Posted 18 February 2009 - 01:37 PM
I was thinking a little that maybe as far as rolling stock for the Hurricane, trying out a Bombardier Bi-Level as one of the coaches, with a baggage car. Although I saw a travel show about Alaska once on the Discovery Channel, and they took a ride on the Hurricane, so it does get some tourists, probably to see how a flag-stop train works. I had high hopes for the CRC DMU mainly because of it's potential in Alaska to handle several different kinds of services. I like how the ARR has done wonders with the SD70MAC making it an engine that does double duty. This is one route the Bombardier Talent, Siemens Desiro and Stadler GTW/FLIRT will not work because it has to share the line with freight.
As for the BUDD RDC itself, it is a testament to it's design that it works so long after BUDD quit making them. There are a few services where they still are the best to use, but their age just got in the way.
Also, who knows if the ARR had ordered a few DMUs about the time they ordered the Ultradomes for the GoldStar service, they might have had them by now. It was not just the Hurricane they could use them on, but also Anchorage Commuter Rail, and the new Chugach Explorer, but I think using them on the Aurora in the winter would have been a stretch.