Light at the End of the Tunnel: A TL of the American Railroad
- Thread starter Duke Andrew of Dank
- Start date
Perhaps talk more about mainlines and freight. Who is electrifying and who is going with dieselification. Maybe with a focus on freight.
GE's Proposed Electrifications: 1948
In the days after the Second World War, advances in locomotive technology and electric power distribution created a heightened interest in railroad electrification. The conventional electric was more expensive to operate and did not work as well in certain weathers. But it not only had many of the same advantage over the steam engine as the diesel, but were also faster and made more attractive images to the public.
General Electric developed several ideas for various routes that would benefit from electrification. In addition, they proposed various locomotives to serve these electrified routes. Among them being the "Little Joes" which they built from aborted orders for the Soviet Union. The Little Joes were already popular on the Chicago area's Lake Shore Railroad, and were found to be perfect freight engines on the Milwaukee Road's electrified mainlines. In addition, plans for a passenger engine would be resemble double-ended EMD units.
Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul, & Pacific
- The entire mainline from Seattle, WA to Chicago, IL via Spokane, WA; Helena, MT; Twin Cities, MN; and Milwaukee, WI, with a new line from Seattle up to Vancouver
New York, New Haven & Hartford Railroad
- Complete line from New York, NY to Boston, MA
Chicago, Burlington, & Quincy
- The Casper, Big Horn, Orin, Campbell, Black Hills, Front Range, Valley, Butte, Angora, Raveena and Sand Hills subdivisions, from Alliance, NE, to Denver, CO, Laurel and Huntley, MT and Lincoln, NE
Pere Marquette
- The entire Chicago, IL to Detroit, MI line via Grand Rapids and Lansing, MI
Pennsylvania Railroad/Norfolk & Western
- The Keystone Division from Harrisburg to Pittsburgh, PA
- The Panhandle line from Pittsburgh, PA to St. Louis, MO via Columbus, OH and Indianapolis, IN
- The Norfolk & Western from Norfolk, VA to Williamson, WV via Richmond and Roanoke, VA
- The RF&P from Washington DC to Richmond, VA
Denver & Rio Grande Western Railroad
- The complete D&RGW primary main line from Salt Lake City and Ogden, UT to Denver, CO, via Soldier Summit and Green River, UT and the Moffat Tunnel
- The complete line from Grand Junction to Pueblo, CO via Gunnison and Canon City
New York Central
- The complete Water Level Route from New York, NY to Chicago, IL via Albany and Buffalo, NY; Cleveland and Toledo, OH; and South Bend, IN
Illinois Central
- The complete IC main line from Chicago, IL to New Orleans, LA via Carbondale, IL; Memphis, TN; and Jackson, MS
Southern Railway
- The complete Rathole Division from Cincinnati, OH to Atlanta, GA via Lexington, KY and Chattanooga, TN
Atchison, Topeka, & Santa Fe
- The entire main line from Chicago, IL to Los Angeles, CA via Kansas City, MO; La Junta, CO; Albuquerque, NM; and Flagstaff, AZ
Southern Pacific
- The Salt Lake Division from Roseville, CA to Salt Lake City and Ogden, UT, via Truckee, CA and Reno, NV
- The Los Angeles Division from Bakersfield and Oxnard to Long Beach and West Colton, CA
- The Las Vegas Division from Santa Clarita, CA, to Las Vegas, NV, via Palmdale and Mojave, CA and Henderson, NV
- The Sunset Route from Colton, CA to Tucumcari, NM via Phoenix, AZ and El Paso, TX
Baltimore & Ohio
- Point of Rocks, MD to Pittsburgh, PA and Parkersburg, WV via Cumberland, MD; Connellsville, PA; and Grafton and Clarksburg, WV
Delaware, Lackawanna, & Western
- The entire line from Buffalo, NY to Jersey City, NJ via Binghamton, NY and Scranton, PA
Like with the proposed Ripley Plan, many of these did not get past the planning stages at the time. But unlike the Ripley Plan, they were eventually built when the oil troubles began again in earnest in a few years.
OOC: Special thanks to @TheMann and @Lucas for ideas.
General Electric developed several ideas for various routes that would benefit from electrification. In addition, they proposed various locomotives to serve these electrified routes. Among them being the "Little Joes" which they built from aborted orders for the Soviet Union. The Little Joes were already popular on the Chicago area's Lake Shore Railroad, and were found to be perfect freight engines on the Milwaukee Road's electrified mainlines. In addition, plans for a passenger engine would be resemble double-ended EMD units.
Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul, & Pacific
- The entire mainline from Seattle, WA to Chicago, IL via Spokane, WA; Helena, MT; Twin Cities, MN; and Milwaukee, WI, with a new line from Seattle up to Vancouver
New York, New Haven & Hartford Railroad
- Complete line from New York, NY to Boston, MA
Chicago, Burlington, & Quincy
- The Casper, Big Horn, Orin, Campbell, Black Hills, Front Range, Valley, Butte, Angora, Raveena and Sand Hills subdivisions, from Alliance, NE, to Denver, CO, Laurel and Huntley, MT and Lincoln, NE
Pere Marquette
- The entire Chicago, IL to Detroit, MI line via Grand Rapids and Lansing, MI
Pennsylvania Railroad/Norfolk & Western
- The Keystone Division from Harrisburg to Pittsburgh, PA
- The Panhandle line from Pittsburgh, PA to St. Louis, MO via Columbus, OH and Indianapolis, IN
- The Norfolk & Western from Norfolk, VA to Williamson, WV via Richmond and Roanoke, VA
- The RF&P from Washington DC to Richmond, VA
Denver & Rio Grande Western Railroad
- The complete D&RGW primary main line from Salt Lake City and Ogden, UT to Denver, CO, via Soldier Summit and Green River, UT and the Moffat Tunnel
- The complete line from Grand Junction to Pueblo, CO via Gunnison and Canon City
New York Central
- The complete Water Level Route from New York, NY to Chicago, IL via Albany and Buffalo, NY; Cleveland and Toledo, OH; and South Bend, IN
Illinois Central
- The complete IC main line from Chicago, IL to New Orleans, LA via Carbondale, IL; Memphis, TN; and Jackson, MS
Southern Railway
- The complete Rathole Division from Cincinnati, OH to Atlanta, GA via Lexington, KY and Chattanooga, TN
Atchison, Topeka, & Santa Fe
- The entire main line from Chicago, IL to Los Angeles, CA via Kansas City, MO; La Junta, CO; Albuquerque, NM; and Flagstaff, AZ
Southern Pacific
- The Salt Lake Division from Roseville, CA to Salt Lake City and Ogden, UT, via Truckee, CA and Reno, NV
- The Los Angeles Division from Bakersfield and Oxnard to Long Beach and West Colton, CA
- The Las Vegas Division from Santa Clarita, CA, to Las Vegas, NV, via Palmdale and Mojave, CA and Henderson, NV
- The Sunset Route from Colton, CA to Tucumcari, NM via Phoenix, AZ and El Paso, TX
Baltimore & Ohio
- Point of Rocks, MD to Pittsburgh, PA and Parkersburg, WV via Cumberland, MD; Connellsville, PA; and Grafton and Clarksburg, WV
Delaware, Lackawanna, & Western
- The entire line from Buffalo, NY to Jersey City, NJ via Binghamton, NY and Scranton, PA
Like with the proposed Ripley Plan, many of these did not get past the planning stages at the time. But unlike the Ripley Plan, they were eventually built when the oil troubles began again in earnest in a few years.
OOC: Special thanks to @TheMann and @Lucas for ideas.
That might not be necessary. Unless the ALCo partnership has been butterflied away, GE will still have the PA and FA in their catalogue, styled by renowned industrial designer Raymond Loewy (who also styled the NYC Hudsons and PRR Duplexes OTL).
PA:
FA:
@WaterproofPotatoes
This is for electric engines. Rather than diesel.
I don't know what @TheMann's ideas are exactly like. But ALCO of TTL will live. As will the Pennsylvania Railroad.
This is for electric engines. Rather than diesel.
I don't know what @TheMann's ideas are exactly like. But ALCO of TTL will live. As will the Pennsylvania Railroad.
Yes, but all you'd really have to do is stick a cab at either end of the body shell and stick pantographs up top, easier to do as you don't need a diesel prime mover or fuel tanks.
I know. I was using the diesels as a reference for visualizing such a design.
Right! Somehow I lumped bullet nose and Sharknose into the same thought!
Maybe the E2B or even a Little Joe like unit for them, If the electrification to Pittsburgh have go off to drawing board.
The Great Streamliner Races: Chicago, IL - Miami, FL
The lines from the North to the Sunshine State were always busy. But especially in the winter season when the heat of the south was more tolerable.
This EMD E8 was among the first diesels the Florida East Coast bought to shuttle Southern and ACL Passenger trains.
The Florida East Coast had long been under control by the Southern. However, later regulatory action allowed the FEC to have at least enough autonomy to handle their own freight and passenger trains. Their role as the Florida extension for both the Southern and ACL was always more and more pivotal as time went on. Eventually, the 4-8-2 steamers handling most of these trains were overworked, so the FEC ordered new EMD diesels for the passenger trains. In addition, they also made plans to electrify certain the entire mainline from Jacksonville to Miami along the Coast.
Most of the L&N's passenger trains were hauled by the N-1 "Big Nellie" type 4-8-4s. Though the L&N also streamlined a few USRA Pacifics to serve as additional power. Most also agree that these Pacifics were kind of more attractive.
Like the L&N, the PRR mostly used 4-8-4s on their long-distance passenger trains. Though they also streamlined a few K4 Pacifics for use on shorter trains like the South Wind. Not that it mattered since the PRR didn't handle the train that long anyway.
This contested Midwest-Florida corridor was largely dominated by the Atlantic Coast Line and its subsidiary for a very good reason. Through its subsidiary Louisville & Nashville, the ACL was able to reach all the major cities on a route from Chicago to Florida. Including Louisville, KY, Nashville, TN and Atlanta, GA. At Atlanta, the trains originally went two ways over to Jacksonville. Some like the Dixie Limited would run over the Central of Georgia's mainline to Albany via Macon. Whereas others like the Dixie Flagler would travel over Atlanta, Birmingham, & Coast trackage via Montezuma. ACL also would shuttle the Illinois Central's trains to Florida over the line from Albany. However, this would be phased out in the 1950s as the Illinois Central gripped its control on the CofG, and went to the Seaboard Air Line for their connection to Miami. Another route, the one of the South Wind, used the Pennsylvania's Chicago - Indianapolis - Louisville line, the L&N from Louisville to Montgomery, and the ACL the rest of the way to Jacksonville. Where the Florida East Coast took over the trains to Miami.
The City of Miami once had a unique color combination of green, orange and yellow. Though this was replaced shortly after the war by the two-tone green introduced on the Green Diamond train sets.
The second of the major rail lines was the Illinois Central. This line ran the famous City of Miami passenger train for most of its famous Mid-America mainline to Memphis. There, it split to travel over another line to Birmingham, AL. Where it was transferred to the Central of Georgia. Here, one of the line's 4-8-4 steamers often took over the train. What used to be the case was that at Macon, the line dipped down to Albany where the ACL shuttled trains to Jacksonville. But as the IC and ACL turned into fierce rivals, the IC would instead run trains across Georgia to Savannah. Which was where the Seaboard Air Line would shuttle the trains the rest of the way to Miami via Orlando. The IC chose to make the most out of it and advertised the fact it now linked Chicago with Savannah and other parts of Florida further inland.
As 4-8-2 Mountains and 4-8-4 Crescents, based from FEC and SOO designs respectively, took over passenger trains on the DC - New Orleans trunk line, the Pacifics were sent to the Rathole, which called for smaller engines.
The last, but far from least was the Southern Railroad's Ponce De Leon. Which they ran in co-operation with the New York Central. The Central would power the consist behind its legendary Hudsons out of Chicago LaSalle Street Station. Through the Indiana countryside via Lafayette and Indianapolis, and on to Cincinnati. At the Queen City, Southern would take over its own train typically using the Ps-4 Pacifics at first. The journey through the "Rathole" was often supported at the front with one of the MMS-1 Garratts the line bought serving as a helper. The smoky black garratt and the green-adorned Pacific always made a visually stunning contrast as the two pounded furiously into Oneida, TN. Where the Ps-4 continued onwards to Chattanooga, Atlanta, Macon, and Jacksonville. As usual, FEC took over at Jacksonville to shuttle the train the rest of the way to Florida.
This EMD E8 was among the first diesels the Florida East Coast bought to shuttle Southern and ACL Passenger trains.
The Florida East Coast had long been under control by the Southern. However, later regulatory action allowed the FEC to have at least enough autonomy to handle their own freight and passenger trains. Their role as the Florida extension for both the Southern and ACL was always more and more pivotal as time went on. Eventually, the 4-8-2 steamers handling most of these trains were overworked, so the FEC ordered new EMD diesels for the passenger trains. In addition, they also made plans to electrify certain the entire mainline from Jacksonville to Miami along the Coast.
Most of the L&N's passenger trains were hauled by the N-1 "Big Nellie" type 4-8-4s. Though the L&N also streamlined a few USRA Pacifics to serve as additional power. Most also agree that these Pacifics were kind of more attractive.
Like the L&N, the PRR mostly used 4-8-4s on their long-distance passenger trains. Though they also streamlined a few K4 Pacifics for use on shorter trains like the South Wind. Not that it mattered since the PRR didn't handle the train that long anyway.
This contested Midwest-Florida corridor was largely dominated by the Atlantic Coast Line and its subsidiary for a very good reason. Through its subsidiary Louisville & Nashville, the ACL was able to reach all the major cities on a route from Chicago to Florida. Including Louisville, KY, Nashville, TN and Atlanta, GA. At Atlanta, the trains originally went two ways over to Jacksonville. Some like the Dixie Limited would run over the Central of Georgia's mainline to Albany via Macon. Whereas others like the Dixie Flagler would travel over Atlanta, Birmingham, & Coast trackage via Montezuma. ACL also would shuttle the Illinois Central's trains to Florida over the line from Albany. However, this would be phased out in the 1950s as the Illinois Central gripped its control on the CofG, and went to the Seaboard Air Line for their connection to Miami. Another route, the one of the South Wind, used the Pennsylvania's Chicago - Indianapolis - Louisville line, the L&N from Louisville to Montgomery, and the ACL the rest of the way to Jacksonville. Where the Florida East Coast took over the trains to Miami.
The City of Miami once had a unique color combination of green, orange and yellow. Though this was replaced shortly after the war by the two-tone green introduced on the Green Diamond train sets.
The second of the major rail lines was the Illinois Central. This line ran the famous City of Miami passenger train for most of its famous Mid-America mainline to Memphis. There, it split to travel over another line to Birmingham, AL. Where it was transferred to the Central of Georgia. Here, one of the line's 4-8-4 steamers often took over the train. What used to be the case was that at Macon, the line dipped down to Albany where the ACL shuttled trains to Jacksonville. But as the IC and ACL turned into fierce rivals, the IC would instead run trains across Georgia to Savannah. Which was where the Seaboard Air Line would shuttle the trains the rest of the way to Miami via Orlando. The IC chose to make the most out of it and advertised the fact it now linked Chicago with Savannah and other parts of Florida further inland.
As 4-8-2 Mountains and 4-8-4 Crescents, based from FEC and SOO designs respectively, took over passenger trains on the DC - New Orleans trunk line, the Pacifics were sent to the Rathole, which called for smaller engines.
The last, but far from least was the Southern Railroad's Ponce De Leon. Which they ran in co-operation with the New York Central. The Central would power the consist behind its legendary Hudsons out of Chicago LaSalle Street Station. Through the Indiana countryside via Lafayette and Indianapolis, and on to Cincinnati. At the Queen City, Southern would take over its own train typically using the Ps-4 Pacifics at first. The journey through the "Rathole" was often supported at the front with one of the MMS-1 Garratts the line bought serving as a helper. The smoky black garratt and the green-adorned Pacific always made a visually stunning contrast as the two pounded furiously into Oneida, TN. Where the Ps-4 continued onwards to Chattanooga, Atlanta, Macon, and Jacksonville. As usual, FEC took over at Jacksonville to shuttle the train the rest of the way to Florida.
