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Annual CTA Holiday Train


sw4400

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Just a future suggestion: Never ride the Holiday Train on Saturdays!!!!!!!!!! These are Santa Photo days and the Train is anticipated to become over capacity with Families in attendance. Best suggestion is to ride and get good shots of the train this upcoming Tuesday and Wednesday on the Pink Line. After that, tough luck on enjoying the train as it will round out it's run on the "Money Routes" the Blue and Red Lines

Also, if the train looks very familiar, it's because its the same decal wrap from the 2013 Holiday Train, so there will be a difficult time in the future to tell the difference between the 2013 and 2014 Holiday Train's because of the decal scheme.

Actually it is a new wrap, if you go back to my rodeo pictures #2893-94 is sitting in Skokie Shops without a wrap. I also remember seeing #2797-98 with Xmas decorations inside it but no wrap, so it's possible the seat inserts and interior decorations are the same but the exterior is new.

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Actually it is a new wrap, if you go back to my rodeo pictures #2893-94 is sitting in Skokie Shops without a wrap. I also remember seeing #2797-98 with Xmas decorations inside it but no wrap, so it's possible the seat inserts and interior decorations are the same but the exterior is new.

that wrap is the same as last year's train I have the photos to prove it.

2013 CTA Holiday Train at Orange Line Midway Terminal posing next to the now-retired 2400-series on it's last Christmas in revenue service

http://www.chicago-l.org/trains/gallery/images/2600/cta2894-HolidayTrain2013a.jpg

2014 CTA Holiday Train at Green/Pink Line Clinton Station

https://www.flickr.com/photos/ctaweb/15900553872/in/set-72157649504373832

If you are seeing deja vu, it's because it's the same set with the same wrap as last year. Yes, i also saw the set unwrapped at Skokie during the Annual Roadeo and was shocked to see the basically same Holiday Train for 2013 schemed the exact same way for 2014. Now to the untrained eye, many will not notice, but to the very few, a little startling.

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So your point is it's the same wrap design. I was just mentioning it was not the same physical wrap as I thought you meant that it was the same wrap not taken off in 2 years. But I believe there were a few shortcuts as I saw interior decorations at the rodeo. While some things might need replacing, other things like the interior lights, seat inserts are probably the same. Maybe they did go over the candy striping and the interior wrapping but of course the whole exterior was redone. That's the advantage of only using these cars for the Santa Express.

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So your point is it's the same wrap design. I was just mentioning it was not the same physical wrap as I thought you meant that it was the same wrap not taken off in 2 years. But I believe there were a few shortcuts as I saw interior decorations at the rodeo. While some things might need replacing, other things like the interior lights, seat inserts are probably the same. Maybe they did go over the candy striping and the interior wrapping but of course the whole exterior was redone. That's the advantage of only using these cars for the Santa Express.

Seems like the interior remains the same, which is fine as it keeps the cost down. The main reason to see the Holiday Train is to see it decorated differently each year. Hoping that the 2015 Holiday Train is festive, different but true to the annual tradition

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Garmon757....Did you read my post .....it wasn't just "a wise move"...rail control makes that same move EVERY TIME with the Holiday Train. With only six cars and crowds of people wanting to take pictures, the Holiday Train gets delayed as it makes trips along every line. MetroShadow said they let five road trains pass the Holiday Train. I watched on Train Checker and two trains were allowed to pass on the evening trip. So, rail control is using practices learned over the years. P.S. Haven't seen you on Facebook Chicago L.

DH

In fairness though, I haven't rode it on the NSM since 2009. I would've assumed that the train would get the heck out of dodge, but it happened.

This says the guy who was concerned about the overcrowding than the assignment of the track.

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Garmon757....Did you read my post .....it wasn't just "a wise move"...rail control makes that same move EVERY TIME with the Holiday Train. With only six cars and crowds of people wanting to take pictures, the Holiday Train gets delayed as it makes trips along every line. MetroShadow said they let five road trains pass the Holiday Train. I watched on Train Checker and two trains were allowed to pass on the evening trip. So, rail control is using practices learned over the years. P.S. Haven't seen you on Facebook Chicago L.

DH

Makes a lot of sense actually.

I also didn't know there was a Facebook Chicago L thing.

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Garmon757....Did you read my post .....it wasn't just "a wise move"...rail control makes that same move EVERY TIME with the Holiday Train. With only six cars and crowds of people wanting to take pictures, the Holiday Train gets delayed as it makes trips along every line. MetroShadow said they let five road trains pass the Holiday Train. I watched on Train Checker and two trains were allowed to pass on the evening trip. So, rail control is using practices learned over the years. P.S. Haven't seen you on Facebook Chicago L.

DH

I did and that's understandable. I've been busy finishing Christmas shopping for my kids. That's why I haven't been on Facebook as of lately.

No one rode Monday's Red line final trip? I here it was annulled....doors!

DH

Me and the mother of my kids saw it last night at 79th but we decided not to get on because people were getting way too crazy and we were heading to Chicago Ridge via #381.

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...Me and the mother of my kids saw it last night at 79th but we decided not to get on because people were getting way too crazy and we were heading to Chicago Ridge via #381.

Looks like you dodged a delay there.

Red Eye has the story, and some tweets from disappointed riders.

http://www.redeyechicago.com/news/cta/redeye-cta-holiday-train-pulled-from-service-for-door-problem-20141222,0,5259492.story

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So I'm assuming the train is being converted back to normal.

I didn't respond to MetroShadow because I couldn't place where he was coming from. I could have be afraid of Thomas....LOL. Is that Thomas?

https://www.facebook.com/groups/120452714691417/

...

Looks like Percy or Gordon to me. :P

I sent a join request to the group about a week ago, but nothing happened so far.

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  • 10 months later...

Who said the Holiday Train was going to Rosemont?  Chgofan said........"Just spotted this year's Annual Holiday Train leaving from Howard Yard to Skokie Shops."

?????

Well there was a post above mine that said the train was spotted in the Dearborn Subway deadheading to Rosemont... that post has since been taken down apparently. I should've tagged it.

I'm not making this up.... I saw the words "Blue Line Subway" and "Rosemont" in a post. Where that post went and if it was corrected, I don't know. I hope the poster who did put it will be courteous enough to mention their mistake.

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Well, with annual Magnificent Mile lights festival approaching, a hint was dropped within this year's set list of the tree-lighting parade and the cta is a participant within the parade. One has to wonder, will the Holiday Bus return for 2015? I would expect (and anticipate) for an OFFICIAL press release this week! 

http://www.themagnificentmile.com/lights_schedule/tree-lighting-parade/

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Here are a few quick pics I took of the Holiday Train yesterday.  It literally was only there for less than 45 seconds. 

Looks like the same wrap again but modified with advertising for Sprint, which makes it look really tacky. In past years, the corporate sponsors got to advertise in stations but not on the train itself. Apparently Sprint got too greedy so maybe they'll end up on Santa's naughty list. I wonder if they will have ads inside the train as well.

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Looks like the same wrap again but modified with advertising for Sprint, which makes it look really tacky. In past years, the corporate sponsors got to advertise in stations but not on the train itself. Apparently Sprint got too greedy so maybe they'll end up on Santa's naughty list. I wonder if they will have ads inside the train as well.

I hope not, it's about Xmas not Sprint!! Next they'll have salesmen selling you on their plan or passing out leaflets.

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