Lucky 13
I’ve never been one to maintain any superstitions*, certainly not one based on irrational fear of a particular integer. Specifically, the number 13.
Did you know there are folks that take the superstition about 13 being unlucky so seriously that it becomes an actual phobia. The condition is known as “Triskaidekaphobia”
Personally, I don’t have an opinion either way about the number 13 unless it adorns the flank of a sleek Santa Fe E6 locomotive, at which point I become a huge fan of the number 13.
Santa Fe E6A 13L holds the southbound Texas Chief at Fort Worth, TX in 1966
The Santa Fe was very meticulous with the maintenance and appearance of its passenger equipment. You’d never guess that the 13L was already 26 years old in the above view!
* But I did play it safe, always trying to avoid stepping on sidewalk cracks. Why take unnecessary chances with Mom’s back?
When Giants Roamed the Southern Pacific
The Union Pacific is renowned for its fleet of 102 8-axle diesel locomotives that operated system-wide between 1963 and 1984. The best known example of this era is UP DDA40X 6936, preserved in operating condition as part of UP’s Heritage fleet. I have several posts about this unit, here and here.
With much less fanfare, the SP rostered a grand total of 6 8-axle locomotives, 3 GE U50’s and 3 EMD DD35’s. They operated between 1964 and 1977, when they were all scrapped. I have two other posts that touch on the topic of U50’s on the Southern Pacific, here and here.
I recently came across a nice collection of SP’s 8-axle locomotives that were posted online by Ron Hawkins. Click on either image to view the full collection.
- SP U50 9951 at City of Industry, CA on 1/22/77
- Recently re-numbered SP DD35 9900 is at City of Industry, CA on 1/22/77
Sharp Dressed Power
Over the last 18 months we’ve made several trips to Fort Worth and each trip I make time to check out Trinity Rail Express operations. As a result of this exhaustive field work, I’ve gotta tell ya that I’m a big TRE fan.
I’ll represent to you that TRE has one of the best-looking paint schemes around. I’ll support that assertion with the following two images of TRE F59PH 123 holding its train at the T&P station in Fort Worth on Nov. 13, 2010.
PS – Let the record reflect that I can’t stand ZZ Top, but I couldn’t think of a better title for this post.
Out & About – Aug. 4, 2011
Defying the 100 degree temperature at 6:30 PM yesterday, I ventured out to see what might be running. I headed towards KCS’ Kendleton yard first, hoping for a southbound, as the late afternoon sun would be perfect. As luck would have it, there were two trains, but both were northbound.
The first one was already on the UP by the time I got to Rosenberg, and just not shoot-able due to harsh backlighting. The second train was the Rosenberg-Port of Houston local which was out of sight in the yard as it built its train. Oh well…
Hoping to salvage something for my trouble, I headed toward the UP Glidden sub as I had heard the DS talk to two westbounds. By the time I got to East Bernard, the first westbound was by me, but I found a spot I could live with and waited for the following westbound. Within 5 minutes I was rewarded with nice series of shots of an empty rock train blowing by at 50 mph.
UP 4403 comes off the San Bernard River bridge at East Bernard, TX, 8/4/2011
As I headed back toward home on US 90, the DS gave a warrant to the KCS local that I missed at Kendleton earlier, authorizing it to proceed to CP SA036 in Rosenberg. I wasn’t too optimistic because the approach into Rosenberg is virtually buried in brush, especially along the west side of the track.
As I entered Rosenberg, I found a spot where the brush wasn’t a problem-the overpass over Hwy 90. It’s not the most photogenic spot, but my options were pretty limited at this point. At 7:53 PM , KCS 2818 came into view.
Well, looks like the KCS painters have been busy! Despite the KCS local stopping in a spot where it was in deep shade and backlit, I wanted to try a few shots of the colorful unit.
The last 2 views are definitely not the most fulfilling of shots, but sometimes something is better than nothing.
Safety Slogan Fail
UP caboose 25625 passes through Ono, CA as it makes its final trip in December of 1987
Actually, the slogan was effective-on the Union Pacific. This caboose was wrecked in September 1987 in El Paso while on the SP!
After the wreck, the SP returned the caboose to the UP at Los Angeles where the decision was made to retire it from service. The damage wasn’t that serious, but cabooses were being removed from service in large numbers at this time due to the widespread implementation of ETD’s on trains in lieu of cabooses.
I photographed it in December 1987 at Ono, CA on a LANP manifest as it headed to Omaha for final disposition.
PTRA’s New Image – It’s Official!
It’s official! PTRA debuted its new image today. MK1500D 9601 pulled out of PTRA’s North Yard roundhouse shortly after mid-day.
Plan A was for it roll out yesterday, but there were a few more details to be completed by the Wabtec mechanical team. Which was fine with me because my video job ran way over schedule plus there was a late afternoon thunderstorm yesterday in the North Yard area!
The weather today was much more conducive to photography:
- PTRA MK1500D 9601 shortly after being released on 7/13/2011
- The angle better shows the yellow cab roof and the dual video cameras
Other, less noticeable changes were made to this unit. Locomotive handbrakes are electronically set and released with a push-button, cab windows were tinted darker than they had been, cab interior has been re-painted a bit lighter than before, and finally, cab seats have been upgraded with the top-of-the-line La-Z-Boy “Chill La-Z Touch Dual-Motor Heat Massage Rocker Recliners”.
OK, I might have exaggerated that last improvement a bit. But new cab seats were installed that are more cushioned than the previous seats.
I knew that OSHA and/or FRA had implemented regulations regarding noise levels in the cab, but I didn’t know that each unit was tested and the results documented in the cab. This plate was mounted on the front cab wall.
The PTRA expects to re-paint the other 23 MK1500D’s on its roster, sequentially, over the next 12 months. The only anticipated change is that subsequent re-paints will receive silver trucks vs. the light gray trucks of the 9601.
Finally, a big “Thank You!” to PTRA management for taking the time to answer my questions and show me about the property.
Stack Trains – An SP Innovation
Little known fact: The Southern Pacific was the original U.S. operator of double-stacked containers in well cars.
The first well car for double-stack container traffic was designed and tested by SP in 1977. There were 2 prototype well cars that tested on the Sunset Route through late 1970’s.
I believe it was around 1982 when the SP created a special tariff that persuaded Sea-Land, a steamship operator, to ship West Coast U.S. containers bound for the U.S. East Coast in the new-fangled double-stack mode versus traversing the Panama Canal. The concept of using the railroads to circumvent the Panama canal was dubbed a Land-Bridge.
The Sea-Land traffic would be placed at the head end of Sunset Route hotshots AVLAT, AVBAT, LAHOT and LAAVT.
I photographed an LAAVT (Los Angeles-Avondale Trailers) with a nice cut of Sea-Land traffic in front of the Englewood yard office on June 30, 1983, as it prepared to depart for New Orleans, LA.
SP hotshot LAAVT prepares to depart Houston's Englewood Yard on June 30, 1983.
Within a year, the SP would persuade American President Lines, another steamship operator, to ship their transcontinental traffic via the SP “land-bridge”.
The volume of traffic from APL was such that it filled out an entire train, typically 140 platforms. The SP created a new symbol for the APL traffic, AVAXT westbound and AXAVT for the eastbound traffic.
Click here to view a post from last year that shows an AVAXT train in Arizona.
PTRA’s New Image – Cont’d.
I stopped by the PTRA’s roundhouse Friday, 7/8/2011, to check on the progress of the new paint for unit #9601. There was a chance that the unit would be released for service by today, but it will be sometime next week due to PTRA management still making a few tweaks to the scheme.
My previous post mentioned that PTRA 9601-9624 were acquired in 1996 under a turnkey lease from Morrison Knudsen Industries, later known as MotivePower Industries Inc. The lease is now managed by Wabtec Industries, which was created in November 1999 by the merger of Westinghouse Air Brake Company with MotivePower Industries, Inc.
- The south side of PTRA’s North Yard roundhouse.
- PTRA 9601 and 9602 occupy the North Yard roundhouse on July 8, 2011
- The 9602 is being prepped to be the next locomotive in the new image.
- 9602’s trucks are being re-built prior to receiving new paint
- Wabtec forces have converted the westernmost roundhouse stall into a paint booth
- This view from the North side of the roundhouse
Here are more detailed views of the 9601 modeling its new livery:
Thanks to the PTRA & Wabtec for allowing me to visit and photograph the North yard roundhouse!
New Image For The PTRA
The Port Terminal Railroad Association is a terminal switching railroad that serves industries along the Houston Ship Channel. It was created in 1924 by the 18 railroads that served Houston to provide access and neutral switching to the industries along the Houston Ship channel for all member railroads.
The PTRA was virtually anonymous for most of its history because it did not have any locomotives. Motive power for its operations was provided by the member railroads. In the 1980’s and early 1990’s, PTRA trains would have just about any older 4-axle power from the BN, UP, SP and MKT.
That changed in 1996 when PTRA members, now down to 3 railroads (UP, BNSF and TexMex/KCS) decided it was best for the PTRA to have its own, dedicated fleet of locomotives.
The PTRA ordered 24 MK1500D locomotives, 9601-9624, from Morrison Knudsen. They arrived on the property between July 1996 – January 1997.
If I recall correctly, the locomotives were acquired under a 15 year turnkey lease (lessor provides equipment and maintenance) from Morrison Knudsen.
PTRA MK1500D 9618 at PTRA's North Yard engine facility on Sept. 26, 1997
The only change to the appearance of the PTRA fleet took place in 1999, when decals were affixed to the locomotives commemorating the PTRA’s 75th anniversary.
Of course, the passage of time will certainly change the appearance of a locomotive, as illustrated by this image of PTRA 9620 from 2006.
PTRA 9620 at Manchester Yard on December 3, 2006
So here we are in 2011. I’m just getting used to the PTRA’s inaugural paint scheme. I had gotten word that the fleet would be getting re-painted, which I assumed would be a fresh coat of blue and silver. I was wrong. (Memo to self: stop assuming stuff).
Here’s a sneak preview of the PTRA’s striking new image:
PTRA 9601 receiving the final touches of its new image at North Yard on July 7, 2011
More information about the PTRA’s new image as it becomes available.
Thanks to Scott Sanders of the PTRA for allowing me to use his image of PTRA 9601 in the PTRA North Yard roundhouse.
Miss Katy Returns to Houston
I received word that Union Pacific SD70ACe 1988, the MKT heritage unit, would be returning to the Houston area this past Sunday, June 26th. It was the lead unit on the ILBBC-23 train. (Long Beach-Barbours Cut intermodal)
I headed west to intercept the train around the East Bernard area. I caught two trains before the 1988 arrived.
First was a WB empty auto rack train led by NS 9974. It took the siding at East Bernard to meet UP 7663, a short intermodal.
It was followed by the UP 1988, which I chased to Willowbend Drive where the train was tied down for a crew change.
40th Birthday Facelift
In driving by the east end of Englewood yard recently, I came across a rare sight: a 40 year-old boxcar that didn’t have graffiti on it. Granted, it’s just been repainted, but it still counts!
The last time I was through Palestine, Texas, I noticed that the UP car shops there was rehabbing SP 86′ boxcars, so I’d surmise that that’s where this car received its fresh coat of paint. Note that the car has retained its SP reporting marks.
SP 616561 B-70-55 class boxcar in Houston, April 28, 2011. (Click image to see more detail)
SP 616561, a B-70-55 class boxcar, was built March, 1971 for auto part service, primarily from mid-west U.S. suppliers to west coast Ford and GM assembly plants. This was high priority traffic, so it’s safe to say that this car made numerous trips on the SP’s hottest freight trains, the APLAA and the Blue Streaks (BSMFF, MBSMF, etc.).
Here’s a view of what these cars looked like originally:
Here’s a shot of one of these cars in service:
Extra 7667 West, the MBSMF, blows by an eastbound manifest at Theba, AZ on 12/17/85. Note the 86' auto parts boxcar directly behind the power.
The above shot is from John Carr’s indispensable website, Carrtracks.com. It’s a great resource for learning more about SP operations.
Engineering Dept. Special – Yet Again!
UP 7454, the Engineering Dept. inspection train came back through my neck of the woods yesterday, 5/24/11, as it continued its 10 day tour of the eastern part of the Union Pacific system.
I was hoping to catch it around the old Imperial Sugar mill near MP 25 of the Glidden sub. Unfortunately, there were some contractors working precisely where I wanted to set up, so I went to Plan B.
I headed 10 miles east to West Junction, thinking the best light would be at the curve where the Terminal Sub splits off from the Glidden Sub. Once I had set up, I figured it might be a good idea to verify that the train would go via the Terminal Sub. I had to walk about 100 yards in order to see the switch points, but it was well worth it because I saw that the special was not lined up according to my plan.
The train was lined up to continue east on the Glidden Sub, via Stella. So much for the nice light in the curve, but again, what can you really do?
You can see the Terminal Sub tracks curving away to the left of the locomotive.
I also captured a bit of video as the train came by me:
PS- Once the video starts playing, click where it says “360p” near the right, bottom corner of the player. Then click on “480p”. this will improve the quality of the video.
Southwest Rails 