IRM Snowflake L Charter March 24: Eight Cars, Every DC HP Type

[chicagopcclcar]

The annual Snowflake Special 'L' Charter sponsored by the Illinois Railway Museum is set for Sunday, March 24, 2013 and this year features an eight car train composed of four married pair doubles of each of four types of CTA DC powered high performance rail cars. Combining all of the DC types is possible because retirements have been postponed to allow for a larger 'L' car fleet. The 2013 Snowflake runs from Midway Terminal departing at 0900 and returning at 1800. The DC rail cars include the Budd 2200 series, the Boeing 2400 series, the Budd/Transit America 2600 series, and the Morrison-Knudsen 3200 series. The train should be in numerical order as it travels to the system's extremes.....airport to airport, Midway to O'Hare and north to south, Skokie Shops to 98th Street yard in the Bishop Ford Freeway. This never-before itinerary will cost $47, remarkable as the CTA this year has increased its rates 100 percent. Details and ticket sales are being handled on the IRM Store website

http://www3.irm.org/store/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=10

A limited number of tickets at $55 will include the shuttle trips from Forest Park to Midway to ferry two types of rail cars needed to assemble the eight car train. The Forest Park schedules are 0800 departure and 1915 return.

2013 IRM Snowflake Special Highlights........Eight Car "L" Train; 2200 series, built by Budd in 1969-1970. Running on Blue and Pink Lines- many have already been scrapped......2400 series, built by Boeing in 1976-1978. Found on Green, Red, and Orange, and next to be replaced by 5000s......2600 series, built by Budd/Transit America in 1981-1987. Largest fleet of any type- they run on several lines.....3200 series, built by Morrison-Knudsen in 1992-1994. First computerized cars, on Brown, Orange, and Yellow.

Entire airport to airport trip, Midway to O'Hare via Loop 'L', Paulina Connector, since Block 37 isn't completed, LOL. Trips through both subways of Chicago's Initial Subway System.

David Harrison

Tried repeatedly to post picture of a prior Snowflake charter headed by a 2200 series car, I'll still include photo description.

A Budd 2200 heads up a previous IRM Snowflake Special at a photo stop northbound at Fullerton Ave. on the north side main. IRM Specials usually feature several front-end signs from years past and this charter probably also was adorned with a "toilet seat" at some time during the day since the holder for the "Identra Coil/ Train Identification Coil" is still on the right corner post.

[See Tea Eh]

It's about time they tried training them all together. Will this be the first (and perhaps only) time this has ever happened?

[chicagopcclcar]

It's about time they tried training them all together. Will this be the first (and perhaps only) time this has ever happened?

This is the first and only attempt that I know of. The CTA would never try this. It would be up to a private charter sponsor to schedule and pay for something like this. And no I can't tell you what it costs. The CTA is willing to put together any thing you or your group would like. They probably would refuse to train the new 5000s with any DC type. Last year CERA ran two separate charters using 2200s in the morning and a Green line 5000 set in the pm. Back when the 5-50s were still available, there was a charter, even on the Midway line before the line opened. IRM ran a seven car charter of 5-50s too.

DH

[sw4400]

This is the first and only attempt that I know of. The CTA would never try this. It would be up to a private charter sponsor to schedule and pay for something like this. And no I can't tell you what it costs. The CTA is willing to put together any thing you or your group would like. They probably would refuse to train the new 5000s with any DC type. Last year CERA ran two separate charters using 2200s in the morning and a Green line 5000 set in the pm. Back when the 5-50s were still available, there was a charter, even on the Midway line before the line opened. IRM ran a seven car charter of 5-50s too.

DH

It's not that they would refuse... The 5000's are not trainable with any D/C-powered railcars due to compatibility.

[chicagopcclcar]

It's not that they would refuse... The 5000's are not trainable with any D/C-powered railcars due to compatibility.

That's not what I meant. 5000s can mechanically couple to DC railcars. On a charter they would be cut out electrically. I asked the CTA out of curiosity and they said "Nah."

DH

[SE CTA Fan]

David:

Thanks for the announcement! I just ordered my ticket ... decided to go with the extendend version. Going to be a long day ... hope the batteries in the camera last.

Thanks ... SE CTA Fan / Terry

More pictures at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/1958mga/

Some pictures from last year:

[chicagopcclcar]

David:

Thanks for the announcement! I just ordered my ticket ... decided to go with the extendend version. Going to be a long day ... hope the batteries in the camera last.

Thanks ... SE CTA Fan / Terry

More pictures at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/1958mga/

Some pictures from last year:

Be sure to reintroduce yourself to me. And thanks for that "action" shot. Bring your chargers too. You'd be surprised where you can find 110 v. AC. That includes where you go for lunch too.

DH

[ibebobo]

Do they ever use the 2000 historic cars gthey have anymore?

[chicagopcclcar]

The two 2000s belong to the State of Illinois when they first went into storage. It was planned that they would be used in a display in conjunction with the Pullman area out near 111th St. Illinois Railway Museum had second dibs. IRM wouldn't be interested in the cars themselves....not original seating, configuration, paint scheme, etc. IRM would be interested in parts. Don't know present ownership but parts have been reportedly taken from the cars. By whom????? Cars are not capable of running anymore. They would have to be inspected, rebuilt, brought up to specs. When they become roadworthy, CTA personnel would have to requalify and be certified. When the three PCC cars came back to CTA tracks to film the movie "Ali" that is what happened but paid for by the film company.

DH

[artthouwill]

Probably won't happen, but before the 2200s disappear for good, it would be nice to see an 8 car consist with 2200,2400, 2600, & 3200series cars.

The annual Snowflake Special 'L' Charter sponsored by the Illinois Railway Museum is set for Sunday, March 24, 2013 and this year features an eight car train composed of four married pair doubles of each of four types of CTA DC powered high performance rail cars. Combining all of the DC types is possible because retirements have been postponed to allow for a larger 'L' car fleet. The 2013 Snowflake runs from Midway Terminal departing at 0900 and returning at 1800. The DC rail cars include the Budd 2200 series, the Boeing 2400 series, the Budd/Transit America 2600 series, and the Morrison-Knudsen 3200 series. The train should be in numerical order as it travels to the system's extremes.....airport to airport, Midway to O'Hare and north to south, Skokie Shops to 98th Street yard in the Bishop Ford Freeway. This never-before itinerary will cost $47, remarkable as the CTA this year has increased its rates 100 percent. Details and ticket sales are being handled on the IRM Store website

http://www3.irm.org/store/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=10

A limited number of tickets at $55 will include the shuttle trips from Forest Park to Midway to ferry two types of rail cars needed to assemble the eight car train. The Forest Park schedules are 0800 departure and 1915 return.

2013 IRM Snowflake Special Highlights........Eight Car "L" Train; 2200 series, built by Budd in 1969-1970. Running on Blue and Pink Lines- many have already been scrapped......2400 series, built by Boeing in 1976-1978. Found on Green, Red, and Orange, and next to be replaced by 5000s......2600 series, built by Budd/Transit America in 1981-1987. Largest fleet of any type- they run on several lines.....3200 series, built by Morrison-Knudsen in 1992-1994. First computerized cars, on Brown, Orange, and Yellow.

Entire airport to airport trip, Midway to O'Hare via Loop 'L', Paulina Connector, since Block 37 isn't completed, LOL. Trips through both subways of Chicago's Initial Subway System.

David Harrison

Tried repeatedly to post picture of a prior Snowflake charter headed by a 2200 series car, I'll still include photo description.

A Budd 2200 heads up a previous IRM Snowflake Special at a photo stop northbound at Fullerton Ave. on the north side main. IRM Specials usually feature several front-end signs from years past and this charter probably also was adorned with a "toilet seat" at some time during the day since the holder for the "Identra Coil/ Train Identification Coil" is still on the right corner post.

I guess I got my wish. Now gotta see if I can get my tix.

[chicagopcclcar]

I guess I got my wish. Now gotta see if I can get my tix.

Glad you're working on getting your ticket I got an e-mail from an interested fan

who wanted to know how was it possible for the Snowflake 'L' Charter to go "from

airport to airport."

The eight-car charter will leave Midway, headed northbound with the 2200 series

Budd car as the head car. At 17th St. junction where the Orange and Green lines

merge, the track circuits or a manned tower would give us the regular Orange

line route headed downtown. At the southeast corner of the Loop is Tower 12,

Van Buren and Wabash. This manned tower could give us the fastest routing,

straight north like a Green line train that takes us to Tower 18 at Lake and

Wells which would give us another Green line routing, straight onto Lake Street.

Paulina junction is just beyond the Ashland station. This junction is usually

automated, but because our train doesn't have Pink line transponders, we will

have to stop and manually select a route, turning left onto the Paulina

Connector track. Since we left Midway, we have been operating as a northbound

train but on the Pink line now, we're a westbound train. We cross the

Eisenhower Expressway, clear Harrison Junction and stop. This is where the

hospital buildings are built alongside and over the 'L' tracks. The second

operator takes over from what was the rear end of our train and manually selects

crossover routes in the opposite direction and onto the elevated tracks above

the expressway median where the old Douglas Park line connected with the old

Congress line.

At the bottom of the incline at Loomis Junction, we manually select to go onto

the Blue line as a northbound train. Since our cars are in numerical order, the

3200 series car is now in the lead. We'll simply follow the Blue line route

through the Dearborn Milwaukee subway, alongside Milwaukee Ave. on the elevated,

and then in the Kennedy median all the way to O'Hare terminal. Because we're on

the same track as the regular Blue line train ahead of us, we'll stop for photo

session maybe once or twice.

Forgot to mention that Morgan Middle could not be used to lay over any train on

weekends as Morgan Middle is used to turn every other Blue line train. These

trains operate only from O'Hare to UIC/Halsted and make up a part of the

decrowding effort begun last December. Our morning shuttle move uses the Middle

Track before scheduled short turns begin. The pm shuttle move is scheduled just

before the short turns end on Sundays. If the Middle Track is occupied with a

short turn, it is questionable if the shuttle can enter from the opposite end.

In this case, the shuttle might have to wait on the Douglas incline until the

Middle Track clears and Rail Control might have to have the next turn to wait at

UIC/Halsted SB while the shuttle completes its move. Excitment on a charter

move!!!!

David Harrison

[chicagopcclcar]

The two 2000s belong to the State of Illinois when they first went into storage. It was planned that they would be used in a display in conjunction with the Pullman area out near 111th St. Illinois Railway Museum had second dibs. IRM wouldn't be interested in the cars themselves....not original seating, configuration, paint scheme, etc. IRM would be interested in parts. Don't know present ownership but parts have been reportedly taken from the cars. By whom????? Cars are not capable of running anymore. They would have to be inspected, rebuilt, brought up to specs. When they become roadworthy, CTA personnel would have to requalify and be certified. When the three PCC cars came back to CTA tracks to film the movie "Ali" that is what happened but paid for by the film company.

DH

Some more info on the two 2000s at Skokie......On Sunday, March 10, 2013, the Chicago Tribune published an extensive article revealing that Pullman boosters are still vigorously pushing for a national park to be created in the Pullman area.

"....If approved by Congress or proclaimed a national monument by the President, Pullman could become the state's second national park after Abraham Lincoln's home in Springfield.....

"....If a current study by the National Park Service determines that Pullman is a workable site, it would be up to Senators Dick Durbin, Mark Kirk, and the not-yet-elected 2nd Congressional District replacement to decide whether to try to shepherd a bill through Congress."

The existence of this movement is probably a great motivation for the two Pullman 'L' cars hanging onto life after all these years sitting out in the weather at Skokie Shops and avoiding the scrappers. Especially since Chicago's transit leaders aren't known as real ardent transit historian preservationists, especially like the folks in New York. The need for additional shop space during the six month Red line Dan Ryan rehab reportedly is putting pressure on the Cincinnati cars' storage spot.

The two Pullman cars originally were part of a 180 car order, nicknamed "New Look", they ushered in cab signals, flourescent lighting, 65 MPH high performance and air conditioning to Chicago's 'L' and opened the Lake Street relocation to the then C&NW, now UP embankment through Oak Park. Because of their higher speed, the CTA posted blank signs wayside to give motormen a cue when to start braking for station stops. With an eye to retiring the classic historical cars 4271-4272, and giving a passing homage to the 100th anniversary of the South Side 'L', the cars were repainted in the dark green with red roof color scheme and renumbered 1892-1992. They debuted at a party at Quincy/Wells complete with free cake and champange and "Sticks Belcaster" sitting in on the drums.

The upcoming March 24 IRM Snowflake Charter will visit the Skokie Shops, including a stint on the test track buried behind the weeds next to the Yellow line right of way. We'll only get a telephoto view of the 2000s because they're stored on tracks in the non-electrified portion of the outside yard. Maybe the brake calipers can be cut out and the diesel shuttle motor could pull them to the back side as a special to the charter. I'll drop a hint at our final CTA meeting.

DH

[jajuan]

I see your Snowflake Charter got a mention by the RedEye's Tracy Swartz yesterday.

[westing]

The two Pullman cars originally were part of a 180 car order, nicknamed "New Look", they ushered in cab signals, flourescent lighting, 65 MPH high performance and air conditioning to Chicago's 'L' and opened the Lake Street relocation to the then C&NW, now UP embankment through Oak Park. Because of their higher speed, the CTA posted blank signs wayside to give motormen a cue when to start braking for station stops.

So at one point the CTA governed trains to run faster than 55? Do you know at what point they reduced speeds? It would be nice to see trains run faster on lines with long open stretches of track like the soon to be reworked Dan Ryan. I bet there are probably a lot of issues I can't think of that prevent higher speeds from being realized.

[2200fan]

The 2200s would do 70 mph when new. I don't remember when they cut the top speed down, maybe during the energy crisis stuff in the later 70's? I read somewhere awhile back they were thinking of increasing the top speeds if they could get the tracks in shape.

I wonder how fast the 5000s can go?

[chicagopcclcar]

So at one point the CTA governed trains to run faster than 55? Do you know at what point they reduced speeds? It would be nice to see trains run faster on lines with long open stretches of track like the soon to be reworked Dan Ryan. I bet there are probably a lot of issues I can't think of that prevent higher speeds from being realized.

I mentioned the top speed of 65 MPH for the Pullman 2000s to distinguish that series from all the following high performance series which have a 70 MPH top speed. In actual practice, none of the high performance cars reach their top speed potential in revenue service, being limited internally and also limited by the cab signal system. The potential exists for 70 MPH operation in the future on those lines that have trackage that will support that speed. There are some individuals who claim to have ridden Pullman cars on the Lake Street line before the lowered high speed 55/58 MPH was implemented. I am not one of those individuals. There are some stretches of track where there is a 70 MPH cab signal, but the trains cannot reach that speed. The 70 MPH allows trains to reach their 58 MPH maximum without a penalty brake application.

DH

[2200fan]

So at one point the CTA governed trains to run faster than 55? Do you know at what point they reduced speeds? It would be nice to see trains run faster on lines with long open stretches of track like the soon to be reworked Dan Ryan. I bet there are probably a lot of issues I can't think of that prevent higher speeds from being realized.

Could the slow down have been done when they started running 2000s and 2200s together?

[chicagopcclcar]

This topic is about the upcoming eight-car IRM Snowflake Charter on Sunday, March 24, 2013. This discussion about "did the CTA ever authorize operations at higher speeds than authorized today", deserves its own topic. I will start one.

Returning to the topic.....tickets are still available for the airport to airport run of the eight car charter. The charter begins at Midway and ends at Midway. The eight cars are all the high performance series in operation today including the Budd 2200s which should be retired by this summer; the Boeing 2400s which are next in line to be retired. the Budd/Transit America 2600s which comprised the largest single order and included the last car built at the Budd Red Lion plant. Finally a 3200 series pair built by Morrison Knudsen.

Besides going from Midway to O'Hare, travelling the entire Dearborn subway, the eight car train will travel the entire Red line including the entire State Street subway, starting in 98th St. yard against the bumping post in the Ford Freeway and ending in the yard at Skokie Shops. The eight-car charter will also travel the Loop elevated.

Tickets are handled by the IRM website....the internet store at IRM which can be reached at this URL

http://www3.irm.org/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=10&products_id=1997&zenid=ddeske72tac7e9trqp1t1p9n85

Thanks

David Harrison

[chicagopcclcar]

I thought this should've been talked about in another topic, but I saw so many posts about it starting with these three, so I thought the subject was being discussed here starting with these three.

Yep!! Post did stray, LOL. New topic is posted. Thanks.

DH

[chicagopcclcar]

In case you're still thinking about it and haven't committed, there are still tickets available for the eight-car IRM Snowflake Charter Sunday, March 24, at 9 am from Midway Terminal on the Orange Line. The eight car train is an all day charter using one married pair from each of the four DC 'L' car series still in revenue service: Budd, Boeing, Budd/Transit America, and Morrison Knudsen. Tickets are available from the IRM website store.....

http://www3.irm.org/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=10&products_id=1997

Here are some photos for your enjoyment......

2200s head up a charter at a photo stop at the Green line Clinton station just west of the Loop

3200 Morrison Knudsens coming off the branch at Clark Junction. The Ravenswood branch was originally built to connect with vacant property west of Western Ave. that officers of the elevated company had financial interests in.

Budd/Transit America 2600s lead a NB Blue line train alongside Milwaukee Ave. crossing an abandoned railroad elevation on the way to the Kennedy Expressway median and O'Hare.

2400 series Boeing cars squeal around the 90 ft. radius curve at Lake and Wabash with a Green line train signed for Cottage Grove/" East 63rd."

DH