Big Dome

Big Dome
Ex-ATSF Big Domes on the Auto-Train in 1973.
The lounge area of a Big Dome in 1954.
In service	1954–1981
Manufacturer	Budd Company
Constructed	1954
Number built	14
Fleet numbers	506–513; 550–555 (ATSF)
Capacity	57 coach + 18 lounge (dome level)
Operator(s)	Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway (1954–1971) Auto-Train Corporation (1971–1981)

The Big Domes were a fleet of streamlined dome cars built by the Budd Company for the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway ("Santa Fe") in 1954. Budd built a total of 14 cars in two batches. The Santa Fe operated all 14 on various streamlined trains until it conveyed its passenger trains to Amtrak in 1971. The Santa Fe retained one as a business car and sold the remaining 13 to the Auto-Train Corporation, which operated them for another ten years. All but two have been preserved in varying condition.

The Santa Fe had previously ordered six "Pleasure Domes" from Pullman-Standard for use on the Super Chief. These were first-class lounges, with parlor car-style swivel chairs in the dome area and a private dining room on the lower level. These were "short domes": the dome was centered and did not extend the full length of the car.

For the new Big Domes the Santa Fe and Budd went in a different direction. Like the Super Domes which Pullman had built two years previously for the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad ("Milwaukee Road"), these were "full-length" domes: the dome extended the entire length of the car. The top level featured coach-style seating for 57, plus a lounge area which could seat an additional 18 on sofas and in booths. The lower level came in two variations. The first eight (numbered 506–513) featured a cocktail lounge and nurses' room. The second six (numbered 550–555) had a smaller bar-lounge and crew dormitory. Much of the lower area in both configurations was given over to mechanical use, including air-conditioning. The cocktail lounge was decorated in a "unique Indian decor", a common motif on the Santa Fe.

When the Auto-Train Corporation purchased 13 of the Big Domes in 1971 it renovated the interiors. Reclining seats replaced the fixed seating, reducing capacity to 51. Two cars had their upper-lounge areas rebuilt as "night clubs."