Loco ID?

[alangj]

Happened to catch a quick glimpse of a different-looking loco on the CSX (ex-B&OCT) tracks in the Chicago area Sunday afternoon (6/24) and wondered if anybody else saw it and/or knew what it was. This was at about 3:55 PM heading southbound at the 95th Street grade crossing in Evergreen Park, IL. Loco appeared (based on the quick look I got out the house window) to be eye-catching freshly painted shiny silver with a lengthwise purple stripe and possibly a full-width body, like an EMD F40 series. Didn't get to see the cab end, just the radiator end of the hood, so couldn't see any name/logo/reporting marks/road numbers. A fairly-long string of assorted cars was tied on to its rear coupler, so I'd have to guess that it was the trailing unit of maybe a 2-3 loco group. Several other RR's besides CSX (like BNSF, UP, WC, etc.) move trains regularly over this line, so it doesn't necessarily have to have been a CSX movement, either.
Anybody have any inspired ideas?

[Anonymous]

I recall seeing a silver/purple livery like you described. But I can't place where. I think it might have been in Trains mag. The only widebody units that I know of that CSX has is a pair of F40PH-2's that are leased from Amtrak and in CSX's Gray/blue/yellow paint.

The closest thing I can find is EMD's maroon/gry/silver paint that they are useing on some of the lease units and their demonstrators. I hope someone else can provide some info I would like to know what it is myself.

[thirdrail1]

Sounds like a Caltrain or L.A. Metrolink color scheme. I believe they are getting new F59PH's or whatever EMD calls its new passenger unit. Since these are built in London, ON, they would pass through Chicago on their way to California. That's probably what you saw.

[alangj]

Maybe, however...
The train that it was part of was heading south toward CSX's yard in Riverdale, IL, from which almost everything goes east on CSX (or maybe south via UP/ex-MP/ex-C&EI from Dolton just east of Riverdale). Unless this unit took some convoluted routing from London, through Michigan and Indiana, and some sneaky way into the city of Chicago, then back out of the city to Riverdale, I'm guessing that it was really heading somewhere east of Chicago. I also recall seeing (granted that it was a quick look, but it was full broadside-on and as level with the loco as could be) the three radiator fan housings showing just above the roofline at the back end of the hood. From some pictures that I've seen, the California F59PH's seem to have a sort of "skyline" shroud along the length of top of the long hood (like some old SP steam) which would pretty much screen out the profile view of the radiator fans. Thought also that it might have been something in the Boston/MBTA color scheme, but those seem to have a black strip along the radiator/DB air intake section of the hood, and what I saw was silver all the way up, except for the purple stripe. Time will tell (maybe!)

[alangj]

Check the reply I posted to Greg (below). I'm beginning to think that it was some sort of fancily-painted lease unit (or maybe a rebuilt/repainted one being ferried somplace east of here). The nearest match I can think of to the color scheme is the Boston/MBTA silver-with-purple, but I'm not convinced that it's a close enough match for positive identification. I agree that the colors that I've seen in pictures of some of EMD's SD70 lease units are more along the lines of maroon and gray and certainly not the "royal" purple shade that I saw. Maybe somebody along the lines east of IL spotted it and/or has some ideas - it sure was a striking paintjob!