Edit post

Edit your reply below.

Post Body
Enter your post below.
arbfbe, Thanks for providing your insights into the Milwaukee electrification decisions. I have a few followup questions (and Michael Sol, please chip in if you want): 1. Was there any significant difference between the current used by the New Haven et al with their FL9's and the 3600 v DC used by the Milwaukee that prevented them from utilizing an FL9 type locomotive on the PCE? Did the Milwaukee ever consider an electric/diesel hybrid like the FL9 for the PCE? Do you know if the FL9 was a considerably more expensive locomotive than standard diesels or an electric like the Little Joes? 2. With regards to the possibility of fulling electrifying the mainline from Harlowtown to the Puget Sound, when the Milwaukee received trackage rights into Portland, wouldn't that have put a crimp into having a dedicated electric fleet west of Harlowtown? You can't put catenary over someone elses track. If as I had speculated the Milwaukee could have requested (and received) trackage rights over the SP&S between Spokane and Portland as well as the I-5 corridor, that also would have required a substantial fleet of diesels in the PNW. Any run through freights would have to have been fully dieselized or run in electric/diesel combos, so there would be the added cost of adding/taking out electrics at certain points in the case of the latter. And since mergers were an ever increasing fact of life for the railroad industry, there is some credibility to the argument that the uniqueness of the electrification may have scared off potential suitors, especially in an industry that practically worships at the alter of standardization. Don't get me wrong, I believe in hindsight that for the Milwaukee (or the GN for that matter) to have given up on electrification was a bad idea, given today's diesel fuel costs (and BNSF's current capacity constraints through the Cascade Tunnel). If either entity had kept their electrification (and assuming the Milwaukee had survived into the present), said electrification would be paying huge divedends right now.
Tags (Optional)
Tags are keywords that get attached to your post. They are used to categorize your submission and make it easier to search for. To add tags to your post type a tag into the box below and click the "Add Tag" button.
Add Tag