard Burr (R) Area  - Total  - % water Ranked 28th 139,509 km² 9. ... State nickname: Palmetto State Official languages English Capital Columbia Largest city Columbia Governor Mark Sanford (R) Senators Lindsey Graham (R) Jim DeMint (R) Area  - Total  - % water Ranked 40th 82,965 km² 6 Population  - Total (2000)  - Density Ranked 26th 4,012,012 51. ... State nickname: Sunshine State Official languages English Capital Tallahassee Largest city Jacksonville Governor Jeb Bush (R) Senators Bill Nelson (D) Mel Martinez (R) Area  - Total  - % water Ranked 22nd 170,451 km² 17. ...

The service operates as train 53 southbound and 52 northbound, making no station stops between its terminals at Lorton and Sanford.

Amtrak's Auto Train passing through Folkston, Georgia. Jason Trew

Image File history File links Amtraks Auto Train passing the Railfan platform in Folkston, Georgia. ... Image File history File links Amtraks Auto Train passing the Railfan platform in Folkston, Georgia. ... Folkston is a city located in Charlton County, Georgia. ...

History: Auto-Train Corporation, an innovative rail service

Automobiles and passengers arriving for loading aboard the Auto-Train Corporation's Auto-Train in Lorton, VA. www.trainweb.com

The Auto-Train Corporation began in 1971 as an entrepeneurial venture led by company founder Eugene K. Garfield. The company was a public stock corporation. It used its own locomotives, passenger cars, autoracks, and cabooses, and traveled on the tracks of the Richmond, Fredericksburg & Potomac (RF&P) and Seaboard Coast Line (SCL) railroads between Lorton, Virginia and Sanford, Florida. Download high resolution version (900x362, 46 KB)This is a file from the Wikimedia Commons, a repository of free content hosted by the Wikimedia Foundation. ... Download high resolution version (900x362, 46 KB)This is a file from the Wikimedia Commons, a repository of free content hosted by the Wikimedia Foundation. ... Auto-Train Corporation (AAR reporting mark: AUT) was a privately-owned railroad which used its own rolling stock, and traveled on rails leased from major railroads along the route of its trains. ... 1971 (MCMLXXI) is a common year starting on Friday (click for link to calendar). ... Eugene K. Garfield was the founder of Auto-Train Corporation. ... See stock (disambiguation) for other meanings of the term stock In financial terminology, stock is the capital raised by a corporation, through the issuance and sale of shares. ... A corporation is a legal entity (distinct from a natural person) that often has similar rights in law to those of a Civil law systems may refer to corporations as moral persons; they may also go by the name AS (anonymous society) or something similar, depending on language (see below). ... Great Western Railway No. ... Restored passenger cars on display at the Mid-Continent Railway Museum in North Freedom, WI. A passenger car is a piece of railroad rolling stock that is designed to carry passengers. ... Categories: Rail stubs | Defunct railroad companies of the United States | Defunct companies | District of Columbia railroads | Virginia railroads ... Categories: Stub | Defunct companies | Defunct railroad companies of the United States | District of Columbia railroads | Florida railroads | Georgia railroads | North Carolina railroads | South Carolina railroads | Virginia railroads ... Lorton is a census-designated place located in Fairfax County, Virginia. ... Sanford is a city in and the county seat6 of Seminole County, Florida, USA. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 38,291. ...

Locomotives, passenger cars, autoracks, and cabooses

The Auto-Train Corporation acquired a fleet of 13 General Electric U36B diesel-electric locomotives. These were very similar to ones used by Seaboard Coast Line Railroad, the host railroad for most of the route's length. The passenger cars, including coaches, dining cars, sleeping cars, and dome cars, were acquired from various major railroads, including Santa Fe, Union Pacific, and Western Pacific. The Auto-Train's first autoracks were 75-foot-long bilevel ones with end doors, carrying eight automobiles each. The cars were originally owned by Canadian National Railway (CN), the railroad that had pioneered the use of autoracks in the North American freight rail industry beginning in late 1957. The bilevel autoracks were augmented by trilevel ones that were purchased new in 1976. Auto-Train Corporation (AAR reporting mark: AUT) was a privately-owned railroad which used its own rolling stock, and traveled on rails leased from major railroads along the route of its trains. ... The General Electric Company, or GE (NYSE: GE) is a multinational technology and services company. ... General Electrics U36B was GEs 3600 horsepower answer to the power race with EMD. Only 3 railroads bought this locomotive. ... A number of vehicles use a diesel-electric powerplant for providing locomotion. ... A locomotive (from lat. ... Categories: Stub | Defunct companies | Defunct railroad companies of the United States | District of Columbia railroads | Florida railroads | Georgia railroads | North Carolina railroads | South Carolina railroads | Virginia railroads ... Restored passenger cars on display at the Mid-Continent Railway Museum in North Freedom, WI. A passenger car is a piece of railroad rolling stock that is designed to carry passengers. ... // Original meaning and etymology The original meaning of the term coach was: a horse-drawn vehicle designed for the conveyance of more than one passenger — and of mail — and covered for protection from the elements. ... A typical restaurant in uptown Manhattan A restaurant is an establishment that serves prepared food and beverages to be consumed on the premises. ... The interior of a Pullman car on the Chicago and Alton Railroad circa 1900. ... Categories: Stub | Passenger equipment ... Categories: Rail stubs | Defunct railroad companies of the United States | Arizona railroads | California railroads | Colorado railroads | Illinois railroads | Iowa railroads | Kansas railroads | Louisiana railroads | Missouri railroads | Nebraska railroads | New Mexico railroads | Oklahoma railroads | Texas railroads ... The Union Pacific Railroad (NYSE: UNP) is the largest railroad in the United States. ... The Western Pacific Railroad (AAR reporting mark WP) was a Class I railroad in the United States. ... An autorack, also known as an auto carrier, is a specialized piece of railroad rolling stock used to transport unladen automobiles. ... Canadian National Railways logo or herald (used pre-1960) Network Map of Canadian National Railway The Canadian National Railway (CN; AAR reporting marks CN, CNA, CNIS), known as Canadian National Railways (CNR) between 1918 and 1960, and Canadian National/Canadien National (CN) from 1960 to present, is a Canadian Class... 1957 (MCMLVII) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1976 (MCMLXXVI) is a leap year starting on Thursday (link will take you to calendar). ...

General Electric U36B diesel locomotive #4007, one of 13 purchased by Auto-Train Corporation, near Louisville, KY in 1977. G.R. Harper

Unlike most passenger trains, the Auto-Train included a caboose at the end, which at the time was required (for technical, legal, and union-agreement reasons) by the string of autorack cars on the rear of the train. Like the rest of the equipment, the cabooses were painted in a red, white, and purple color scheme. A typical train was made up of 30 to 64 cars, pulled by two or three locomotives. Download high resolution version (1005x678, 213 KB)Aut-Train Corp GEU36B diesel locomotive near Louisville, KY in 1977. ... Download high resolution version (1005x678, 213 KB)Aut-Train Corp GEU36B diesel locomotive near Louisville, KY in 1977. ... Two cupola cabooses, a transfer caboose and a bay window caboose in Ohio. ...

Business success and failure

Auto-Train's service began operations on December 6, 1971. The service was a big hit with travelers. It reported profits for the first few years. Before long, the Auto-Train Corporation's ambitious leadership was looking to expand into other markets. A second service, from Louisville, Kentucky to Sanford, was inaugurated in May 1974. It operated only until September 1977, however, reportedly having lost millions of dollars. Two Auto-Train derailments in 1976 and a major derailment in 1978 shut down service for weeks, and cost the company more than $6 million in lost revenue. High union labor costs, of the kind that cursed most of the United States railroad industry throughout most of the twentieth century, made it all the more difficult for the company to withstand these financial blows. Debts accumulated, including millions in taxes, leading to cutbacks in maintenance that slowed operations. Eventually the company was forced into bankruptcy; and though the Auto-Train retained much of its popularity to the end, it terminated its services in late April 1981. December 6 is the 340th day (341st on leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1971 (MCMLXXI) is a common year starting on Friday (click for link to calendar). ... Louisville (usually pronounced ; see Pronunciation below) is Kentuckys largest city and one of the largest cities in the United States (see Official naming and population statistics below). ... 1974 (MCMLXXIV) is a common year starting on Tuesday (click on link for calendar). ... For the album by Ash, see 1977 (album). ... 1976 (MCMLXXVI) is a leap year starting on Thursday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1978 (MCMLXXVIII) was a common year starting on Sunday (the link is to a full 1978 calendar). ... 1981 (MCMLXXXI) is a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Auto-Train full-length dome car 510 began life on the Santa Fe railroad. www.trainweb.com

Several smaller companies scrambled to pick up the Auto-Train's former customers. A company operating as Auto-Bus carried its customers in buses and their cars in trucks, operating between Pennsylvania and Florida. Another company, Autolog Corporation, offered a service to carry cars by truck between the Northeast and Florida, while not providing transportation for the customers themselves. There were also several companies that hired drivers to take cars individually to their owners' destinations. No one else, however, offered a service quite like that of the Auto-Train, namely transporting a car and its passengers simultaneously to and from Florida. This is a file from the Wikimedia Commons, a repository of free content hosted by the Wikimedia Foundation. ... This is a file from the Wikimedia Commons, a repository of free content hosted by the Wikimedia Foundation. ...

While their service ultimately failed (as so many American passenger train services had already failed in the decades preceding the startup of Amtrak in 1971), Garfield and Auto-Train Corporation had identified a service that people wanted.

Amtrak steps in to fill the gap

After a period of 22 months without service, the service was revived by the National Railroad Passenger Corporation, better known as Amtrak, the corporation that operates most intercity passenger trains in the United States. Amtrak acquired the terminals in Lorton and Sanford and some of the Auto-Train rolling stock. On October 30, 1983, it introduced its slightly renamed Auto Train service on a tri-weekly basis. Daily service was introduced a year later. Amtrak is the name of an intercity passenger train system created on May 1, 1971 in the United States. ... Amtrak, is the brand name of the intercity passenger train system created on May 1, 1971 in the United States. ... October 30 is the 303rd day of the year (304th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 1983 (MCMLXXXIII) is a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

An Amtrak Superliner dining car sits at one of the Amtrak Auto Train's endpoint stations, next to an auto carrier that will soon be joined to the rear of the train. www.trainweb.com

Amtrak continued to use the bilevel and the trilevel autoracks that Auto-Train had used. For passenger equipment, it initially used a mixture of former Auto-Train cars and midcentury long-distance cars from Amtrak's general fleet, all rebuilt to Amtrak's "Heritage Fleet" specifications. In the mid 1990s, Amtrak upgraded the passenger cars to its newer Superliner I and II cars. In modern Amtrak operations, an Auto Train consist normally operates with two General Electric P40 diesel-electric locomotives and forty or more railcars, for a total length of a half-mile or more. The autoracks normally run on the rear; there is no caboose. Amtrak's Auto Train is sometimes said to have the longest consist of any passenger train in the world, although one could argue that it is actually a mixed train (i.e., incorporating a mixture of passenger cars and freight cars), not a passenger train in the strict sense of the word.[[Image:Auto emerges from Amtrak's Auto Train.jpg|thumb|Unloading an automobile from an autorack in Lorton, VA. www.trainweb.com]] Currently, two Auto Train consists are in simultaneous operation each day. At 4:00 p.m., there are departures from both the Lorton or Sanford terminals. Florence, South Carolina is the only scheduled stop on the 855-mile run: at this stop, the train is refueled and serviced and the engine crew and conductors are changed, but no passengers are entrained or detrained. Each train is scheduled to arrive at the other end the next morning at 8:30 a.m., for an average speed of about 52 miles per hour. This is a file from the Wikimedia Commons, a repository of free content hosted by the Wikimedia Foundation. ... This is a file from the Wikimedia Commons, a repository of free content hosted by the Wikimedia Foundation. ... An autorack, also known as an auto carrier, is a specialized piece of railroad rolling stock used to transport unladen automobiles. ... The 1990s refers to the years 1990 to 1999; the last decade of the 20th Century, but in an economical sense The Nineties is often considered to span from the fall of the Berlin Wall in November 1989 to the September 11 attacks in 2001. ... The Superliner is a largely disabled-accessible double decker passenger car used by Amtrak, on mainly its western routes. ... This article is about trains in rail transport. ... The General Electric Company, or GE (NYSE: GE) is a multinational technology and services company. ... -1... A number of vehicles use a diesel-electric powerplant for providing locomotion. ... A locomotive (from lat. ... An autorack, also known as an auto carrier, is a specialized piece of railroad rolling stock used to transport unladen automobiles. ... City nickname: Flo-Town Location in the state of South Carolina Founded   â€” Incorporated 1719 1890 Counties Florence County Darlington County Mayor Frank E. Willis Area   â€” Land   â€” Water 17. ...

Today, Amtrak's Auto Train carries about 200,000 passengers and grosses about $50 million annually. Operating on leased CSX Transportation tracks for the entire distance, it is considered Amtrak's best-paying train in terms of income in comparison with operating expenses. CSX Transportation (AAR reporting mark CSXT) is a Class I railroad in the United States, owned by the CSX Corporation. ...

Lorton Terminal

Lorton, Virginia is about a half-hour drive south of Washington, DC, just off Interstate 95. Amtrak's new Lorton terminal opened in early 2000, and features a large, modern waiting area with high glass walls. The station was designed by architect Hanny Hassan. The suspended sculpture in the lobby was designed by Patrick Sheridan. Outside the waiting room are the tracks where passenger cars are set out for boarding. The platform is 1,480 feet (about 3/10 of a mile) long. This article is about the year 2000. ...

Interior of Amtrak's new Auto Train terminal in Lorton, VA. www.trainweb.com

This is a file from the Wikimedia Commons, a repository of free content hosted by the Wikimedia Foundation. ... This is a file from the Wikimedia Commons, a repository of free content hosted by the Wikimedia Foundation. ...

Sanford Terminal

The Sanford Auto Train terminal is about a half-hour drive north of Orlando. It is an older and smaller facility than the terminal at Lorton. Currently, each Auto Train consist loads in Sanford on two tracks, as no one track is long enough to accommodate all the passenger cars in a consist. Amtrak and the State of Florida are working on plans to replace the facility in Sanford with a new terminal designed to accommodate more passengers comfortably. This article is about trains in rail transport. ...

A model for similar services

A North American predecessor to the original Auto-Train was a service run by the Canadian National Railway (CN) that allowed passengers to bring their automobiles along on selected passenger trains; this service proved unsuccessful. As discussed above, the original Auto-Train reported profits on the Virginia-Florida route in its early years, but ultimately failed financially. Amtrak's Auto Train has been relatively economically successful due to the following factors:

1. A substantial number of passengers are willing to accept a single departure and a single destination point, making route expansion initiatives unnecessary.
2. A substantial number of passengers are willing to pay a premium price in order to avoid driving and to have the use of their own car at their destination.
3. A substantial number of passengers find the overnight train travel experience provided on the Auto Train to be restful, enjoyable, and expeditious.
4. The parallel superhighways are congested.

Candidate for contracting-out or privatization

Amtrak services are federally subsidized, and are operated by an corporation that, while technically for-profit, in some ways operates like a government transportation agency. There is a certain amount of debate in the United States over whether Amtrak's services could and/or should be contracted out to private companies through a competitive bidding process, or even completely privatized. Auto Train is often cited as one of the most likely candidates for such changes, partly on the grounds that its predecessor the Auto-Train reported profits during its early years of service. It is debatable whether Amtrak's Auto Train could, under the government-distorted transportation market conditions existing currently and in the foreseeable near future, be made to fully cover both its operating and capital costs, and earn a profit for shareholders on top of that. There is no question, however, that at present the train is satisfying a substantial consumer demand. A contractor is in a legal sense one who enters into a binding agreement to perform a certain service or provide a certain product in exchange for valuable consideration, monetary, goods,services, even barter arrangements. ...

Other Auto Train-type services

First Great Western in the United Kingdom operates the Motorail service between London Paddington and Penzance. No mobile phones are permitted in the Quiet Carriage First Great Western is a British train operating company owned by First Group and which operates services principally on the Great Western Main Line. ... Motorail van, NVA 96603 at Penzance on 29th August 2003. ... Paddington station or London Paddington is the name of a major railway station in the Paddington area of London, which is the London terminus for long distance trains to the West of England and South Wales and some West London commuter services. ... Location within the British Isles. ...

In Germany, DB AutoZug (website) has services from sixteen stations to cities in France, Italy, Austria, and Croatia. These are very popular, with 200,000 automobiles transported yearly and half a million passengers. DB AutoZug is currently celebrating 75 years of automobile-and-person-carrying trains.

In France, the SNCF's Auto/train (English: Auto-Train) service (website) provides extensive car-carrying routes throughout France, also connecting with neighboring countries. In the past, all of the Auto/trains also carried sleeping cars, but many no longer allow passengers to travel on the same train as their cars. Typically, passengers drop off their car anytime during the day, then use the TGV or other service to reach their destination, where they can pick up the car anytime the following day. The hub of the Auto/train route system is in Paris at the Gare de Bercy. Three other cities (Avignon, Narbonne, and Fréjus-St-Raphaël) also have specialized stations for the car carrying service; in other cities the service is operated from a normal passenger facility. The cars are carried in open railcars, and for this reason the SNCF offers passengers a free car wash in the arrival city. An SNCF multiple unit. ... The interior of a Pullman car on the Chicago and Alton Railroad circa 1900. ... TGV trains depart from Gare Montparnasse in Paris to western and south-western destinations. ... The Eiffel Tower has become a symbol of Paris throughout the world. ... View over the Rhône River to North-East with Mt Ventoux at the rear Palais des papes Square below the Palace of the Popes Paul Vs coat-of-arms on the Palais des papes The Notre Dame des Doms cathedral is located in the heart of Avignon, near... Cathedral in Narbonne. ... An SNCF multiple unit. ...

In Austria, several of the regular day and night trains of the Österreichische Bundesbahnen include automobile transport cars. Logo of the Austrian Federal Railways, ÖBB ÖBB (Österreichische Bundesbahnen - Austrian Federal Railways) is the national railway system of Austria. ...

In Finland, VR (website) has a popular automobile-carrying service on their night trains between the south and the north. VR has recently bought 15 new auto carriers for €8 million, and transports 35,000 automobiles a year. For other uses of the word VR, see VR (disambiguation). ... An autorack, also known as an auto carrier, is a specialized piece of railroad rolling stock used to transport unladen automobiles. ...

In Chile, EFE (Empresa de los Ferrocarriles del Estado) operates a similar service called Autotren (website) between Santiago and Temuco Empresa de los Ferrocarriles del Estado (de Chile) (in Spanish only) [1] and go to quienes somos (who we are) . A user who is comfortable in Spanish may want to translate from Spanish to English. ... Santiagos Metropolitan Cathedral Santiago (officially in Spanish, Santiago de Chile) is Chiles capital and largest city. ... Temuco Temuco is a city in southern Chile, capital of the IX región de Chile (la Araucanía). ...

See also

• Rail terminology
• Auto-Train Corporation
• Amtrak
• Motorail

Rail terminology is a form of technical terminology. ... Auto-Train Corporation (AAR reporting mark: AUT) was a privately-owned railroad which used its own rolling stock, and traveled on rails leased from major railroads along the route of its trains. ... Amtrak, is the brand name of the intercity passenger train system created on May 1, 1971 in the United States. ... Motorail van, NVA 96603 at Penzance on 29th August 2003. ...

External links

• Amtrak's page on the Auto Train
• the official Amtrak website
• Trainweb site with thousands of photos and links to other rail-related sites
• Bill's Railroad Empire - the original Auto-Train page n-scale modeling
• George Elwood's Fallen Flags site, original Auto-Train pageslots of locomotive and rolling stock photos
• from a 1971 Auto-Train Corp. brochure, including information on the short-lived Louisville-to-Sanford Auto-Train route
• a Yahoo group for Auto Train enthusiasts
• Diesel Shop rail photo site photo of Auto-Train diesel-electric locomotive when almost new
• photos and data, Amtrak autoracks
• Orlando Sentinel newspaper article about Auto-Train Corporation and Amtrak's Auto Train replacement
• Motorail trains in Europe
• Autotren in Chile