QUOTE: The final effort at turbine power was built in the Omaha company shops. The foundation for this coal fired unit was a retired Great Northern electric locomotive. It was built by General Electric in May, 1947, #28448, as Great Northern 5018, Class W-1, and purchased by UP in September, 1959. The front unit, which provided hostler power and control, was a PA1 which was built by Alco in January, 1949, #76311, as UP 607. The diesel was numbered 80 and the turbine unit was 80B. The whole rebuilding took place in October, 1961. In 1965 these units became 8080 and 8080B to make room for DD35s. The effort was given up in March, 1968. The diesel was traded in to Electro-Motive, May, 1968, and the turbine was scrapped at Omaha in April, 1968.
QUOTE: The world's busiest railway station, in terms of daily passenger throughput, is Shinjuku Station in Tokyo, Japan. Ikebukuro Station, just minutes away, is the world's second-busiest. The world's largest railway station, in terms of floor area, is Nagoya Station in Nagoya, Japan. However, the Nagoya Station complex incorporates two office towers and an underground shopping concourse, so the railway terminal itself is not large in comparison to others. Shinjuku Station is the second largest. In terms of platform capacity, the world's largest railway station is Grand Central Terminal in New York City, USA.
QUOTE: The Pennsylvania Railroad used the largest direct-drive steam turbine locomotive in the world. Built by Baldwin Locomotive Works, the S2 Turbine, c/n 70900, was delivered to Pennsylvania Railroad in September of 1944. It was originally designed as a 4-8-4, but due to shortages of lightweight materials during World War II, the S2 became the only locomotive ever built with a 6-8-6 wheel arrangement. PRR #6200, the S2 turbine, had a maximum power output of 6,900 HP (5.1 MW) and was capable of speeds over 100mph. With the tender, the unit was approximately 123 feet long. While the gearing system was simpler than a generator, it had a fatal flaw: the turbine was inefficient at slow speeds. Below about 40 mph (64 km/h) the turbine used enormous amounts of steam and fuel. At high speeds, however, the S2 could propel heavy trains almost effortlessly and efficiently. The smooth turbine drive put far less stress on the track than a normal piston-driven locomotive. However, poor efficiency at slow speeds doomed this turbine, and with diesel-electrics being introduced, no more S2s were built. This magnificent machine was retired in 1949 and scrapped in May, 1953.
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