Charlie, thanks for allowing me to recall a memory from 60 years ago. I rode the North Shore only twice, to and from Great Lakes, from Chicago. The Keesler (AFB) Male Chorus performed a couple of shows at Great Lakes. I believe 30+/- of us young airmen rode on Electroliners both ways, though that memory may just be wishful thinking. Whatever, I was impressed with the rides and courtesy, far better than many years riding NYC subways.
The 'Liners were comfortable and quiet trains and carried the Tavern-Lounge section. They were also airconditioned. Both units have been preserved. One in in Union IL at IRM and the other is in Pennsylvania (IIRC). They also had the great "railfan" seat up front. If you sat in the aisle seat you could eyeball the speedometer as it climbed to 90mph. When brand new, there were some changes made to the motors as a test to get them up around 100+ mph or so. It was discovered that by doing so, the 'Liners were overrunning the crossing gate sensors and getting to the crossings before the gates were down. The changes were quickly removed. The Electroliners were the pride and joy of the North Shore Line until the very last day. They were also the most modern of electric interurban rolling stock. The Illinois Terminal had a couple of streamliner trains built but their engineering was poor and seldom ran in more than just the front cab car. C
My dad told me he loved to ride the Electroliners because of the phenomenal acceleration. They would pin you to the seat.
True, they also had self lapping brakes(aka pressure maintaining) which is pretty much the standard on today's railroads. They were popular trains as they were scheduled over peak periods PLUS you could purchase refreshment aboard the train. The North Shore was one of the tiny,tiny handful of railroads which actually made money on dining service. The choices were small and only one person was required for the prep and service. It was quick and courteous!
Part Two of a warm,summer Saturday train watching: After Billy & I had our fill at the Edison Ct. North Shore station action, he suggested we go see what was happening on the Northwestern(C&NW). He knew a short cut. That shortcut was following the banks of the Waukegan River partway. It is mostly just a creek, but I digress. We arrived at the old Waukegan depot which was a two story wooden frame structure at the time. I have no idea what is there now, since I haven't been to Waukegan for 50 years or so. The station agency was closed, but Billy had a key(it was a secret)and he got us in and we went up into the attic to watch trains without being bothered. While we were there a commuter train pulled into the station. I think at that time there were some suburban runs that began and ended in Waukegan. the Northwestern crews called the commuter trains(and still do) "Scoots" because they scooted here and there. At any rate we witnessed a quite animated conversation between the engineer and conductor. As near as we can tell the conversation related as to whether their train had violated block occupancy. The engineer kept saying "I say he was in the block". the conductor kept saying "I say he wasn't in the block". I dont know what happened, all I know is that they had to get their train out of whatever block they were occupying. The train pulled away shortly. We didn't hang around much longer as there was no other activity that we were aware of. The E.J.& E had a presence in Waukegan but we didn't want to bother with it. It was a good Saturday train watching. I don't recall any more train watching trips with Billy, we sorta went our own ways. Waukegan,while convenient by train, still involved a serious commitment to travel. Billy married in his early 20s but sadly his young life was cut short by leukemia. I miss him but fondly remember our train watching days. Charlie
I would be interested in knowing who is reading this thread, since every time I check activity, I notice someone reading the thread no matter when I scan the board.
Charlie, Just caught up on the last few postings. Been having rail replacement going on here in town lately. Wondering now, if you've ever gotten stuck in the middle of nowhere, because of maintenance crews having T/T(Track and Time) for maintenance and/or repair work?? Haven't seen the actual work in progress, usually came across it, towards the end of the day. When most of the work had been done! And final touches were in progress. Small pieces of equipment, nothing near as exciting as the Fairmont P-811 all in one contraption!
Charlie, I read it whenever there's a new posting. Not only do you post interesting information, but I enjoy your perspective and writing style. Thanks.
As far as stranded trains (I am kicking myself for not getting a photo before it was gone) there was a KCS freight in the hole at the Harlem siding east of Rosenberg waiting to cross the Brazos right before the UP closed it during the flood. They sent out a van to pick up the crew and left the train sitting there for over a week. I guess they finally brought out a new crew, brought the two Geeps around and pulled the train back to Houston.
As a student, we sat in a siding with a shared "track & time". Don't remember what it was all about. I think I posted a story about the time we almost "greased" the inattentive flagman on an EB train going through the Savanna IL area. But that was on a Form B, with yellow/red flags in place, so we knew about the work and just needed to call the section gang foreman for clearance through his zone.
If any of you have seen the movie "Unstoppable", let me tell you that I would have been fired 6 times for doing things I saw being done during the first 15 minutes of that movie. If you remember the part where the engineer of the runaway loco jumps off the motor and runs ahead to throw a switch, I've actually seen that done!!! The result was more successful than what happened in the movie.
Some of them were... getting on & off moving equipment, not having proper PPE, picking a fight in the register room, certainly the engineer bailing off to throw the switch. Sorry I can't remember all the movie scenes. Charlie
I try to read every ones post and I read everything you write Teacher . Sent from my SM-G900R4 using Tapatalk
Include the sin of going between the equipment to use the cell phone.. I may have to rewatch it. Here's a safety film that violates several modern rules.. Randy
