The PRR and NYC were rivals going from New York to Chicago
I set up a web entry for the engines
Are there any other famous rivals?
I would think the Chicago to LA or to San Fran would be likely candidates
back many years ago, the IC, GM&O, and the Wabash all competed for the Chicago-St Louis traffic. you had your choice of almost a dozen trains each day in both directions.
I think your Chicago to the West Coast scenario only plays out if you consider trains that ran on more than one railroad. Except for the ATSF, of course.
The Missouri Pacific Eagles and the MKT/Frisco Texas Special from St Louis to the Texas market. Both trains also hosted several eastern seaboard sleepers from the Pennsy, B&O, NYC, and Wabash.
SB
There were three between Chicago and the Twin Cities
CNW - The 400
MILW - The Twin Cities Hiawatha
CB&Q - The Twin Cites Zephyr
Scott
Santa Fe’s “Super Chief” and Union Pacific’s “City of Los Angeles” were rivals for Chicago/Los Angeles traffic, with the Rock Island/Southern Pacific “Golden State” coming in a distant third, IIRC.
Over the years on the Chicago-San Francisco route, the CNW/UP/SP had “The Overland”, “Forty-Niner” and “City of San Francisco”, as opposed to the CB&Q/D&RGW/WP “Exposition Flyer” and "California Zephyr. The “City” was faster, but the “Zephyr” capitalized on the spectacular Colorado/California mountain scenery.
Tom
Atlantic Coast Line and Seaboard Airline were rivals and each had high caliber trains.
_____ACL _____ | ___ SAL
Florida Special vs Silver Meteor
The Champion(s) vs Silver Star
Before the implementation of the 79mph speed limit for passenger trains without cab signals, these 4 trains clocked 100mph speeds on certain stretches of their runs. Those must have been the days!
Canadian National and Canadian Pacific are still rivals between Toronto ON and Vancouver BC. They used to be rivals from Atlantic to Pacific at one time but CP gave up running directly to the Atlantic coast.
They even each introduced their flagship passenger trains on the same day in April, 1955. The Canadian and the Super Continental.
P.R.R. vs B&O for direct Chicago to Washington DC Passenger Service.
P.R.R. “Liberty Limited” vs B&O "“Columbian” and “Capitol Limited”
John R
In the northwestern United States, the top two competitors were the Great Northern’s Empire Builder and the Northern Pacific’s North Coast Limited. Milwaukee Road’s Olympian Hiawatha and Union Pacific’s City of Portland could also be in the mix.
Southern Pacific, and every other transcontinental line that entered California (AT&SF, Western Pacific, Union Pacific)–and, for that matter, every other California railroad (for a long time, their policy was, “If you can’t beat them, buy them.”)
UncBob:
In 1956 when my family and I returned to the states after my father completed his tour in Japan, after the Korean War, we landed in San Francisco. We then boarded a Union Pacific to Chicago, stayed in Chicago for a few days, that is where I saw Lady And The Tramp; I was in the third grade at the time.
From Chicago we traveled to Memphis, I believe by the IGC, to Jackson, Tennessee. Stayed for two weeks, then hopped a Southern to get to Washington, D.C. Maybe not competitors as such but for a train lover wow what a trip. That is why the WTRR, my railroad, has so many different roads on it. Some how they all connect, from city to city, believe me I’ve seen it.
Robert Sylvester, WTRR