route_title_fill
herald_hrails amtk_logo3
Amtrak Route Scrapbooks

Auto Train

poster_autotrain egyptian uto Train is an 855-mile-long scheduled train service for passengers and automobiles, operated by Amtrak between Lorton, Virginia (near Washington, D.C.), and Sanford, Florida (suburban Orlando). Although there are similar services around the world, the Auto Train is the only one of its kind in the United States; it is also the only north-south Amtrak train in the east to use Superliner equipment. Passengers ride in coach seats or private sleeping car rooms while their vehicles (car, van, sport utility vehicle, motorcycle, small trailer, or jet-ski) are carried in enclosed automobile-carrying freight cars, called autoracks. The train has a maximum capacity of 320 vehicles and includes lounge and dining cars. The service operates on CSX Transportation as train 53 southbound and 52 northbound, and is operated non-stop between its terminals. Amtrak's Auto Train is the successor to an earlier similarly named service operated by the privately owned Auto-Train Corporation in the 1970s. A typical train uses 2-3 Genesis locomotives, 1 transition sleeper (for the crew), 6 sleepers, 1 diner and 1 lounge for sleeper passengers, 4 coach cars, and 2 diners and 1 lounge for coach passengers, and the 20-30 autoracks on the rear.

auto_map1

Auto Train route / web

Ride the Auto Train with Your Car

The Auto Train transports you and your car (or your van, motorcycle, SUV, small boat, jet-ski or other recreational vehicle) nonstop from the Washington, DC area to sunny Florida, just outside of Orlando. This IS the best way to drive I-95. And remember, you can pack your car as if it were your suitcase.

Save 900 Miles of Driving, Gasoline and Wear and Tear on Your Car

But bring it with you. Leave the worries of long-distance driving behind. Onboard the Auto Train, you'll enjoy a stress-free journey by rail, skipping the traffic congestion on I-95. Put your feet up. Read a book or enjoy free Wi-Fi. Take in the scenery. While you and your family travel in comfort, your vehicle rides along in an enclosed auto carrier. And now, our auto carriers offer even greater capacity to better accommodate your SUV or van.

Amtrak

auto_postcard2

postcard / collection

auto_ad1
auto_ad2
auto_postcard1

postcard / collection

amtk_time1987b

1987 timetable / collection

amtk_time1987

HawkinsRails thanks railfan brother Will Hankins for use of his pictures on this page

tag_check

tag_pinSanford, Florida

tag_pin

Click to see the Sanford Auto Train terminal plotted on a Google Maps page

Amtrak #839

  • builder:General Electric
  • model:P42DC
  • type:B-B passenger unit
  • built:Dec 1993, GE #47307
  • series:321 produced 1992-2001
  • engine:GE 7FDL16 (16 cyl, 4250 hp)
  • notes:
  • 1 of 44 blt as P40DCs then rebuilt P42DC
    1 of 8 assigned to Auto Train service
  • builder

    Amtrak #506

  • builder:General Electric
  • model:P32-8 "Pepsi Cans"
  • type:B-B passenger unit
  • built:Dec 1991, GE #46842
  • series:20 produced in 1991
  • engine:GE 7FDL-12 (3200 hp)
  • notes:
  • 1 of 20 in Amtrak P32-8 order
  • builder

    Onboard

    auto_onboard1 auto_onboard2

    Will Hankins

    auto_onboard3 auto_onboard4 auto_onboard5

    Will Hankins

    tag_pinPembroke, North Carolina

    journal_rwh
    April 2019

    On the second night of a three-day shortline tour of the Sandhills of central North Carolina, chaser pal Ben Wells and I found ourselves on the station platform in Hamlet just after sunset. The CSX freights in and out of the Hamlet bowl began to dry up, and the wait for the Silver Meteor's stop at Hamlet seemed too long for too little. Where can we go from here? Suddenly, I thought about Auto Train. We checked the timetable and then checked the online status -- How did we railfan before the smartphone? -- and then we decided we had enough time for a tight repositioning move from Hamlet over to Pembroke. (Pembroke, because it was the closest town on the CSX main south of Fayetteville, which we knew we could not make in time.) We "lit out" of Hamlet. The mid-route decision to stop at a Wendy's for a late on-the-go supper almost cost us the meet, as we rolled up on the Pembroke diamond with just a minute or two to spare before we saw ditch lights and horns to the north.

    No. 53 with all her length and at CSX track speed is an impressive sight, as noted elsewhere. No. 53 at track speed pouding a standard-gapped diamond crossing is likewise an impressive sound. In the haste to get set up, I miscalculated how much residual shock would be sent up my video tripod sitting so close to the diamond. Although the second half of the video was largely unusable for watching, the audio carries the message of Auto Train from start to finish. 53 was, as I like to say, 'hauling the mail' through Pembroke. I'm glad we got to the diamond in time to see her, because there's no chasing Auto Train once she has moved on down the line.

    tag_pin

    Click to see the Pembroke CSX diamond area plotted on a Google Maps page

    pembroke_map

    RWH

    Pembroke, NC / Apr 2019 / RWH

    tag_pinAshland, Virginia

    tag_pin

    Click to see the Ashland depot area plotted on a Google Maps page

    ashland10 ashland11

    Ashland, Va / Dec 2017 / RWH

    auto_postcard3

    postcard / collection

    auto_postcard4

    postcard / collection

    tag_pinLorton, Virginia

    tag_pin

    Click to see the Lorton Auto Train Terminal plotted on a Google Maps page

    tag_scrapClippings

    auto_clipping1971a

    from Extra 2200 South
    magazine - Oct 1971 / collection

    auto_clipping1971b

    from Railroading
    magazine - Jan 1971 / collection

    auto_article1972a

    from Railroading
    magazine - Feb 1972 / collection

    auto_article1972b
    auto_article1972c
    auto_article1972d
    auto_article1972e
    auto_article1972f
    auto_article1972g
    auto_article1972h

    Snapshots

    Links / Sources

    This page was updated on 2024-09-09