Editing Auto Train (section)

== Operations ==
[[File:Auto TrainAutoracks Front.jpg|thumb|alt=Autoracks lined up at their loading ramps at the Lorton station.|Autoracks lined up at their loading ramps at the Lorton station]]
The train operates every day. At 12:30&nbsp;pm, the station gates are opened to allow the vehicles into the vehicle staging area.<ref name=":0" /> Here, each vehicle is assigned a unique number, which is affixed to the driver's door magnetically. The vehicle is typically videoed to document existing dents and other damage, in case a damage claim is later filed. The passengers leave their vehicles here and take their carry-on bags with them into the station to await boarding. The vehicles are then staged near the autorack ramps by size and length for optimal loading order and are then loaded onto the autoracks. Motorcycle owners help tie their bikes down to a motorcycle carrier that is then loaded into the autorack. Passengers cannot access their vehicles during the trip.

Vehicles and passengers are accepted up until 3 p.m.,<ref name=":0" /> after which the autoracks are closed and coupled together, the passenger cars are coupled together in the case of Sanford departures, and the autoracks are coupled to the rear of the [[consist]]. At 5&nbsp;p.m., the train departs the station.<ref name="Timetable">{{Cite web |date=January 1, 2016 |title=Auto Train Schedule |url=https://www.amtrak.com/content/dam/projects/dotcom/english/public/documents/timetables/Auto-Train-Schedule-092017.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180114073950/https://www.amtrak.com/content/dam/projects/dotcom/english/public/documents/timetables/Auto-Train-Schedule-092017.pdf |archive-date=January 14, 2018 |access-date=January 13, 2018 |website=Amtrak }}</ref> 

About 1&nbsp;a.m., the train makes its sole scheduled stop, at the [[Florence station (South Carolina)|Florence, South Carolina, station]], where a new engineer and conductors take over and the train takes on fuel and water. No passengers embark or disembark here.

The schedule calls for the trains to arrive in Lorton and Sanford about 10&nbsp;a.m. the next day. When the trains arrive on time, they have covered the 855-mile (1,376 km) journey in about 17 hours, at an average speed of about 50 miles per hour (80 km/h).<ref name="Timetable2">{{Cite web |date=January 1, 2016 |title=Auto Train Schedule |url=https://www.amtrak.com/content/dam/projects/dotcom/english/public/documents/timetables/Auto-Train-Schedule-092017.pdf |access-date=January 13, 2018 |publisher=Amtrak}}</ref><ref name="avg speed2">The timetable gives about 17 hours between the two termini. Dividing that into the distance traveled, {{convert|855|mi|km|abbr=on}}, gives an average speed of {{Convert|50.3|mph|km/h|0|abbr=on}}.</ref> 

Passengers cannot immediately leave the train, as the autoracks are first decoupled from the consist, and in the case of the Sanford station, the passenger cars are split into two sections to fit on Sanford's shorter platforms. At this point, the passengers are then allowed to disembark and move to the auto claim area. Cleaning crews move into the train after passengers leave, and the train is re-supplied with food and water. The passenger car seat backs are flipped to allow everyone in coach to ride facing forward.

The autoracks are further split into three to six sections and each section is aligned with a loading ramp (see picture). The doors between each are opened, and connecting ramps are lowered to allow vehicles to move between cars. At this point vehicles begin to roll off the autoracks and to the claim area, where they are identified and announced by the vehicle number that was attached to the vehicle at the origin station. Vehicles are not unloaded in the same order they were loaded.<ref name="WDW">{{Cite web|url=http://www.wdwinfo.com/transportation/auto_train.htm|title=Disney World Transportation Information – Auto Train|website=www.wdwinfo.com|access-date=January 13, 2018}}</ref> It normally takes one hour to unload all vehicles from a full train. 

The first 30 vehicles off belong to passengers who have paid an extra fee,<ref name="Timetable" /> a service Amtrak has offered by the name Priority Vehicle Offloading since April 2013.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Auto Train Priority Vehicle Offloading |url=https://www.amtrak.com/route-content/auto-train-priority-vehicle-offloading.html |access-date=January 13, 2018 |publisher=Amtrak}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=April 15, 2013 |title=Amtrak Auto Train Launches Priority Vehicle Offloading |language=en-US |work=Amtrak Media |url=https://media.amtrak.com/2013/04/amtrak-auto-train-launches-priority-vehicle-offloading/ |access-date=January 13, 2018 |archive-date=May 13, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220513184411/https://media.amtrak.com/2013/04/amtrak-auto-train-launches-priority-vehicle-offloading/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> The fee has risen from $50 in 2016<ref>{{Cite web |last=Amtrak |date=2016-07-17 |title=Family Fun on the Auto Train |url=https://blog.amtrak.com/2016/07/family-fun-auto-train/ |access-date=2023-11-19 |website=Amtrak |language=en-US}}</ref> to $60 in 2017<ref name="Timetable" /> to $95 in 2023.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-11-19 |title=Amtrak - Reservations - Trip Summary |url=https://www.amtrak.com/tickets/trip-summary.html |access-date=2023-11-19 |website=Amtrak|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231119155756/https://www.amtrak.com/tickets/trip-summary.html |archive-date=November 19, 2023 }}</ref>
[[File:Auto Train Autoracks.jpg|thumb|A look inside the autoracks]]
=== Lorton Terminal ===
{{Main|Lorton station}}
[[Lorton, Virginia]], is about a half-hour drive south of Washington, D.C., near Interstate 95 in [[Northern Virginia]]. Amtrak's new Lorton terminal opened in early 2000 as a replacement for the original station built during the 1970s, and features a large, modern waiting area with high glass walls.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.greatamericanstations.com/stations/sanford-auto-train-fl-sfa/|title=Sanford – Auto Train, FL (SFA)|work=Great American Stations|access-date=January 13, 2018|language=en-US}}</ref> The station was designed by architect Hanny Hassan. The suspended sculpture in the lobby was designed by Patrick Sheridan.<ref>[http://www.patsheridan.com/ Patrick Sheridan]  {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060109110530/http://www.patsheridan.com/ |date=January 9, 2006 }}</ref> The platform is {{convert|1480|ft|m|0}} long.

Lorton was selected as site of the northern terminal because the {{convert|20|ft|2|in|m|2|adj=mid|-high}} [[Autoracks#Latest innovations|autoracks]] were [[Loading gauge|too tall]] to pass through the [[First Street Tunnel#Structure gauge|First Street Tunnel]] into Washington, D.C.<ref name=newsanford>{{cite press release |title=NEW AMTRAK AUTO TRAIN STATION IS OPEN IN SANFORD |date=October 18, 2010 |publisher=Amtrak |url=http://www.amtrak.com/ccurl/476/43/ATK-10-137%20SFA%20station%20event.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121002134942/http://www.amtrak.com/ccurl/476/43/ATK-10-137%20SFA%20station%20event.pdf |archive-date=October 2, 2012}}</ref>

=== Sanford Terminal ===
{{Main|Sanford station (Amtrak)}}
[[Sanford, Florida]], is the southern terminus and is about a half-hour drive north of [[Orlando, Florida|Orlando]]. The original facility was older and smaller than the terminal at Lorton. At Sanford, the ''Auto Train'' loads passengers on two tracks, as no one track is long enough to accommodate all the passenger railcars. Sanford's operation is unique in that a railroad crossing runs through the middle of the rail yard. This complicates some switching procedures and also requires a three-man yard conductor crew – conductor, assistant conductor, and a utility conductor – while operations at Lorton require only a conductor and assistant conductor. Both yards operate with one engineer. Sanford serves as the main mechanical and maintenance location for ''Auto Train'', with diesel and car shops to service the fleet. The city of Sanford provides a shuttle bus to the historic district departing every 20 minutes between 1:00 pm and 3:00 pm free of charge on all days except Sundays and certain major holidays.<ref name="Timetable" />

=== Consist ===
The ''Auto Train'' operates using Amtrak's fleet of bi-level [[Superliner (railcar)|Superliner]] equipment. A typical [[consist]] includes two or three locomotives, followed by a [[Superliner (railcar)#Transition sleepers|transition sleeper car]] for crew use, six [[Superliner (railcar)#Sleeping cars|sleeping cars]] for first-class passengers, a [[Superliner (railcar)#Lounges|sightseer lounge car]] and a full-service [[Superliner (railcar)#Dining cars|dining car]], both for first-class passengers, four [[Superliner (railcar)#Coaches|coach cars]], a café/lounge car for coach passengers, and more than 23 [[Autorack|autoracks]] for transporting vehicles.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Otte |first=Steven |date=January 27, 2022 |title=Ask MR: Modeling the Amtrak Auto Train |url=https://www.trains.com/mrr/beginners/ask-trains/ask-mr-modeling-the-amtrak-auto-train/ |access-date=2025-05-27 |website=Trains |language=en-US |quote=Today, the typical Amtrak Auto-Train consist is a transition sleeper for the crew, six sleepers for passengers, four coaches, one diner, one lounge, one café car, and upwards of 23 auto racks. Depending on its length, the train is pulled by two or three General Electric Dash-9 P40DC diesel-electric locomotives, standard for the Amtrak fleet.}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite web |title=Amtrak's Auto Train {{!}} Reviews, Photos & More {{!}} TrainReview |url=https://trainreview.com/train/auto-train |url-status=usurped |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220513184458/https://trainreview.com/train/auto-train |archive-date=May 13, 2022 |access-date=March 1, 2021 |website=trainreview.com}}</ref> 

Superliner sleeping cars contain a mix of accommodations, including deluxe bedrooms on the upper level, roomettes on both levels, a family bedroom, and an accessible bedroom. Coach cars are equipped with reclining seats on both levels. The sightseer lounge car features wrap-around windows on the upper level and a café on the lower level.<ref name=":1" />

At approximately {{Convert|3/4|mi|km ft}} in length, the Auto Train is among the [[Longest trains|longest passenger trains in the world]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Robbins |first=Jenna Rose |date=2021-07-16 |title=Amtrak Auto Train: Pros & Cons |url=https://jennarobbins.com/2021/07/amtrak-auto-train-pro-cons/ |access-date=2025-05-27 |website=Jenna Rose Robbins |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Britton |first=Jerry |date=February 1, 2022 |title=Amtrak Auto Train |url=https://jbritton.pennsyrr.com/index.php/post-pennsy/other-railroads-articles-blog/latest-articles-blog-postpennsy/593-amtrak-auto-train |access-date=2025-05-27 |website=The Pennsy Modeler}}</ref>