WASHINGTON – Amtrak plays a significant role in connecting families during this Christmas season – the National Christmas Tree. Amtrak will have a model train circle the National Christmas Tree and is a sponsor of the event.
“As America’s Railroadsm, we are honored to take part in this great holiday tradition,” said Emmett Fremaux, Amtrak’s vice president of marketing and product development. “Model railroads are a big part of the holiday season just as Amtrak is a vital part of the nation’s transportation network.”
Working with the National Park Service, the National Park Foundation, and the National Christmas Tree Railroad, Amtrak has provided one of several model trains that will circle the 42-foot Colorado blue spruce. Located on the Ellipse, just south of the White House, the National Christmas Tree has been a part of the holiday season since 1923.
The Amtrak model train is a G scale (1:22.5) and includes two GE Genesis P42 diesel locomotives and four single-level Amfleet passenger cars plus a café car. The model represents Amtrak’s Midwest Corridor service, as well as the Northeast Regional service south of Washington, D.C. where the trains operate using this type of equipment.
The National Christmas Tree and model Amtrak train will be on display through Jan. 1, 2011.
