That was a school safety patrols from all over Atlanta.
They are re-painted PAs (note the stainless steel side panels). I guess they swapped the red out for the blue.
At the creation of Amtrak, Santa Fe had petitions before the ICC to discontinue the SAN FRANCISCO CHIEF between Chicago and Richmond (San Francisco), Ca and the GRAND CANYON between Chicago and Los Angeles. I believe if ATSF had been successful in eliminating these trains prior to May 1, 1971 and only had the SUPER CHIEF/ELCAPITAN, TEXAS CHIEF and SAN DIEGANS, their end result to join Amtrak might have been different.
It is interesting about Southern Railway and their decission not to join Amtrak while at the same time the Central of Georgia (under Southern ownership) was allowed to join and could then discontinue the NANCY HANKS and MAN O WAR and their portion of the CITY of MIAMI.
You are kidding about the PA’s, right?[sigh]
It took a train 20 cars long to teach school children about railroad safety? I don’t think so. More than likely, the railroad sponsored a school safety team that visited schools and presented either a slide show or movie as part of driver education. At worst, just the movie made the rounds, and that should have been sufficient.
Whatever that train was, it was something other than a safety train.
When in high school many moons ago, I recall watching such a movie. I still recall the scene where an impatient motorist couldnt wait to cross the dual tracks after the train passed, only to be rammed by a second oncoming train on the other track. That particular crossing was guarded only by flashing red lights. That scenario can’t easily happen today, as modern crossing gates remain down if another train approaches the grade crossing on another track.
The Lake Cities made its last run in January 1970, well before Amtrak’s start-up. It was the last intercity (non-suburban) passenger train on Erie Lackawanna.
Yup. The D&H picked up 4 PAs from the ATSF when the ASTF was getting rid of them.
The Adirondak south of Albany-Rensselear was not very glamorous. Those old NYC coaches weren’t too bad. Amtrak had reupholstered them, but heat and AC were not always well regulated. The MTA ex-NYC coaches were ratty. Occasionally, one would show up in the Amtrak trains (2nd car in last photo)
Kidding about what?
The were ex-ATSF - no kidding.
NY paid for reengining - no kidding.
They only ran as far south as Albany-Rensselaer. The D&H didn’t want them anywhere near Harmon shops - no kidding!
One of the PAs is currently being resurrected as a NKP PA by Doyle McCormack in Portland OR - no kidding!
Yes the old D&H train set sat outside of Kenwood yard for years and then was moved to Waterleviet Arsonal were the engine? and cars sit today owned by the Mohawk Valley NHRS who at the moment as a NRHS chapter is inactive and AWOL. No Newsletter…No Web Page…not even a bunch of old guys having a meeting somewere in a school somewere…
The D&H passenger Serivice was before GUILFORD robbed the railroad from 1977-1982???
He didn’t say the train was about TEACHING safety. It was a charter - you know - like chartered buses.
The Safety Patrol is school kids that volunteer to watch/aid kids walk to and from school/school buses. They get to wear a sash with a badge. Very common back in the 60s’ and 70’s. Don’t know how many schools still bother with it.
An outing for the school Saftey Patrol members isn’t an unusual occurance. Neither is a school field trip to Washington DC. Neither were chartered trains for school groups. Why not take the Safety Patrol kids to DC by rail? A metro area of a million or two could easily generate 1000 school Safety Patrol kids.
CSsmith9474 wrote: “The San Francisco Chief, and the Texas Chief did use hi level chair cars. I don’t believe that either train ever had the lounges or diners (only enough of them to operate the El Cap and El Cap/Super Chief). They Texas and San Fran used the “Big Domes” and standard diners.”
My first Amtrak trip was the 3rd week of May, 1971, 3 weeks after “A day”, Ft Worth to Houston on the Texas Chief, and it had a high level diner that day. Wish I was better attuned to equipment at that time- the whole train was high level, that I do recall.
That may have still been a “winter” consist. As summer approaches and more cars are put into service to meet peak travel demand, equipment changes are made that often result in a hodge-podge of mixed cars, especially as some trainsets or units thereof are taken out of service for routine maintenance.
trivia: The southern’s Cresent required AMTRAK to keep 4 E60s with steam heaters after all others had been converted to HEP. 950-953 I believe to ferry Cresent to and from Wash - NYC.
"When Amtrak first came into existence, the blunt offer was extended to all existing railroads to transfer their intercity and interstate passenger operations to Amtrak, or forever be required to operate them separately. "
Hold it… Wasn’t the specification that any railroads that didn’t join Amtrak would have to run their existing intercity passenger trains another four years rather than “forever”? Or was that modified at a later date?
If a railroad opted not to join Amtrak, the road would have been required to continue to operate their passenger services until such time as the ICC granted discontinuance, if ever. If there was any four year rule, it was probably the road could not apply for discontinuance until the four year period had passed. ‘Forever’ may be too dramatic a term, but for all intents and purposes, it was forever.
The last Erie Lackawanna Long Distance train (The Lake Ciites) was discontinued in January 1970.
Amtrak was also dangled in front of the Reading Railroad as well, because of its Wall Street/Crusader service. It did not join because of its finances…it declared bankruptcy in 1971.
And IIRC the Rock Island went bust and the remaining passenger service (which was very little) went kablooie before the four-year period elapsed.
According to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rock_Island_Railroad:
If I recall correctly, the Santa Fe’s last order for passenger equipment was in 1962 - and those were only hi-level coaches. To my knowledge, the Railway never contemplated hi-level sleepers. As late as 1964 Santa Fe ordered fluted stainless steel railway post office cars, but they were in service for only three years. During September 1967