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Can someone explain to me how this shared train set works logistically? Does the train travel down to New Orleans as City of New Orleans, then over to San Antonio as Sunset Ltd, then up to Chicago as Texas Eagle, hooking up with LA branch of Sunset Ltd in San Antonio 3x a week . . . and vice versa? Does that mean there is a daily train now between New Orleans and San Antonio? I'm totally confused . . .
MDRR Member # 2992
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Sojourner- The actual train schedules have not changed. It is just the physical equipment that covers both routes consecuitively (sp). I.E., when train #22 (TE) arrives in Chicago the equipment is serviced and automatically becomes train #59 (CNO)and conversely when train # 58 (CNO) arrives in Chicago it is cleaned and the equipment automatically becomes that afternoon's train # 21 (TE). Hope this helps...
Geoff Mayo Member # 153
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Or to put it another way, one physical trainset travels New Orleans - Memphis - Chicago - Dallas - San Antonio - Dallas - Chicago - Memphis - New Orleans (repeat).
That's a simplification: I don't know if any cars are normally switched in/out at Chicago, nor if any/thrice-weekly sets/car continue to LA.
A quirk of the Texas Eagle's routing at San Antonio means the train doesn't have to be turned to face the "right" way to go back again. Another quirk in Chicago is that the City of New Orleans has to leave Union Station in reverse formation to back up and then go forward over a junction to access the IC/CN line for the journey south, which again means the train doesn't have to be turned between CONO/TE formations at Chicago.
sojourner Member # 3134
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Oh, I see, each is doing a down and back before becoming the other. That's too bad; I thought maybe there would be more trains between NO and San Antonio!
Gilbert B Norman Member # 1541
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On the days it operates, the cars (usually one Coach and Sleeper) for trains 421/422 are added/cut to/from the consist. Those cars are placed on the rear so the "drill" can be expediently done.
I'm not sure whether the inbound consist is moved from CUS to Lumber Street for servicing or if such is done at the station. As an aside, I'm not "railfan enough' anymore to go chasing in there just to find out. But simply the arrival of one, i.e. 58 or 22 as the case may be, means the consist is already wyed for its departure, or otherwise, one less thing to do.
Finally, it would be nice if the set of equipment could pay a visit to the car washer, but I highly doubt if such be the case. Somehow, I think there is a "Texas and New Orleans" with regards to one another's dirt compliments of this equipment assignment.
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