Category Archives: Rail Photo of the Month

Rail Photo of the Month: March 2023

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MP89CC Stock 89 S 093

Location: Pont de Neuilly, Paris, France
Operator of Vehicle: Régie Autonome des Transports Parisiens (RATP)
Date of Photo: March 18, 2008

It’s hard to believe, but this month marks 15 years since I visited Paris for the first time.  I’d also argue that trip has been my only trip to Paris, as I transited the city twice to change trains (Bercy to Gare du Nord and Gare d’Austerlitz to Gare du Nord).  My sense from the occasional reading I’ve done online is that the Paris Metro is quite a bit different since my 2008 visit.  Line 1 is now a fully automated operation and the MP89CC stock seen here has been transferred to Line 4.  Now Line 4 is in the process of being fully automated, so these cars will be transferred to Line 6 as Line 4 becomes fully automated.  

Like New York or London, Paris is one of those cities that one will never have enough time to truly explore, and certainly can’t be seen in just a week (or a day), so I certainly hope to have the opportunity to go back some day.  

For more photos of MP89CC stock trains, please click here.  

Rail Photo of the Month: February 2023

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R62A 1946

Location: Grand Central, New York, NY
Operator of Vehicle: MTA New York City Transit
Date of Photo: June 20, 2009

On this date in 1913, Grand Central Terminal opened following ten years of construction.  Today’s Grand Central is not the first train station to be built on that site.  The first Grand Central Depot opened in October of 1871 with 12 tracks.  At that time, it was the largest open space in the United States and the largest railroad station in the world.  However, the station reached capacity by the mid-1890s.  An annex was added but capacity was reached again in 1897.  The terminal was reconstructed and in 1900, became known as Grand Central Station. 

At that time, the trains serving the station were steam hauled, which meant that the busy tunnel under Park Avenue leading to the station from the north (the only way for trains to access the station) was filled with smoke and soot.  Following a January 1902 crash that killed 15 passengers, the New York Central Railroad (which owned Grand Central) and the New York State legislature agreed to only operate electric trains into the terminal.  Less than 12 months after that fatal collision, New York Central Vice President William J. Wilgus proposed an extension of the Park Avenue Tunnel by covering the existing open cut used by the railroad from 46th Street to 59th Street.  This was now feasible because once Grand Central was only served by electric trains, there would be no need to vent smoke and soot from steam trains (since there wouldn’t be any).  The air rights over the terminal could then be sold to raise money for the railroad.  This proposal had to be approved and enacted upon quickly because plans were already underway for the Interborough Rapid Transit Company (better known as the IRT and now a part of the New York City Subway) to build subway lines around Grand Central, at which time the New York Central would lose its rights to construct underground in that area.  The new station was built in phases around the existing station so as to maintain train service throughout the duration of the project.  The rebuilt terminal, now known as Grand Central, saw its first train arrive just minutes after midnight on February 2, 1913.

In the ensuing 110 years, Grand Central has served as a catalyst for development in what is now Midtown Manhattan.  At the time Cornelius Vanderbilt commissioned the original Grand Central, there was not much in the way of development in the area.  However, he was convinced New York City would grow to the north and eventually, his railroad terminal would be in the heart of the city.  His vision proved to be very accurate, to the point that the Long Island Railroad began a long term project (that was first proposed in the 1960s) to connect its tracks to Grand Central Terminal in the 1990s when surveys indicated most LIRR riders worked near Grand Central, not Penn Station where LIRR trains terminate.  That project, known as East Side Access and more recently as “Grand Central Madison” culminated in the opening of eight new tracks served by four new platforms 140 feet below street level on January 25, 2023.  

Prior to the opening of Grand Central Madison, the most recent significant change to Grand Central was on the New York City Subway’s shuttle platforms.  As part of the 2015-2019 MTA Capital Program, the 42nd Street Shuttle that connects Grand Central to Times Square became ADA accessible and as part of that project, Track 3, the center shuttle track and the one the train in this photo is using, was removed.  The single island platform that now exists between Track 1 and Track 4 measures 22,000 square feet (2,000 square meters) and is the largest platform in the New York City by area.  The rebuilt Shuttle reopened on September 7, 2021.  You can see where Track 3 was by looking at the floor tiles on the new platform, the pattern of the tiles and columns between the floor and ceiling indicate where the track right-of-way used to be.

For more photos of R62A trains, please click here.  

Rail Photo of the Month: January 2023

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CAF Type 9 LRV 3919

Location: Commonwealth Avenue at Washington Street, Boston, MA
Operator of Vehicle: Massachusetts Bay Transit Authority (MBTA)
Date of Photo: July 6, 2021

Last month, the second phase of the Green Line Extension in Boston opened to Medford.  This followed the first phase which inaugurated service to the Union Square station in Somerville.  This was the first extension of the Green Line since the Riverside Branch was inaugurated in 1959, though the Green Line route has been modified at other occasions (such as when the line was rerouted from the now demolished Causeway Street elevated to a new underground station at North Station).  The extension required the procurement of additional rolling stock, which resulted in the CAF Type 9 order being placed.  These twenty-four cars were solely for fleet expansion and none of the existing Type 7 or Type 8 cars were retired upon delivery of the Type 9s.  The Type 9 bodies were assembled in Spain and final assembly was conducted in Elmira, New York.  The first Type 9 entered revenue service in December of 2018.  The Type 9 interiors feature additional screens for passenger information and announcements and a shorter high floor section. 

For more photos of MBTA Type 9 LRVs, please click here.  

Rail Photo of the Month: December 2022

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R33 9017

Location: 125th Street/Broadway, New York, NY
Operator of Vehicle: MTA New York City Transit
Date of Photo: November 27, 2022

For the past 15 years or so, the New York Transit Museum has operated a vintage holiday train once a week (usually on Sundays) between Thanksgiving and New Years.  The holiday train would be made up of “Arnine” cars, start from 2nd Avenue on the Lower East Side, and operate up the 6th Avenue Line, typically terminating at Queens Plaza.  However, there was one year the train terminated at 145th Street in Harlem and another year it terminated at 96th Street on the Second Avenue Subway due to trackwork along the “traditional” route.  In 2020, there was no holiday train and the R32 farewell event effectively replaced the holiday train last year.  This year, the holiday train is making a comeback, but with a twist.  For the first time ever, the holiday train is operating on the A Division (former IRT) and is using the “Train of Many Colors”, a set of “Redbirds” that have been repainted in various paint schemes that these trains wore during their service lives.  I was able to catch the train a few times this past Sunday. 

If you want to ride it this year, it operates between Chambers Street and 137th Street on the 1 line for three more Sundays (December 4, 11, and 18).  Northbound trips depart at 10 AM, 12 PM, 2 PM, and 4 PM, while southbound trips depart at 11 AM, 1 PM, 3 PM, and 5 PM.  While the original plan was to have it make all local stops along the route, for the final three weeks, the holiday train will run express on the local track and only stop at Chambers Street, 14th Street, 34th Street, 42nd Street, 72nd Street, 96th Street, 125th Street, and 137th Street.  Also, there is no free crossover between the uptown and downtown platforms at 137th Street, so be sure to get off at 125th Street to change directions for free.

For more photos of R33 cars, please click here.

NOTE:  This post was updated to reflect the decision to operate express on the local on all trips starting on December 4, 2022.  For the most up to date information, it is best to check the MTA’s website.  The information here is provided as a courtesy but its accuracy cannot be guaranteed.  

Rail Photo of the Month: November 2022

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ACS-64 649

Location: Halethorpe Station, Halethorpe, MD
Operator of Vehicle: Amtrak
Date of Photo: November 25, 2018

In the United States, Thanksgiving is approaching.  This is considered to be the busiest travel period in the country each year, and Amtrak (among other intercity transit operators) has set ridership records on the days immediately preceding and following the holiday as people travel to spend the holiday with loved ones.  Pre-pandemic, Amtrak often supplemented its regular services on the Northeast Corridor with “Holiday Extra” trains.  Many of these were operated with standard Amfleet equipment, but some were operated by equipment leased from commuter railroads such as MARC, SEPTA, and New Jersey Transit.  As you can imagine, railfans often ventured out to see and photograph the extra trains, and I did this on the Sunday after Thanksgiving at the Halethorpe Station south of Baltimore.

For more photos of Amtrak’s ACS-64 locomotives, please click here.

Rail Photo of the Month: October 2022

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Kinki Sharyo P3010 1062

Location: Downtown Santa Monica, Santa Monica, CA
Operator of Vehicle: Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority
Date of Photo: March 10, 2022

With the LA Metro’s newest rail line scheduled to open to the public next Friday (October 7), it seemed fitting to share a photo of the previous extension of the LA Metro rail network.  In 2016, the Expo Line was extended from Culver City to Santa Monica.  Most of the route follows what was the right of way of the Santa Monica Air Line, which provided passenger and freight service between Los Angeles and Santa Monica beginning in 1908.  Passenger service ended in 1953 though freight service continued until 1988.  The extension to Santa Monica means it now takes about 46 minutes to travel from Downtown Los Angeles to Santa Monica.  

Although Los Angeles is often an afterthought in terms of rail transit projects due to its car dependence, there are a number of projects of note in the works to expand the city’s rapid transit network.  The K Line is the first phase of the Crenshaw/LAX line which will ultimately connect to the LAX Automated People Mover systen in 2024.  In addition, the Regional Connector, which will create a one seat ride between 7th Street/Metro Center and Union Station in Downtown Los Angeles is scheduled to open in early 2023, at which point the current A and E lines will be through routed along the current L line to Azusa and East Los Angeles, respectively.  

For more photos of LA Metro Light Rail rolling stock, please click here.

Rail Photo of the Month: September 2022

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Kinki-Sharyo Type 7 LRV 3714

Location: Beacon Street between Washington Square and Fairbanks Street stations, Brookline, MA
Operator of Vehicle: Massachusetts Bay Transit Authority
Date of Photo: May 2, 2011

Despite what many seem to be inclined to think, the oldest subway system in North America is not in New York, but rather, in Boston.  In fact, this month marks the 125th anniversary of the opening of the segment of what is now known as the Green Line between Boylston and Park Street.  The original Tremont Street subway was built to provide a way to get streetcars off of congested streets at the surface, and has evolved to form part of the central trunk of today’s Green Line.  The line has been modified in various ways over the years as Boston has grown and developed, but the Boylston Station remains largely unaltered from its original 1897 state.  The Tremont Street Subway are designated as a National Historic Landmark due to its significance as the first subway in the United States.  The Green Line is in the midst of an expansion of sorts, with the new Union Square branch having opened in March 2022 and the Medford/Tufts branch scheduled to open in November 2022.

For more photos of the MBTA Green Line, please click here.

Rail Photo of the Month: August 2022

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SLM Diesel Electric #14

Location: Pikes Peak Summit, Colorado
Operator of Vehicle: Pikes Peak Cog Railway
Date of Photo: July 22, 2014

Considering the extreme heat waves being experienced throughout much of the United States right now, it seemed appropriate that the Photo of the Month for August 2022 should try finding a cooler climate to feature.  So naturally, we find ourselves over 14,000 feet above sea level at the Summit of Pikes Peak near Colorado Springs, CO.  The temperature at the mountain’s summit is usually about 30 degrees colder than in Manitou Springs, near the base of the mountain.  

The Pikes Peak Cog Railway opened in 1890 and has been in operation continuously since that time with the exception of a refurbishment from October 2017 through May 2021.  It was decided to build the line in order to have what inventor Zalmon Simmons called a more “civilized” way to reach the peak of the mountain after a difficult two day trip on his mule.  The railroad was built as a cog railway because standard trains would not be able to ascend or descend grades greater than 10 percent successfully and safely.  When the line first opened, it was operated by steam engines.  Diesel locomotives were introduced in the late 1930s.  The current rolling stock consists of diesel-electric hybrids built by Stadler Rail of Switzerland.

For more photos of the Pikes Peak Cog Railway, please click here.

Rail Photo of the Month: June 2022

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1996 Tube Stock 96076

Location: West Hampstead Station, London, England
Operator of Vehicle: Transport for London (TfL)
Date of Photo: May 21, 2008

Lots of attention has been given to the new Elizabeth Line in London.  Known as Crossrail for most of its planning and construction phases, the Elizabeth Line is named after Queen Elizabeth II and opened just prior to her Platinum Jubilee, being celebrated this weekend.  This isn’t the first rail line in London that has a name connected to Elizabeth’s reign.  The Jubilee Line (pictured here) was named in honor of the queen’s Silver Jubilee; originally the line was to be called the Fleet Line.  This also isn’t the first rail line that Queen Elizabeth will have opened, as she attended the opening of the Victoria Line in 1969, at which time she became the first reigning monarch to ride the London Underground.

In light of the Platinum Jubilee celebrations and the new rail line in London, there are a number of interesting articles about her ties to London and British transportation over the years that are worth checking out.

The opening of a new route in London has also resulted in the largest revamp of the famed London Underground map diagram in the past 20 years.  However, not everyone is pleased and one map expert thinks that the map needs a total refresh instead.

For more photos of London Underground 1996 Stock, please click here.

Rail Photo of the Month: May 2022

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Stanga 7003

Location: Piazza del Risorgimento, Rome, Italy
Operator of Vehicle: ATAC
Date of Photo: January 20, 2008

Rome is quite known for its ancient history, and attractions such as the Coliseum, Roman Forum, Vatican Museums, and more draw millions of tourists to the city each year.  It probably doesn’t come as a surprise that many of Rome’s trams currently in service were built over 70 years ago, and to my knowledge, there are currently no plans to replace them.  While some low floor trams operate on lines 2 and 8 (they are required on the latter due to a lack of turning loops at the terminals), the other lines mostly operate these single ended articulated trams that were commissioned shortly following World War II.

Although the trams might be quite old (dare I say ancient?), the rolling stock for lines A and B of the Rome Metro was constructed in this century.  And the newest line, Line C, is fully automated.  

For more photos of Stanga trams in Rome, please click here.