By Justin Franz 

In an effort to resolve some of its equipment shortage issues, Amtrak plans to put 63 rail cars back into service during the coming fiscal year, which begins next month. Among the cars that will be restored are 48 that have been in long-term storage and 15 that were damaged in derailments and other incidents. 

Amtrak’s long-distance trains have been particularly impacted by the equipment shortage as some of the railroad’s Superliners enter their fifth decade of service. Amtrak recently began an effort to refurbish some of its in-service long-distance equipment so that it can continue running until replacements arrive. Earlier this year, Amtrak announced that it had taken the first steps toward replacing its long-distance passenger car fleet.

The 15 wrecked cars being rebuilt include one Amfleet II coach, two Viewliner II baggage cars, and 12 Superliners, as follows: 1 coach, 2 baggage coaches, 3 sleepers, 3 transition sleepers, 1 dining car, and 2 Sightseer lounges. Of the 23 Superliners returning to service, one is a coach, two are baggage coaches, two are snack coaches, three are sleepers, nine are transition sleepers, one is a dining car, and five are sightseer lounges. The remaining 40 include two Amfleet I table cars, one Amfleet II coach, 18 Horizon coaches, eight Viewliner I sleeping cars, six Viewliner II baggage cars, and five Viewliner II dining cars.