Acela

The Acela (/əˈsɛlə/ ə-SEL-ə; originally the Acela Express until September 2019) is Amtrak's flagship passenger train service along the Northeast Corridor (NEC) in the Northeastern United States between Washington, D.C., and Boston via 13 intermediate stops, including Baltimore, New York City and Philadelphia. Acela trains are the fastest in the Americas, reaching 150 miles per hour (240 km/h) (qualifying as high-speed rail), but only over 49.9 miles (80.3 km) of the 457-mile (735 km) route.

This article is about the U.S. passenger train. For other uses, see Acela (disambiguation).

Acela
Acela at Rahway, New Jersey, in May 2021
Overview
Service typeInter-city, high speed tilting train
LocaleNortheast megalopolis
PredecessorMetroliner
First serviceDecember 11, 2000 (2000-12-11)
Current operator(s)Amtrak
Annual ridership2,959,384 (FY23) 38.0%
Route
TerminiBoston, Massachusetts
Washington, D.C.
Stops12
Distance travelled457 miles (735 km)
Average journey time6 3⁄4 hours
Service frequency20 per day
Train number(s)2100–2290
On-board services
Class(es)First Class
Business Class
Disabled accessFully accessible
Seating arrangements4 across in business class
3 across in first class
Catering facilitiesCafé; at-seat meals in first class
Baggage facilitiesRacks and overhead bins; no checked luggage
Technical
Rolling stockAcela Express (trainset)
Track gauge4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
ElectrificationOverhead line;
Operating speed150 mph (240 km/h) (top)
170 mph (110 km/h) (avg.)

Acela carried more than 2.9 million passengers in fiscal year 2023, second only to the slower and less expensive Northeast Regional, which had over 9 million passengers. Ridership is down from the pre-Covid-19 pandemic high of 3,557,455 passengers in 2019. Its 2016 revenue of $585 million was 25% of Amtrak's total.

Acela operates along routes that are used by freight and slower regional passenger traffic, and reaches the maximum allowed speed of the tracks only along some sections, with the fastest peak speed along segments between Mansfield, Massachusetts, and Richmond, Rhode Island, and New Brunswick and South Brunswick, New Jersey. Acela trains use active tilting technology, which helps control lateral centrifugal force, allowing the train to travel at higher speeds on the sharply curved NEC without disturbing passengers. The high-speed operation occurs mostly along the 226-mile (364 km) route from Pennsylvania Station in New York City to Union Station in Washington, D.C., with a fastest scheduled time of 2 hours and 45 minutes and an average speed of 82 miles per hour (132 km/h), including time spent at intermediate stops. Over this route, Acela and the Northeast Regional service captured an 83% share of air/train commuters between New York and Washington in 2021, up from 37% in 2000.

The Acela's speed is limited by traffic and infrastructure on the route's northern half. On the 231-mile (372 km) section from Boston's South Station to New York's Penn Station, the fastest scheduled time is 3 hours and 30 minutes, or an average speed of 66 miles per hour (106 km/h). Along this section, Acela has captured a 54% share of the combined train and air market. The entire 457-mile (735 km) route from Boston to Washington takes between 6 hours, 38 minutes and 6 hours, 50 minutes, at an average speed of around 70 miles per hour (110 km/h).

The present Acela Express equipment will be replaced by new Avelia Liberty trainsets, beginning in 2024. The new trains will have greater passenger capacity and an enhanced active tilt system that will allow higher speed on the many curved sections of the route.

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