I am a frequent Amtrak rider, as well as a resident and taxpayer in the US & Washington state. I have twice ridden the most recently purchased Talgo cars in service on Amtrak Cascades line. These are the first seats l have encountered on Amtrak where my feet do not touch the floor. There’s no footrests. The seatbacks don’t recline. Supposedly the seat bottom slides forward, but l tried to slide 2 seats, and the attendant couldn’t get them to work either.
Two attendants admit these cars seats are terrible. Talgo previously manufactured perfectly serviceable seats for train cars. The shape of human bodies has not had substantial changes requiring changes to the shapes of seating we will find comfortable or torture to use. There is no excuse for these train car seats being so awful. But there’s more.
On my first ride in one of these cars a grab bar in the restroom was installed so it pinned the toilet lid to the wall - making it impossible for a rider to lower the lid during flushing on a moving train. Yuk. The first attendant l talked to about these seats said he wished the terrible seats were the worst thing about these cars - then caught himself and declined to say more.
This makes me concerned about safety of these cars. Also, when entering the train these Talgo cars smell like raw sewage. As a taxpaying American & Washington resident and long term Amtrak user, l am furious that this foreign company has so flagrantly ripped off the states of Oregon & Washington, the federal government and Amtrak with these defective train cars. I am also appalled that Amtrak accepted delivery and is not standing up for its customers and demanding better of Talgo.
Talgo Reviews
I am a frequent Amtrak rider, as well as a resident and taxpayer in the US & Washington state. I have twice ridden the most recently purchased Talgo cars in service on Amtrak Cascades line. These are the first seats l have encountered on Amtrak where my feet do not touch the floor. There’s no footrests. The seatbacks don’t recline. Supposedly the seat bottom slides forward, but l tried to slide 2 seats, and the attendant couldn’t get them to work either.
Two attendants admit these cars seats are terrible. Talgo previously manufactured perfectly serviceable seats for train cars. The shape of human bodies has not had substantial changes requiring changes to the shapes of seating we will find comfortable or torture to use. There is no excuse for these train car seats being so awful. But there’s more.
On my first ride in one of these cars a grab bar in the restroom was installed so it pinned the toilet lid to the wall - making it impossible for a rider to lower the lid during flushing on a moving train. Yuk. The first attendant l talked to about these seats said he wished the terrible seats were the worst thing about these cars - then caught himself and declined to say more.
This makes me concerned about safety of these cars. Also, when entering the train these Talgo cars smell like raw sewage. As a taxpaying American & Washington resident and long term Amtrak user, l am furious that this foreign company has so flagrantly ripped off the states of Oregon & Washington, the federal government and Amtrak with these defective train cars. I am also appalled that Amtrak accepted delivery and is not standing up for its customers and demanding better of Talgo.