America’s first-ever high-speed train looks the part – but it still has a long way to go
The ‘NextGen Acela’ is slick and spacious - Adrian Bridge
We were not far out of Philadelphia when it properly dawned on me that I was experiencing something that until very recently simply didn’t exist in the United States – high-speed train travel.
Fields passed in a hazy blur; houses and gas stations too. We were definitely going considerably faster than any cars on the road, and within what seemed like only minutes, we were catching thrilling – albeit brief – glimpses of the Delaware River estuary. Good grief, in little more than an hour we were going to be in Washington DC.
In Europe, home of the French TGV, German ICE and Eurostar, we have in recent years got used to trains travelling at speeds in excess of 180mph – and found them extremely convenient. In other parts of the globe, notably East Asia and China, huge networks have been developed at breakneck speed; it was of course Japan which famously launched the very first Shinkansen bullet train way back in 1964.
And yet in America – which normally prides itself on its technological prowess – the high speed train revolution has been a long time coming.
Indeed, it was only in late August that the very first of a new class of train, capable of similar high speeds, finally came into service – along the key Northeast Corridor route, linking Boston and Washington DC, New England and the American South.
Called the “NextGen Acela”, the new train – funding for which was announced back in 2016, by the man who was then Vice-President, Joe Biden – certainly looks the part. Like its European and Asian counterparts, it boasts an elongated nose at its front and sleek design and a host of interior features that speak to the 21st century.
I’ve travelled on the train’s precursor, the first-generation Acela, in service on this route since 2000, and while fond of its solidity and old-school charm, could see an upgrade was well overdue.
The new trains, manufactured by Alstom and incorporating many features of the TGV, are slicker and more spacious; they are equipped with 5G-enabled WiFi and an enhanced culinary concept that, in addition to classics such as hotdogs and peanut butter cups, includes a selection of fresh salads and sandwiches, appetisingly filled with combinations such as cherrywood smoked ham and fontina cheese, and peppered turkey, gouda and spinach.
The nation often prides itself on technological prowess, so this revolutionary mode of travel has been a long time coming - Marty Katz/Matt Donnelly
The selection of food onboard includes fresh salads and sandwiches
Although the trains are larger, they also have only two classes, Business and First, controversially dispensing with Coach class (economy), a clear indication of the sort of clientele that is being wooed: professional people who want comfort, space to work – and a decent glass of Californian Sauvignon Blanc if so inclined. People, moreover, who are prepared to pay for it: with fares stretching up to $500 (£372) for a ride, this journey certainly doesn’t come cheap.
For this to work, the train does have to live up to its promise to deliver “America’s only high-speed rail service” – something which, despite that exhilarating stretch south of Philadelphia, is not yet happening.
Recommended
The world's greatest train journeys, according to 10 of our writers
For much of the journey I was on, we travelled at speeds closer to 120mph, occasionally slowing to more like 40mph – usually the result of antiquated infrastructure along stretches of track incapable of supporting trains travelling at high speed.
In theory the new trains – which can reach speeds of over 180mph – should cut the current journey time (of around seven hours between Boston and Washington) to well under six; in practice many of them are currently taking slightly longer than the older ones.
Amtrak, the state-funded company that runs much of America’s train network, says the failure to hit the higher speeds is down to poor infrastructure.
Chatting to the wonderfully moustachioed conductor, Alan Dechristo, in the Cafe car, we crossed bridges constructed in the 19th century, some of which are already being extensively renovated, work which, when completed, will enable faster journeys.
The Cafe car on the NextGen Acela train
Amtrak says that speeds will also improve as more and more of the NextGen trains come into service – at the moment there are just four, a figure that will rise to 28 by 2027.
Amtrak spokesman Marc Magliari is bullish. After years of steady decline in train travel – triggered by the advent of affordable air travel in the 1950s and the American love of the automobile – passenger numbers are beginning to rise.
“Since Covid we have had steady year-on-year increases,” he says. “For many people driving is not the pleasurable experience it once was, and as our highways become ever more congested, they are asking is there a better way?”
For Magliari, rather than speed, the key to winning people over is greater frequency and reliability of service – something the NextGen trains are poised to deliver.
“If there is only one train a day, there’s a problem if something goes wrong; if there are several there’s much more room for recovery.”
That said, it would be wrong to see the NextGen trains as the harbinger of a new era of high speed train travel echoing the golden age of the railroad in the 19th and early 20th centuries.
Travel habits have changed too much and, crucially, most of the country’s track is owned and managed by companies running freight trains, which do not need to travel at very high speeds. There are question marks over projected high speed services along the West Coast and one linking Los Angeles with Las Vegas and no certainty as to when they may go ahead.
“There simply isn’t the funding to upgrade the track nationwide for passenger train services,” says Magliari. “But we are undertaking extensive studies of where and how things can be improved.”
Trains are equipped with 5G-enabled WiFi and an an enhanced culinary concept ensuring healthy and fresh meals for passengers
Since the pandemic, Americans have shifted from costly road trips. The NextGen train could be their new go-to
I am a huge fan of train travel in all its forms and thoroughly enjoyed my experience of the NextGen Acela. It may not have been the most scenic journey in the world, but I loved the sight of old-style wooden houses conjuring up the early settlers of New England; I revelled in the extended run alongside the Atlantic Ocean with Long Island in the distance.
The random sighting of a large parking lot containing more than 50 yellow school buses also gave great pleasure. And, of course, there were the stunning views of the New York towers as we crossed the evocatively-named Hell Gate Bridge on our way to Penn Station.
Ah yes, the stations: the Penn, of course, but also those in Boston, Philadelphia and Washington. These are magnificent edifices that really do evoke that golden age of the railroad in the United States, and hint at the sort of grandeur we in Europe associate with this form of travel at its best.
In just over seven hours, our writer arrived in Washington DC thanks to the high-speed train - Allan Baxter
In between the stations, I enjoyed daydreaming about Boston, that wonderful city with the famous harbour that never fails to delight. On this particular trip I’d taken a boat trip with an architectural theme, highlighting buildings old and new on the waterfront, and enjoyed a lovely stroll along some of the leafier avenues around Harvard, one including the rather grand building once used by George Washington as his military headquarters.
I also looked ahead to Washington, where I was to walk along the famous Mall and pay my respects to Abraham Lincoln and Thomas Jefferson, two giants of American history who did so much to shape this great country.
I ate well on the train (I recommend the peppered turkey sandwich), drank lots of coffee, and chatted to fellow travellers in the designated standing areas in the Cafe car. Those I spoke to were impressed. “It’s much better than the old train,” I heard. “Good WiFi, good fittings, and so much more relaxing than driving!”
Quite. I’d left Boston at 7.15am and at just before 2.30pm, I was ready for an afternoon and evening in Washington.
What’s not to like? Who knows, maybe Americans will develop a taste for it.
Play The Telegraph’s brilliant range of Puzzles - and feel brighter every day. Train your brain and boost your mood with PlusWord, the Mini Crossword, the fearsome Killer Sudoku and even the classic Cryptic Crossword.
