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Heritage Trifecta

Posted 9 days ago by George Hamlin

Special paint schemes on locomotives are generally popular, particularly if they are part of a series. On the occasion of its fortieth anniversary in 2011, Amtrak produced unique liveries on four of its P42 General Electric diesels (as well as a single P40, the 42s’ immediate predecessor in the “Genesis” locomotive line) commemorating what are commonly described as ‘phases’, beginning with the original “Bloody Nose/Pointless Arrow” scheme. Subseque...

7

History: Reflections of the Past, and in the Making in New York City

Posted 21 days ago by George Hamlin

In the New York City subway system, a good deal of history can be seen in a variety of places. This example (above), at the Herald Square station in Manhattan is illustrative of some of the City’s rail transportation history, inasmuch as it references three entities that are currently operating, but not under the names shown here. “BMT” is a reference to what was known as the Brooklyn Manhattan Transit Corporation prior to its acquisition by the City in 1940. ...

20

PSR in all its Glory

Posted one month ago by George Hamlin

That’s “Precision Scheduled Railroading”, in the odd case that you’re wondering what the acronym stands for. So, what do we see in the picture above, of Norfolk Southern train 202 passing by the former N&W depot in Boyce, Virginia (now privately owned) on the NS H-line, on September 3, 2021? The key point, the train’s overall length, is not visible within the relatively constrained view shown here, but some of its contributing implications are. ...

4

Mixtures of Old and New

Posted one month ago by George Hamlin

In the photo of Amtrak’s northbound Crescent above, passing Barboursville, Virginia, north of Charlottesville, on June 4, 2018, there is a mix of old and new elements, in some cases, on multiple levels. To start with, the train is operating on what was the property of the Southern Railway, the Crescent’s creator. For many years, this stretch of the Southern’s Washington, DC-Atlanta main line was known as the Washington Division. More recently it became part of ...

5

My Ride Arrives, Early

Posted 2 months ago by George Hamlin

The Covid-19 pandemic wiped out many things that might have been enjoyable since early 2020, a number of them being trips; either actually planned, or that would have developed over the intervening course of time. In my case, in addition to travel by auto and airline, which is typical, there were a couple of rail trips that would have been fun, and hopefully, will be able to be rescheduled at some point again in the future. In recent years, most of my train-riding has been relat...

6

Old School

Posted 2 months ago by George Hamlin

Even when I shot this photo of NS train 973 coming by the signals at Stanley, Virginia on May 29, 1993, my conclusion was that this set of NS EMD SD40/-2 locomotives, while second-generation “classics”, was not that far from needing to be assigned a “sell-by” date. I was happy to get the shot, in any case. Now, you’ve got to remember that both of the Norfolk Southern’s components that merged to form the modern NS in 1982 were the last major roads to...

3

Hippo, We Hardly Knew You

Posted 3 months ago by George Hamlin

With the exit of Conrail from its electrified freight business in the Northeast Corridor, Amtrak is the only U.S. railroad with a significant amount of electrified mileage in the country. This began when Amtrak inherited the former Pennsylvania and New Haven Railroad passenger operations in the Northeast as of May 1971, and obtained ownership of this trackage as part of the formation of Conrail in 1976. As a result, Amtrak inherited both redoubtable former Pennsy GG1s, which began ser...

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Pride of Place

Posted 3 months ago by George Hamlin

"Looks like she's right on time..." A vintage, “back in the day” photo? I wish, but the North Carolina Transportation Museum's May 3, 2021 N&W 611 photo charter gave me the opportunity to try and re-create something that could have taken place back in the 1950s. Thanks to Jordan Hood for holding the timetable, the July 1, 1952 issue, by the way. It also caused me to reflect on what this class of locomotive meant to its owner, as well as to the City of Roanoke, Virg...

5

Living Large in Mamroneck in 1972

Posted 4 months ago by George Hamlin

The New Haven’s EP-5 electrics made quite a splash at the time of their debut in 1955. They were the road’s first passenger locomotives to be delivered in the striking red/black/white “McGinnis” paint scheme designed by Herbert Matter, which certainly helped from a visual image standpoint. They also featured the latest in electrical propulsion technology, including mercury arc rectifiers to convert alternating current from the overhead catenary to direct c...

8

Former Glamor Girl

Posted 4 months ago by George Hamlin

When they were new, GG1s arguably were elegant, even those in freight service. By early 1976, now in service for the Penn Central, however, words like elegance and glamor were hard to conjure up, to say the least. Many, if not most had traded what remained of their previous “Brunswick Green” livery for Penn Central Black although, in fairness, discerning the difference in these two ‘colors’ in the field, particularly under a heavy coating of...

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From the Fifties to the Nineties

Posted 5 months ago by George Hamlin

By the early 1990s, Amtrak was firmly ensconced in the U.S. intercity passenger train business. The glorious postwar-era equipment that once had provided hope that, at least prior to the advent of the Interstate Highway System and jet airliners, passenger trains would continue to have a significant role in the country’s passenger transportation system (think California Zephyr, for example) had largely vanished. Along with the hope, much of the glamorous equipment that had been s...

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Fiftieth Anniversary

Posted 5 months ago by George Hamlin

In some respects, perhaps that should be plural, as in “anniversaries”, because there were two related, but different events. On April 30, 1971, a significant portion of the privately-operated intercity passenger trains in the U.S. began their final journeys (although the longest of these, including Chicago to and from California and the Pacific Northwest, wouldn’t be completed until two days later), following which a number of individual railroads were no longer oper...

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Remember the Twilight Limited?

Posted 6 months ago by George Hamlin

As of the postwar era, the New York Central’s evening runs in both directions bore this evocative name on the Chicago-Detroit run. In addition to being “First Class” in terms of the operating timetable, they merited the description in terms of equipment and service, as well. All seats were reserved; not only were there parlor cars, for on-board First-Class service, but one of the NYC’s classy Budd-built stainless steel observation parlor cars carried the...

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U.S. is finally going big, but needs to go even bigger

Posted 6 months ago by Malcolm Kenton

Like just about every American who supports and enjoys passenger trains and rail transit, I am elated by this week’s announcements from the White House and Amtrak headquarters surrounding the American Jobs Plan, President Biden’s proposed multi-trillion-dollar multi-year outlay for transportation infrastructure and other investments in the country’s physical and social capital. The proposed legislation — which is now in the hands of the narrow Democratic majority in Congr...

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Rails that Bind: First, a Country, now a Continent

Posted 6 months ago by George Hamlin

On the frosty morning of October 18, 1988, I was in Dorion, Quebec, photographing the equipment utilized for the “West Island” commuter service out of Montreal’s Windsor Station on what was termed CP Rail then. One of the attractions of this spot was the lineup of four ex-CP F units awaiting duty on this Sunday morning, now branded as STCUM. On one side of the yard was an interesting piece of freight equipment, a CP standard boxcar labeled “International of Mai...

9

Enjoying the Ride

Posted 7 months ago by George Hamlin

Let’s be honest: who wouldn’t have been envious of the individual standing between the 611’s cab and tender on the fine late-spring afternoon of June 1, 2016, as NS train 956 deadheads the locomotive and passenger equipment to Manassas for upcoming weekend excursions, as seen here south of Calverton, Virginia on the former Southern Railway’s Washington-Atlanta main line? Note that the title is not posed as a question. For that matter, it’s very possible t...

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The Cult of the Operating Ratio may be loosening its grip

Posted 7 months ago by Bill Stephens

If you believe that railroads have sacrificed volume growth on the altar of the Cult of the Operating Ratio, then here’s some good news: A Wall Street analyst says major investors are growing weary of cost-cutting and want to see railroads attract more traffic. Credit Suisse analyst Allison Landry says some institutional investors are shifting away from their obsession with the operating ratio. This is a dramatic turn for Wall Street, which for years has been pushing for ever-lower operat...

3

A noble calling: Ron Batory set new standard at FRA

Posted 7 months ago by Bill Stephens

When Ron Batory was sworn in as head of the Federal Railroad Administration on Feb. 28, 2018, it would be an understatement to say that there was a lot on his plate. Seventeen railroads – including most of the busiest commuter lines in the country – were woefully behind with positive train control implementation and were at risk of missing the Dec. 31, 2020 deadline. Plus, several long-simmering issues needed addressing. Among them: An outdated FRA rulemaking system that hindered te...

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Sleeping Cars on a Commuter Train?

Posted 7 months ago by George Hamlin

Sans sleeping accommodations, however, as seen on Virginia Railway Express train 338 at Alexandria, Virginia on July 13, 2001. They are now coaches, of course. As discussed in a previous post (“Strangers in a Strange Land, on Multiple Levels” on February 1, 2021), as intercity passenger service in the U.S. declined during the latter part of the 1960s, a number of former long-haul coaches were converted for service on commuter trains. The New York Central, for example...

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What does it mean for service when long trains get even longer?

Posted 8 months ago by Bill Stephens

When railroads first figured out that operating longer trains was an easy way to make more money, firemen were still tossing wood into the bellies of their 4-4-0 steam locomotives. Since then the development of larger, more powerful locomotives was done with one goal in mind: Pulling more tonnage with a single crew. So today’s Class I railroad trend toward ever longer trains is nothing new. What is new is the zeal with which the Class I railroads are embracing longer, heavier trains that ...

36

"True" High-Speed Rail

Posted 8 months ago by George Hamlin

(VIA Rail train 17 west of Drummondville, Quebec, March 15, 2009 It seems to be a common practice to bash the U.S. (and apparently by inference, Canada) for being ‘deficient’ in adopting “true” high-speed rail, as opposed to other entities, such as Japan (that’s been going on for decades, now); Europe; China; etc. The other day I saw a social media post that pictured sleek, shiny high-speed trains from France, Germany, Japan, China and Russia labeled &ldq...

32

When the trend is not your friend, what does the future look like?

Posted 8 months ago by Bill Stephens

Every month, the Association of American Railroads produces Rail Time Indicators, an always interesting review of railroad traffic trends. This chart in January’s issue caught my eye because it clearly shows how various rail-hauled commodities have fared since 2005. The bottom line: The long-term carload trend is not the railroads’ friend. This comes as no surprise to anyone who has followed railroads over the years. But the chart, when combined with broader economic data, does put ...

24

Strangers in a Strange Land, on Multiple Levels

Posted 8 months ago by George Hamlin

As the private (railroad-operated) intercity passenger train was going through its death throes in the late 1960s, there were occasional beacons of hope. One was the Great Northern’s adoption of a completely different passenger train livery, based on the striking “Big Sky blue” paint that the railroad adopted as its “facing the world” hue. While I thought that the classic green and orange paint scheme used on the GN’s passenger equipment previou...

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Norfolk Southern digs its way into a volume hole

Posted 9 months ago by Bill Stephens

What are we to make of Norfolk Southern’s place in railroading’s volume basement? Every Class I railroad lost traffic last year thanks to the economic impact of the pandemic, which took an unprecedented toll on rail volume in March, April, and May. Intermodal has come roaring back, some carload segments have rebounded to pre-pandemic levels, and let’s just forget about coal. You’d expect these trends to play out roughly the same across the big six Class I systems. And t...

14

Special Duty and Specialized Duties

Posted 9 months ago by George Hamlin

By the late 1960s, the U.S. intercity passenger train was in exremis in a variety of ways. Its traffic base had been decimated by both the Interstate Highway System and the airline industry with its (then) relatively-new jet aircraft. Heavy losses weighed on many railroads’ finances. The equipment, including new passenger cars and diesel locomotives acquired in the post-World War II euphoria were wearing out, and needed to be replaced, in many cases. Beyond the acqui...

14

Changing Travel Plans

Posted 9 months ago by George Hamlin

You’d probably be correct if you guessed that winter weather had something to do with the assorted delays displayed here at New York City’s Penn Station on Tuesday, January 2, 1968. At one AM that day the temperature was 12 F; by ten PM it had “warmed” to 23 F, according to data on the Weather Underground website. My year-end holiday break from college was just about over, and I was headed back to Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley via Washington, DC, and th...

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What I'm looking forward to in 2021

Posted 10 months ago by Malcolm Kenton

One of my favorite ways to experience an overnight train ride, when I travel by sleeper, is to close the curtains to the hallway, turn off all the lights to completely darken the room, and enjoy the nighttime views. Without any lights reflecting off the window, one can see elements of the passing landscape surprisingly well, especially when the moon is out. There’s a particular moody quality to this experience that is not present in daytime viewing and is nearly impossible to cap...

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Railroads have a green advantage, but for how long?

Posted 10 months ago by Bill Stephens

Railroads have long touted the environmental advantages of moving freight on steel wheels that roll on steel rails. Now railroad customers are starting to pay attention. And they’re shifting some traffic from highway to rail to help reach goals for lower emissions. You may question that greenhouse gas emissions are responsible for climate change. Big business harbors no such doubts, and companies are intensifying efforts to reduce their carbon footprints. Walmart, for example, aims ...

17

Early Present on Christmas Eve

Posted 10 months ago by George Hamlin

Today, at least if had been a ‘normal’ (i.e. non-Covid) year, had Christmas Eve been on a Monday, I think that it’s likely that most people would have gotten a four-day weekend, and been looking forward to another one a week hence. (And in the period we’ll be talking about, very few people worked any significant amount of time “at home”.) In 1979, however, being sentenced to work on Christmas Eve day generally meant that this would be commuted to an...

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Changing Coloration