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Valley Diesel Pictorial
Lehigh
LIGHT RAIL, TRANSIT, AND COMMUTER RAIL NEWS BY GEORGE M. SMERK South Station Expansion in Boston
From the shadow of Manhattan’s skyline through the coalfields of Pennsylvania to the bustling port of Lake Erie, this new book explores the diesel roster of the Lehigh Valley Railroad from the earliest boxcabs right through to the Conrail takeover in 1976. Profiled are a wide variety of EMD, Alco, Baldwin, and GE diesels, presented in full color! Includes a brief history of the LV and its Sayre Shops. This volume is a must for any vintage diesel historian or fan of Northeastern regional railroading.
NEW YEAR’S DAY 1899 IN BOSTON, MASS., the opening day for South Station, was a big day for rail transportation in the Land of the Bean and the Cod. Over the many years since its opening, the fortunes of South Sta- tion have varied significantly. During World War II, South Station was host to 125,000 daily passengers. By 1969, as rail use stut- tered and failed, there were only 5500 daily commuter passengers using the station, and long-distance passenger service was shrink- ing rapidly. The station fell into disrepair. At the present time the venerable station is in need of enlargement to handle the burgeon- ing passenger traffic on new service lines. In 2014 there were 112,800 passengers boarding and alighting daily, using Amtrak and Mas- sachusetts Bay Transportation Authority commuter service, which alone is responsible for 46,000 daily customers. MBTA Red Line subway service and the Silver Line bus ser- vice also use the station . Amtrak patronage has been growing at an average rate of 2.7 percent annually for 15 years. The station is also home to a major bus terminal. The headhouse of the expanded South Sta-
tion will increase in size from 210,000 square feet to about 400,000 square feet. Seven more tracks and four new passenger platforms are to be added for a total of 11 platforms and 20 tracks. There will be increased amenities as
well. Part of the project includes an improved signal system and additional car and locomo- tive storage facilities. The Draft Environmen- tal Impact Report has been submitted to the Massachusetts Department of Transportation with the hope that it will be approved by the beginning of 2015. Thanks to Peter Perrault for the news.
The Englewood Flyover
Starting in about 1859, there was a railroad track crossing at grade near what is now 63rd and State Streets in Chicago. At one time in the past, this spot was adjacent to Englewood Union Station, which was host to trains of the Pennsylvania Railroad, New York Central, Nickel Plate, and Rock Island. The station is long closed and the neighborhood is very dan- gerous, but 78 Rock Island District commuter trains and 60 Amtrak and Norfolk Southern freight trains cross at the busy intersection. It was no surprise the crossing was the location of many delays on all of the lines involved. In fall 2014 a flyover was built that took the Rock Island District trains over the track now belonging to the Norfolk Southern Railroad. The flyover was built to reduce congestion
and was a joint effort of the U.S. Department of Transportation, the state of Illinois, Am- trak, Metra, and the railroad industry. The project included $126 million in American Re-
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20 APRIL 2015 •
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