Amtrak Engineer Trainee on His First Qualifying Segment!

Becoming an Amtrak engineer is no easy task. After going through interviews, a trainee goes to the Amtrak Engineer Training Center in Wilmington, Delaware for 11 weeks. Eight hours a day, five days a week, Amtrak bombards recruits with information. They learn about the mechanics of modern train equipment. They learn operating and safety protocol. And they take tests--lots of tests. Throughout their program they actually have five exams they have to pass with a 90 percent, If you do not make a 90 percent on those exams then you are terminated from the program. And there’s not an opportunity to come back.
After engineer school, the trainee spends six to eight months riding with a local engineer on the route that they will run. During this time the trainee will learn the specifics of the route including grades, speeds, and curves. The segment from Albuquerque to La Junta, CO includes the steepest grades on a mainline in the United States. The segment from Albuquerque to Kingman, AZ is along one of the busiest lines in the world, the BNSF Southern Transcon.
When he is deemed ready by his trainer, the local manager will ride the entire route with him or her before signing him off, or marking him up as it's called. Here we see Amtrak 4, the eastbound Southwest Chief passing through Bernalillo, NM on the first of four legs of Brandon's qualifying trips. He passed all four with flying colors! Congratulations, Brandon!