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November 18, 2024|Intercity

Californian Start-Up Awards Sleeper Train Design Contract

Written by David Briginshaw, Consulting Editor, International Railway Journal
(Photo Credit: Dreamstar Lines)
(Photo Credit: Dreamstar Lines)
A new private operator plans to introduce an overnight train service between the Bay Area and Los Angeles.

Dreamstar Lines, a California-based start-up, has awarded a contract to Designworks, a BMW subsidiary, to create concept designs for refurbishing passenger cars for a new overnight service it plans to introduce next year between the San Francisco Bay Area and Los Angeles.

Three types of accommodation are planned for the new train service. First class sleeping cars will have suites with en-suite shower rooms. Standard class coaches will also have sleeping berths with en-suite shower rooms as well as conventional seats. A lounge car will have a bar and a seating area.

Dreamstar says it wants to offer a high-quality service on a par with a luxury hotel. The service will be aimed at both business and leisure travellers wanting to avoid crowded airports or a long drive by car. At present Amtrak operates the Coast Starlight between Seattle, Wash., Oakland, Calif., and Los Angeles, but the Californian segment runs during the day. The last overnight service ran in 1968.

In March, Dreamstar Lines signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Union Pacific (UP) to formalize negotiations to operate the new service along UP’s coastal main line via Santa Barbara, the same route which Amtrak uses.