CONRAIL’S CAST-OFF COMMUTERS: 1 30 YEARS OF METRO-NORTH


ABOVE: This signage from a Harlem Line sta- tion indicates the name change from Brewster North to Southeast and the northern extension beyond Dover Plains to Wassaic. LEFT: A train of M7s glides to a stop at Scarsdale on the Harlem Line. While this section is double track, the forward-thinking New York Central designed the right of way to accommodate extra tracks should the need ever arise in the future. BELOW LEFT: This three-way meet at Stamford, Connecticut, helps illustrate the number of operators that share the New Haven Line. From left to right, an Amtrak Acela, a Metro-North Danbury Branch train, and a CDOT Shore Line East train all arrive on May 31, 2007.


maintain service, so additional second- hand coaches were acquired until new cars could be ordered. The Detroit com- muter service operated by SEMTA had been discontinued in 1983, making their fleet of rebuilt former Pennsy and Union Pacific coaches available. A set of ex-Reading Wallstreeter coaches was purchased by CDOT from SEPTA for use on the Danbury Branch. Cast-off Budd coaches and RDC’s were also ac- quired from Amtrak.


locomotive-hauled coaches were inher- ited from the New York Central and the New Haven, additional second- hand purchases were made to supple- ment the fleet. One highlight was a complete set of Delaware & Hudson cars that NYSDOT refurbished for Am- trak’s Adirondack service and later transferred to New York City and used in daily commuter service in 1978. Orders were placed with Bombardier


for new coaches to create a standard- ized fleet of HEP-compatible cars. Based


on “Comet” design


Pullman-Standard’s created


earlier


old for


NJDOT and EL, these “Shoreliner” coaches allowed Metro-North to retire the worst of the fleet. Subsequent coach orders would add a center door for faster loading.


When Metro-North inherited their fleet of 34 former New Haven dual- mode FL9s they were in horrible shape


and barely operable, yet a full schedule of service had to be maintained. It was not uncommon to find ex-Conrail B23-7 work engines or leased Amtrak E8s hauling trains into Grand Central (ig- noring the electric rule by necessity). These oddball assignments continued as the FL9s were cycled through the shops for rebuilding. Title to four units was transferred to CDOT, and they re- turned from Chrome Crankshaft re- built with HEP and emerged wearing classic New Haven paint once again. Six more units would later join the CDOT fleet and receive the same treat- ment. Subsequently all Metro-North FL9s would be rebuilt with HEP gener- ators. In 1991 four F10s (ex-GM&O F3s rebuilt by Paducah in 1979) were pur- chased from Boston’s MBTA for use on branch line and shuttle trains. The arrival of 54 new “Shoreliner” coaches in 1984 was not enough to


The Budd RDC’s were retired in 1990, though their operation continued on the Port Jervis Line until 1993. The MTA and CDOT had also invested in Budd’s next-generation “Self-Propelled Vehicle” but constant failures kept these cars in the shop. Most of the Budd RDC’s were either scrapped or sold off by the mid-1990s, while the SPV’s lan- guished in the bone yard until 2005 when they finally left the property. The remaining New York Central-era 1100- series ACMU (air conditioned multiple unit) cars were retired in 2004. The venerable FL9 fleet met its


match when the first GE P32AC-DM dual-mode diesels arrived in 1995. By 2001 the remaining F-units were rele- gated to branch line and shuttle duty where third rail capability was not needed. In 2008, Metro-North an- nounced the acquisition of new diesels from Brookville Equipment Corp. to re- place the remaining elderly cab units. The new BL20GH hood units would not only be used on branch line and shuttle trains, but were also meant to replace


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