Amtrak's new Acela trainset.
Interior of Amtrak's new Acela trains

Amtrak announced its new Acela trains will begin revenue service on Aug. 28, with all 28 of the new sets expected to be carrying passengers by the end of 2027.

It's been a long road for Amtrak to get the trains into service, with multiple delays and production issues along the way. The new sets were initially supposed to begin transporting people along the Northeast Corridor between Boston and Washington via New York in 2022, but production delays and safety issues identified in testing caused rolling delays to their introduction.

Now, however, passengers will finally have a chance to ride on the next generation of Acela trains before the summer is over.

According to Amtrak, the new trains will feature 27% more seats per train than their predecessors, and a higher in-service top speed.

"NextGen Acela is more than a new train – it’s an evolution of travel," Amtrak President Roger Harris said in a statement. "In just a few weeks, history will be made with the debut of NextGen Acela as we launch a new standard for American train travel."

Amtrak said it will initially introduce five of the new trainsets into service. The new trains will have free high-speed Wi-Fi, individual outlets and reading lights at every seat.

Zach Wichter is a travel reporter and writes the Cruising Altitude column for USA TODAY. He is based in New York and you can reach him at zwichter@usatoday.com.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: What to know about Amtrak's new Acela trains, when they'll start service

Reporting by Zach Wichter, USA TODAY / USA TODAY

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