In 1980 my family moved to the Northwest side of Chicago. From my bedroom window, I could see CNW commuter trains cross Pulaski Ave. just East of the Irving Park station. I believe this is the Northwest Line. I remember seeing, once maybe twice, a light blue RTA EMD covered wagon. My father never saw it. He did see the RTA F40's painted that color. Within a year we moved to Mount Prospect, Ill. All the time I spent waiting at the station, there, for my mom, I saw CNW E units in green and yellow or the F40's.
The question is, does my childhood memory serve me correctly? If it does, which locos got the blue paint?
James
The locomotives you saw were C&NW E8s repainted in RTA blue and brown similar to the then-new F40s.
I have a few of photos; but can't figure out how to paste them into this message.
You're correct about it being the NW Line. Es and Fs in CNW colors ran there, alongside the Metra F40PHs. Some of the Es got repainted into the RTA light blue, brown and orange scheme and a couple of the Es (514 among them) also made it into the Metra dark blue and red. One of those was used on the Milwaukee district for a while, BTW (515, I think....). A couple of ex-CNW Fs made into the dark blue and red scheme, but normally were only used on work trains by that time. Art
Thanks, guys. Was the CNW the only route with smooth sided cars? I know today the NW Line runs fluted side cars.
The Butler Thanks, guys. Was the CNW the only route with smooth sided cars? I know today the NW Line runs fluted side cars.
Wasn't the Rock Island commuter fleet smooth-sided? - a.s.
The two ex C&NW F units are now at the Illinois Railway Museum; one of them is now in C&NW yellow and green.
al-in-chgoThe Butler Thanks, guys. Was the CNW the only route with smooth sided cars? I know today the NW Line runs fluted side cars. Wasn't the Rock Island commuter fleet smooth-sided? - a.s.
The Butler al-in-chgo The Butler Thanks, guys. Was the CNW the only route with smooth sided cars? I know today the NW Line runs fluted side cars. Wasn't the Rock Island commuter fleet smooth-sided? - a.s. A.S., I was thinking gallery cars. Did the Rock have those?
al-in-chgo The Butler Thanks, guys. Was the CNW the only route with smooth sided cars? I know today the NW Line runs fluted side cars. Wasn't the Rock Island commuter fleet smooth-sided? - a.s.
IIRC from reading these boards, the Rock Island got bilevel gallery style cars even before CNW. This would be around 1954. - al
Rock Island had about 20 smooth-sided Pullman gallery cars that may have been a follow-up to either a C&NW or SP (San Francisco) order.
Bill Vandervoort's Chicago Transit & Railfan site used to have current and historical equipment rosters. Sadly, these appear to have fallen victim to the new and limited web host.
(Can someone tell me how to post a photo? The message toolbar has icons for "insert/edit image" and "content selector." Is one of these part of the process?)
Here are the photo posting instructions, just click:
http://cs.trains.com/trccs/forums/t/118690.aspx
The Rock Island bought Budd stainless steel bi-levels first, then bought P-S smooth side bi-levels painted in the 'Chicago Red' paint scheme with the yellow stripe. Here is the roster info:
Jim
Modeling BNSF and Milwaukee Road in SW Wisconsin
So, all stainless steel cars had fluted or corragated sides?
The Butler So, all stainless steel cars had fluted or corragated sides?
Oops, that's what I was thinking since we are talking about Chicago commuter service!
Thanks James for the linkee, I finally figured out how to post pics here!!
The Butler, you're absolutely correct that the UP lines run fluted side cars these days. However, FWIW, yesterday morning on the UP-N line I witnessed a single smooth-sided coach tucked in immediately behind the engine in an otherwise all fluted-side consist.
It was nice to have a little variety.
Separately, here's a pic of an F in the blue/red Metra colors:
http://www.railpictures.net/viewphoto.php?id=165359&nseq=1
MILW205 The Butler Thanks, guys. Was the CNW the only route with smooth sided cars? I know today the NW Line runs fluted side cars. The Butler, you're absolutely correct that the UP lines run fluted side cars these days. However, FWIW, yesterday morning on the UP-N line I witnessed a single smooth-sided coach tucked in immediately behind the engine in an otherwise all fluted-side consist. It was nice to have a little variety. Separately, here's a pic of an F in the blue/red Metra colors: http://www.railpictures.net/viewphoto.php?id=165359&nseq=1
It was a bi-level in Metra silver paint with blue and red stripes.
I've seen the single-level ones you are talking about, but similar to you, it's been a few years (to the point that the last time I saw one, it was in RTA light grey paint with a brown stripe; I've never seen one in Metra colors).
I am under the impression that Metra had quit running the members only cars, perhaps someone else knows something definitive?
The single-level charter car, xCNW (7901 or 7902?) barbershop-lounge for Streamliner service, is still in service on #326 & #341.
My understanding is a half-dozen recently rebuilt "smooth-side" (Pullman) gallery cars were returned, possibly from Virginia, and can be seen singly on various trains. This was done to add fleet capacity to relieve crowding; but not necessarily for the trains to which they are assigned.
There was talk by Metra of discontinuing the service due to demand for capacity on trains.
HarveyK400 (from prior post): North Line scheduling has been a long series of band-aid adjustments over the years. One of the larger stations, Wilmette, has an hour gap in service between the 3:37 and 4:35. No one on the North Western side seems to have any idea what the real market is or what service means.
(from prior post):
That's because there is no meaningful "North Western side" anymore -- it has been all UP since 1995. - a.s.
al-in-chgo HarveyK400 (from prior post): North Line scheduling has been a long series of band-aid adjustments over the years. One of the larger stations, Wilmette, has an hour gap in service between the 3:37 and 4:35. No one on the North Western side seems to have any idea what the real market is or what service means. That's because there is no meaningful "North Western side" anymore -- it has been all UP since 1995. - a.s.
HarveyK400 The single-level charter car, xCNW (7901 or 7902?) barbershop-lounge for Streamliner service, is still in service on #326 & #341.
Thanks for the tip on the train numbers.
I witnessed #326 from a distance this morning. Indeed, the single-level car was in the consist. Since the weather was not terribly clear, I didn't get a particularly good view...but it appeared that it was still in the RTA grey paint with brown stripe scheme.
I had a summer job in a professional photo finishing lab during the summer of 1968 and commuted regularly between a northwest suburb and downtown Chicago. At that time the Geneva Subdivison (West Line) commuter trains did not have any subscription cars. The Harvard Subdivision (Northwest Line) supported one that operated between Chicago and Lake Geneva / Williams Bay, Wisc. But the Kenosha Subdivision (North Line) ... well ... that was a whole 'nother story.
The Kenosha Sub. had maybe six subscription cars, four of which ran coupled together on one pair of schedules. It was either one other pair of schedules supporting two cars each or two other pairs of schedules supporting one car each that hauled the rest of the equipment. These cars were in addition to the numerous bi-level and single level equipped streamliners that ran between Chicago and Milwaukee, or Green Bay, or Ashland/Ishpeming.
Since 1959 when I started riding, the bar cars on the Northwest Line were open to anyone for the price of a drink. This goes back to the heavyweight cars that were replaced by lightweight ex-City cafe-lounge cars converted to HEP a short time later as the suburban fleet was converted to push-pull. One car ran to Williams Bay and subsequently cut back to McHenry under the RTA; the other car ran to Harvard. These cars were replaced by gallery cars before being repainted for the RTA.
Now it seemed to me that the first lightweight bar cars were the 7900-series lounge-barbershop cars with 3 small windows; but I have no photos. For many years the 7800-series cafe-lounges with 4 small windows were used. Except for the service and storage room, the kitchen area was stripped and converted to a stand-up bar. The original Heywood-Wakefied chairs and drink stands were used in the lounge area. Eventually these cars were refurbished for the remaining North Line subscription/charter car.
To my knowledge and observations, only one Chicago-Kenosha train ran with charter cars. Single-level 400 coaches and parlors were used; and there may have been as many as four in the Sixties. Depending on the car's members, cars were fitted with a mix of reclining double seats, rotating and reclining parlor seats, and tables and chairs for cards.
For a while, the morning Harvard train flipped to Highland Park or Waukegan to provide bar service one way.
Was there push/pull commuter service on the CNW before the gallery cars?
Falcon48 The Butler So, all stainless steel cars had fluted or corragated sides? I'm not sure that ALL stainless steel cars have (or had) fluted or corrugated sides. But all of the stainless steel cars used in Chicago area commuter service do.
AFAIK all stainless steel passenger cars had fluted or corrugated sides. It can get confusing because a few railroads that had fluted stainless steel cars also had some smooth sided cars that they painted silver to match the stainless steel cars (sometimes even using pinstriping or "shadow striping" to match the corrugations of the stainless steel cars) but as they weathered it became pretty easy to tell the real stainless steel from the painted ones.
The Butler Was there push/pull commuter service on the CNW before the gallery cars?
No push/pulls operated prior to the bi-levels. In fact, push-pulls were not started on C&NW until about 1958 or 1959, the first bi-levels (1-16) were not equipped for HEP or push-pull as built.
The ButlerWas there push/pull commuter service on the CNW before the gallery cars?
As best as I can recall, the first gallery cars on the C&NW were from St Louis Car Co. in 1953-54. This was followed by an order from Pullman-Standard. Push/pull operations did not began until 1959. There was no push-pull operation using the older, single-level commuter cars. There is a picture of a steam hauled commuter train with one gallery car in the consist in 1955 in Lloyd Keyser's book..
C&NW, CA&E, MILW, CGW and IC fan
Thanks Was 1959 when diesels took over commuter service or were they in place before the push/pull service?
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