RTN 054 Feb. 1973 # 2

MAR 14 RECT

FROM: P. O. Box 9007
Berkeley, CA 94709 USA

To: IRES

FIRST CLASS
U.S. POSTAGE

PAID 8¢
PERMIT 1083

VOL.3 NO.4 |

aee a TA gg a SECOND ISSUE OF __

J ra FEBRUARY 1973

First las: a, 454
A weekend for rail excursions was |

the 3-day Washington's Birthday ere T newsletter |

weekend of Feb. 17-19. In the San fi A p i ;
a? F:

256

*

Francisco area's first spring wea- hS ae . a fe
ther of 1973, two excursions were ay, “A l
seen. At left, the SAN FRANCISCO =: ©

ZEPHYR has left Oakland on time on ae
Feb. 17 and roars past Berkeley's

Cedar Street crossing, reflecting

in puddles of recent rain. It is

Ú carrying extra cars of a Railway &

E Locomotive Historical Society tour

~ bound for Ogden where they would

run 8 i as a special train
arriving Feb. 20, and thence back

to Oakland on the COAST DAYLIGHT.

Photo by Message Media. `

The photos on the front cover and below picture a special "Snowflake Special" train |,
run by the Pacific Railroad Society from Los Angeles to Sparks (Reno), Nevada and | /
back. The train ran overnight out of L.A., leaving 8pm Feb. 16. In the cover photo oa
3 is sgh past Oakland's Jack London Square at 11:30am Feb. 17, four hours late.
crank telephone call had stopped the train 4 hours while equipment was examined.

The FBI may be asked to fivaitl oats the matter. As the trate oulied into the Oad and
Aatrak depot (photo below), railfans set to work washing windows while a worker on a
ladder taped up broken glass. The train had gathered no less than six broken windows
down its length, apparently the work of incorrigible suburbanites in th
ing zone between San Jose and =
Oakland. This area has given
trouble in the past, and altho
Southern Pacific police have : | |
patrolled the area, they have a | 7 . i
been ineffective in halting the ee : ee i ó
vandalisa.

Seven railfan-owned private
cars ran on the train, and for
the occasion Amtrak came up with
an array of unrefurbished SP and
UP cars, including cle ibe :
"Pacific Island," "Sun Ridge,"
"Sun Isle," and SP 9120; sp din-
er 10210 and "Daylight" coach t ~ ee $ L
visible in front cover picture, M aay : . enone
The private cars were beautiful- j ; : es : — :
ly refurbished and appointed in Ate | a ee
modern decor, while the Amtrak o eS o- a
cars had an air of stale decay. ;
Photos from stereo originals MA
by Ted Nelson. i

+
A

LETTERS

| have just returned from a trip between Trenton, NJ and Chicago and return aboard
the BROADWAY LIMITED. In contrast to your somewhat negative article by George Hyko
(RTN, Vol. 2, Nos. 20-21) | found the BROADWAY to be in its best form in many years.

The entire consist was one of refurbished cars and the service in the diners was
excellent. The crew, which is composed primarily of ex-20th CENTURY wen, was the mo
efficient and courteous | have been served by in a long while. An ex-PRR service supe
visor who has been riding the BROADWAY for 20 years accompanied us eastbound, He hag"
once again returned to see that the service meets the stringent standards of ‘the BR
WAY's all-Pullman days. i 5 E.

Even the roadbed was not as horrendous as it is said to. be. The
stretch is mainly between Crestline and Canton, OH.

Arrival was close to the advertised in both directions, Altogether it was the best
trip | have taken on the BROADWAY in many years!

Mike Zega

‘one really rough

-*

Newtown, Pennsylvania.

RTN has reported only a small portion of the forthcoming changes in the Chicago rai
commuter na, Fare increases have been requested by C&NW, CRIEP, and ICG (252!)
as well as by the Milwaukee Road. Meanwhile, service on the Milwaukee Road will so
be improved, thanks to federal and state grants to the Northwest Suburban Mass Trans
District. Thirteen new locomotives and 36 new bilevel cars (probably from the Budd
will be purchased and operated on the West Line between Chicago and Elgin, The Nort
Suburban Mass Transit District, which covers the Milwaukee's North Line (Chicago to `
Walworth, Wisconsin) is preparing an application for similar grants which will pay f
two new locomotives and 5 bilevels in addition to extension of CTC operation and 6 n

suburban stations, ; £

106 has. been battling with the state over discontinuance of its weekday local from
Chicago to Joliet (ex-GM&0). This train offers the only passenger service to the sube
urbs of Lemont. and Lockport, and the 250 persons who ride it daily have signed a peti-
tion protesting the proposed discontinuance and indicating their willingness to pay |
significantly higher fares. Even so, the future of the operation is in doubt, |

it is hoped that fare hikes and service cuts on the CTA can be forestalled by an
emergency grant from the governments involved. At stake, railwise, is the Evanston |
' Express, the thru rush-hour service between Wilmette and downtown, and Sunday-holid
service on the Ravenswood line to the northwest side. The CTA had planned to cut
service north of Evanston to shuttle trains only, necessitating a change at Howard S
The service would then be comparable to that on the CTA's other suburban line, the
Skokie Swift (over the former North Shore). | :

Hike Blaszak

$
Park Ridge, Illinois

The depot in Roseville, CA ua lt Pa the week of Feb. 5, It was built in 1907
d in 1910 to its present location. | |
ge must be done to run the COAST STARLIGHT thru Sacramento and Marysville.
Davis has no connections and is away from San Joaquin and air connections, It would
also give a half-million people in Sacramento a connection to the forthcoming San Jog-
= quin service. Fares are still too high on Astrak. Even the depot at Martinez may be
torn down jf someone does not act. It was built in 1877 but is better than nothing. %

f

John Morris | 4
= Sacramento, California

Newsletter, Vol. 3, No. 4 (Whole No. 54), Second Issue of February, be
paul ken ivi amis by Message Media, P.0. Box 9007, Berkeley, California 34096.

: 11, Editors Paul è
bscription $6.00 per year; single copy 25¢. STAFF: James Russell, l
Seg Coe a Doug Ellis, Staff Photographer. a

Pas m

Cleveland, such as Mantua and Aurora,

LETTERS (continued)

How many readers know that the Erie
ventional passenger train in Ohio (the
Alas, it may not be for long.

Lackawanna, of all roads, stil] operates a con-
only one wast of EL's Jersey commuter zone)?
Trains 28 & 29 are on the 67-nile Youngstown-Cleveland
(Union Terminal) run and consist of 3 streamlined legrest coaches and an £8, no. 816.
Since the Public Utilities Commission has already given its consent to the discontinu-
ance, EL's 28 & 29 are indeed on the block, Main traffic comes from towns outside of
where many commuters take "the easy way" on the
Friendly Service Route to work, especially during Ohio's harsh winters, Discontinuance
of these trains will mean more autos, more pollution, and probably more deaths in the
area,

Hearings will be held on March 14 in Cleveland for these trains which began life
on one hand (#28) as Erie trains 628, "Daily Ex, Sun. & Hol." and 630, "Sun. & Hol.
only" Cleveland section of the eastbound LAKE CITIES, and on the other hand (#29) as

9 and 627, providing a Youngstown connection with a New York Central Cleveland-De-
troit train, | hope that many fans and train/ecology concerns from the greater Young-
stown-Cleveland area as ayself will take part in the hearing, Incidentally, notices
posta; at on-line stations proclaim the predicted train-off date as "on or before

une 1,
John Tesner
Campbell, Ohio

ON THE COVER: See rear cover for caption and additional photographs.

AMTRAK TO REROUTE TEXAS CHIEF THROUGH DALLAS

Amtrak announced in a Feb. 23 press release that the Chicago-Houston TEXAS CHIEF
will be rerouted thru Dallas, TX effective June 10, the time of the summer schedule
changeover. It will run between Ft. Worth and Dallas on the Texas & Pacific R.R.
and between Dallas and Houston on the Southern Pacific. T&P is a subsidiary of MoPac.
Altho the new Ft. Worth-Houston route is slightly shorter than the present Santa Fe
route (296 vs 316 miles), the running time will be longer because of bad track. The
schedule will be announced in early May. l

Amtrak said that when its original system map was drawn up, Amtrak's incoroorators
recommended a shift from the route via Temple to one thru Dallas once the terainal
cost problem in Dallas was settled. This was done when the city recently voted to
approve a $6 million bond issue to purchase the Dallas Union Terminal. Work costing
$800,000 is to begin at once to remodel the terainal, Until completion next fall,
the train will use a temporary station at Dallas, Besides Dallas, the train will
serve Corsicana and Bryan, the site of Texas A&M University.

In other news, it was learned that the former CALIFORNIA ZEPHYR observation tail

cars currently on the NORTH COAST HIAWATHA will be removed from that train and placed
on the TEXAS CHIEF,

DOT TO SUPPORT CLOSING DOWN OF PENN CENTRAL AMTRAK OPERATIONS

The head of the Dept. of Transportation's Federal Railroad Adainistration, anti-
passenger train John W. Ingram, in a speech in Orange County, CA Feb, 15, stated sup-
port for the Penn Central's plan to abandon 5,000 miles of its system and to end all
deficit commuter and passenger operations, including those of Amtrak, He went even
further, recommending PC should shut down 9,000 of its 20,000 miles of track in order
to "move out of bankruptcy." Speaking out clearly in opposition to either government
subsidies or nationalization, Ingram was quoted as saying "We're not going to put $800
million into the Penn Central." His solution was the oft-repeated argument that if
only railroads could be de-regulated, they could help (anie lves out of their hole,

page 3

aaa,

LETTERS

| have just returned from a trip between Trenton, NJ and Chicago and return aboard
the BROADWAY LIMITED, In contrast to your somewhat negative article by George Hyko
(RTN, Vol. 2, Nos. 20-21) | found the BROADWAY to be in its best form in many years.

The entire consist was one of refurbished cars and the service in the diners was
excellent. The crew, which is composed primarily of ex-20th CENTURY men, was the most
efficient and courteous | have been served by in a long while. An ex-PRR service super
visor who has been riding the BROADWAY for 20 years accompanied us eastbound. He has
once again returned to see that the service meets the stringent standards of the BROAD-
WAY's all-Pullman days.

Even the roadbed was not as horrendous as it is said to be.
stretch is mainly between Crestline and Canton, OH.

Arrival was close to the advertised in both directions, Altogether it was the best
trip | have taken on the BROADWAY in many years!

Mike Zega f

The one really rough

Newtown, Pennsylvania

RTN has reported only a small portion of the forthcoming changes in the Chicago rail
commuter Bri, Eara increases have been requested by C&NW, CRI&P, and ICG (25%!)
as well as by the Milwaukee Road. Meanwhile, service on the Milwaukee Road will soon
be improved, thanks to federal and state grants to the Northwest Suburban Mass Transit
District. Thirteen new locomotives and 36 new bilevel cars (probably from the Budd Co,
will be purchased and operated on the West Line between Chicago and Elgin. The North
Suburban Mass Transit District, which covers the Milwaukee's North Line (Chicago to
Walworth, Wisconsin) is preparing an application for similar grants which will pay for
two new locomotives and 5 bilevels in addition to extension of CTC operation and 6 new
suburban stations.

ICG has been battling with the state over discontinuance of its weekday local from
Chicago to Joliet (ex-GM&0). This train offers the only passenger service to the sub-
urbs of Lemont and Lockport, and the 250 persons who ride it daily have signed a peti-
tion protesting the proposed discontinuance and indicating their willingness to pay
significantly higher fares. Even so, the future of the operation is in doubt.

It is hoped that fare hikes and service cuts on the CTA can be forestal led by an
emergency grant from the governments involved. At stake, railwise, is the Evanston
Express, the thru rush-hour service between Wilmette and downtown, and Sunday -hol iday
service on the Ravenswood line to the northwest side, The CTA had planned to cut 4
service north of Evanston to shuttle trains only, necessitating a change at Howard S
The service would then be comparable to that on the CTA's other suburban line, the
Skokie Swift (over the former North Shore). i

Mike Blaszak |
Park Ridge, Illinois

The depot in Roseville, CA was a a the week of Feb. 5. It was built in 1907
ved in 1910 to its present location.
gente must be done p run the COAST STARLIGHT thru Sacramento and Marysville.
Davis has no connections and is away from San Joaquin and air connections. it would
also give a half-million people in Sacramento a connection to the forthcoming San Joa-
quin service. Fares are still too high on Amtrak. Even the depot at Martinez may be
torn down ¿f someone does not act. It was built in 1877 but is better than nothing.

John Morris
Sacramento, California

ee eee
February, 1973.
j 1 Newsletter, Vol. 3, No. 4 (Whole No, 54), Second Issue of February,
arise a Ea by Message Media, P.0. Box 9007, Berkeley, cal Ake
Subscription $6.00 per year; single copy 25¢. STAFF: James Russell, Editor; Fau
Rayton, Editor-at-Large; Doug Ellis, Staff Photographer.

LETTERS (continued)

How many readers know that the Erie Lackawanna, of all roads, still operates a con-
ventional passenger train in Uhio (the only one west of EL's Jersey commuter zone)?
Alas, it may not be for long. Trains 28 & 29 are on the 67-mile Youngstown-Cleveland
(Union Terminal) run and consist of 3 streamlined legrest coaches and an E-8, no, 816,
Since the Public Utilities Commission has already given its consent to the discontinu-
ance, EL's 28 & 29 are indeed on the block. Main traffic comes from towns outside of
Cleveland, such as Mantua and Aurora, where many commuters take "the easy way" on the
Friendly Service Route to work, especially during Ohio's harsh winters. Discontinuance
of these trains will mean more autos, more pollution, and probably more deaths in the
area.

Hearings will be held on March 14 in Cleveland for these trains, which began life
on one hand (#28) as Erie trains 628, "Daily Ex. Sun. & Hol." and 630, "Sun, & Hol.

| only" Cleveland section of the eastbound LAKE CITIES, and on the other hand (#29) as

29 and 627, providing a Youngstown connection with a New York Central Cleveland-De-
troit train. | hope that many fans and train/ecology concerns from the greater Young-
stown-Cleveland area as myself will take part in the hearing. Incidentally, notices
(wees: at on-line stations proclaim the predicted train-off date as "on or before

une 1,

John Tesner
Campbell, Ohio

ON THE COVER: See rear cover for caption and additional photographs.

AMTRAK TO REROUTE TEXAS CHIEF THROUGH DALLAS

Amtrak announced in a Feb. 23 press release that the Chicago-Houston TEXAS CHIEF
will be rerouted thru Dallas, TX effective June 10, the time of the summer schedule
changeover. It will run between Ft. Worth and Dallas on the Texas & Pacific R.R.,
and between Dallas and Houston on the Southern Pacific. T&P is a subsidiary of MoPac.
Altho the new Ft. Worth-Houston route is slightly shorter than the present Santa Fe
route (296 vs 316 miles), the running time will be longer because of bad track. The
schedule will be announced in early May.

Amtrak said that when its original system map was drawn up, Amtrak's incoroorators
recommended a shift from the route via Temple to one thru Dallas once the terminal
cost problem in Dallas was settled. This was done when the city recently voted to
approve a $6 million bond issue to purchase the Dallas Union Terminal. Work costing
$800,000 is to begin at once to remodel the terminal. Until completion next fall,
the train will use a temporary station at Dallas, Besides Dallas, the train will
serve Corsicana and Bryan, the site of Texas A&M University.

In other news, it was learned that the former CALIFORNIA ZEPHYR observation tail

` cars currently on the NORTH COAST HIAWATHA will be removed from that train and placed

on the TEXAS CHIEF,

f DOT TO SUPPORT CLOSING DOWN OF PENN CENTRAL AMTRAK OPERATIONS

The head of the Dept. of Transportation's Federal Railroad Administration, anti-
passenger train John W. Ingram, in a speech in Orange County, CA Feb. 15, stated sup-
port for the Penn Central's plan to abandon 5,000 miles of its system and to end all
deficit commuter and passenger operations, including those of Amtrak. He went even
further, recommending PC should shut down 9,000 of its 20,000 miles of track in order
to "move out of bankruptcy." Speaking out clearly in opposition to either government
subsidies or nationalization, Ingram was quoted as saying "We're not going to put $800
million into the Penn Central." His solution was the oft-repeated argument that if
only railroads could be de-requlated, they could help n e porak out of their hole.

page 3

Can Amtrak Survive Itself?

A CRITICAL ANALYSIS AND OPINION ARTICLE by C. 0. Washington

Attention has been focused during the last few months on the Office of Management
and Budget's stance toward Amtrak's funding from July 1, 1973, While little doubt
can be raised that OMB is not pro-passenger train, the question can be raised, Is
OMB Amtrak's biggest hurdle toward long-range survival?

The thesis of this article is that judicious self-help will go farther toward im-
proving Aatrak than federal subsidies, Will Amtrak do the right things to enable it
to become a viable part of the transportation sector of the country? A critical look
at what Amtrak has done and seems to be planning on several key, gut issues is dis-
couraging.

Planned across-the-board fare increases, no substantive plans for new equipment,
and a ho-hum attitude toward costly terminals and cost controls are three areas which
if handled in the manner Amtrak seems to have adopted, could kill the passenger trafa]
as effectively as the complete cut-off of federal funds. In spite of all the talk o
large patronage gains where fares have been cut, new concepts in passenger car design,
and the "millions" to be saved by eliminating monumental stations, Amtrak seems to be
going against reason on these topics, The remainder of this article discusses these -
three issues. |

FARES, Amtrak has, almost from the beginning, talked of increasing fares as if |
this were the only method for decreasing losses. On at least one occasion before a
Congressional subcommittee, a great deal of skepticism was expressed over the wisdom
of this idea. In fact, the fare cuts implemented to date have probably come about
because of Congressional pressure for them,

Experience with fare reductions certainly has proven their desirability for in-
creasing both revenues and ridership. Year-to-year gains where reduced fares were
implemented have been, in most cases, enthusiastically received by the public.

The first reduction was the $9.90 New York-Boston fare experiment which sparked
a 65% gain in 1972 over 1971, the first increases in several decades, Any thought
that such gains were obtainable only in corridors was ended when further reductions
vere introduced in June, 1972. Soon thereafter, the COAST STARLIGHT began recording
gains nearly double the previous year.

On the other hand, Western routes where fare increases were introduced (Chicago- .
Los Angeles, Chicago-San Francisco, and Chicago-Seattle) saw no real pews. Were
it not for the strikes during the spring and summer of 1971, some of these routes
might have actually recorded declines. Therefore, to continue to push ahead with =;
vide-scale increases indicates a lack of basic understanding. One wonders if Amtrak
thinks the only people who ride trains are buffs who will not change for anything,
and therefore should be milked to the fullest extent.

EQUIPMENT. Amtrak's locomotives and rolling stock provide one with a relatively
complete history of the numerous car designs acquired by the railroads during the
change from heavyweight to streamlined equipment. However, with the exception of
the hi-level Santa Fe cars and Metroliner units, none of the rest of the equipment
has more than marginal value beyond nostalgic emotions. With the cited exceptions,
trying to run Astrak with the roster now available is about equivalent to running
an airline with nothing better than DC-4's, So, what has been done to remedy the
situation?

On the locomotive side, one might be heartened at the 40-unit order placed by
Autrak in Noveaber for new power. However, the truth of the matter is that Santa Fe
had decided to convert their passenger F units to freight service, leaving Amtrak
vith no choice but to order new locomotives for the SUPER CHIEF, TEXAS CHIEF, and
SAN DIEGANS, It therefore appears that Astrak will continue to nurse its collection
of inefficient, breakdown-prone E and F units until forced to replace then.

page 4

a

+

The car side is equally bad. Except for a token order for turbine-powered trai
Amtrak has no definite plans to order new cars (see Railway Age, Jan. 8). By eth
to cars similar to the Santa Fe hi-levels, the number of cars needed could be cut in
hal f. Furtheraore, power requirements, maintenance costs, and personnel could be re-
duced proportionately, Converting new equipment into dollars and cents, it could
probably save Amtrak $15-20 aillion a year in expenses, or as auch as 152 of the pre-
sent deficit. This is to say nothing of the attraction new equipment would have to
the public in teras of traveling appeal and sore reliable performance.

COSTS. In the January 8 issue of Railvay Age magazine, Amtrak President Roger
Lewis stated, "And you reduce your losses, in this business, not by cutting your
costs but by increasing your revenue.” How this statement could be made when Amtrak
has a station like Washington Union Terminal that costs about $15 million a year to
pera, or nore than half of the total annual Metroliner revenues, defies compre-

ension.

Autrak's record in cost reduction is pathetic, Only two large stations (Chicago's
Central and Cincinnati) have been replaced, and firm plans for further replacesents
have been formalized for only one other terminal, Jacksonville. Meanwhile, Amtrak
ae to pay millions each year for many facilities it doesn't need or even bene-

rom.

Waste and inefficiency are bad enough, but even valid co
cated by the ICC accounting methods jsd by the aAA e i ral
This is "hy, for example, the train=mile expense for the BROADWAY LIMITED is $15 and
that for the SUPER CHIEF is about $10, even though both trains have about the same
cost inputs,

Many cost elements of a train are on the basis of a trip. For example, the cost
of cleaning a coach on the BROADWAY is basically the same as cleaning a coach on a
New York=-Philadelphia Clocker, However, under current practices, most of these costs
are lumped together and allocated on a mileage basis. So the 900-mile BROADWAY gets
ten times the cleaning expense of the 90-mile Clocker., A reallocation of these and
other costs would probably put the BROADWAY at or near a profit while the "profitable"
corridor runs rack up a big loss.

Furtheraord, these accounting distortions make it easier to pad costs since the
accounting information does not indicate actual causes in some instances, Amtrak is
now unable to generate valid management information from their accounting data.

So, it appears that Amtrak is basically providing a warmed over trip with no major
plans for long-range rejuvenation, The sad story of the Canadian National passenger
program is now largely being repeated here, As with CN, the public will not respond
to promises for sore than a few years. After a time they will expect to see tangible
results, and if they are not forthcoming, will generally leave the rails.

As long as the issues discussed here follow the course th i
Aatrak kus to have little chance of surviving past 1975. The: saat Poel
that has characterized these critical aspects of the Corporation's performance can
only be fatal in the long run.

i mea E E E E,
SUBSCRIBE TO THIS NEWSLETTER. Only six dollars per year for 24 issues. Back copies

25¢ each (see complete list of those available in the Dec. 4, 1972 issue). We are
extending our offer on the first six issues of RTN for only $1--go0d for orders post-
marked before April 1, 1973. (Ask for the "First Six Issues Pack.") Address: Message
Media, Dept. RIN, P.0. Box 9007, Berkeley, California 94709.

ADVERTISING RATES FOR RAIL TRAVEL NEWSLETTER: Express ads (80 characters and spaces
per line)--up to 3 lines for $1.00 (minimum); additional lines 35¢ each, 3 for $1.00.
Count your typewriter spaces to gauge line length and send your ad copy with remittanc:
to Message Media, Box 9007, Berkeley CA 94709. Display ads: full page $10, half page
$6, quarter page $3.50 for camera-ready copy. Write to same address.

page 5

THE TRAINS OF FEBRUARY IN THE NOT-SO-DEEP SOUTH by Kenneth Maylath

| checked out activities on the Southern Railway on a weekend trip to gain some
impressions of this non-Amtrak road which apparently intends to remain that way.
Much favorable comment has come forth on the SOUTHERN CRESCENT. | purposely set out
to check on the PIEDMONT, one of Southern's mixed-train operations,

The PIEDMONT arrived in Alexandria more than 5mins in advance of its scheduled
10:10am departure time on the morning of Feb. 10, thanks to the generous 25mins time
allowance from Washington. We left on time. A couple miles down the line, right
after the Southern leaves the RF&P right of way, we paused for 8mins to attach about
15 piggyback freight cars. These included a couple 2-level loads of light trucks--
making our consist mixed in the truer sense of the word. We already had two baggage
cars and four coaches. The first coach was a heavyweight, the other three light-
weight stainless steel, including a slightly refurbished snack bar coach. The snack
section actually took up one half of the car, including a small counter, two tables
and several lounge chairs. A good variety of light food, including some simple hot
dishes was offered at fairly reasonable prices. A fair scattering of passengers oc-
cupied the cars, with the last one closed off, It was followed, incidentally, by a
private car, not Southern, later detached at the division point at Monroe.

Things moved along pretty well for awhile, with speeds of 60 to 65mph being
reached on the Southern's well-maintained but ganera iy curving main line. We were
on time passing Orange, Virginia, but just south of there (where the C&0 line from
Charlottesville comes in) we ground to a stop at the beginning of a single track
section which continued for several miles. There we waited for some 25mins for the
arrival of the northbound #8--with its Lynchburg to Washington single heavyweight
coach and string of pigaybacks. It was running a bit late. It seemed as tho we
would have been able to reach the next double track section with no problem without
delaying #8, but it wasn't arranged that way. By using only 2mins at Charlottes-
ville, we left there 24mins late. A little more time went by the boards in Monroe
as we dropped that private car, putting us 33mins behind. With some mail to unload
at Lynchburg, we just about held our own. A few minutes were picked up on the run
to Danville, with an arrival there exactly 30mins late. After a 9-min servicing
stop (watering the ios and with a load of perhaps 50 Cub Scouts and their leaders
added to the passenger load, the PIEDMONT pulled out of Danville, leaving me behind
on a sub-freezing, overcast afternoon. However, the freak snow storm which caused
such problems in the deep South that weekend brought none of the white stuff along
that stretch of the Southern.

Those weather conditions may well have played a part in the northbound PIEDMONT's
being reported one hour behind its scheduled 4:15 arrival time in Danville. When it
finally showed up, it was more like 75mins late, and pulled out behind schedule by
that amount after the 10-min servicing stop. The consist was fairly similar to the
southbound run. Four A and B units, a heavyweight and two lightweight coaches, a
couple baggage cars, then the 15 or so pigaybacks. The snack bar coach was identi-
cal to the southbound car, except that it had not been refurbished. Still, as with
all of the cars, it was pleasant, in good condition and properly heated on a cold
day. This time our stop at Lynchburg was but a minute or so, and we left TOmins
late, then just holding our own out of Monroe. The lateness had been cut to 62mins
by the time it left Charlottesville, following a stop there lasting but one minute,
With considerable padding in the schedule into Washington, that hour could have been
reduced by quite a bit if no further difficulties came alonge | was not around to
see the result, however, having decided to detrain at Charlottesville and check into
the Amtrak side of things.

Our arrival in the city which houses the University of Virginia was at the exact
time that the westbound JAMES WHITCOMB RILEY was supposed to be making its stop at
the Southern's station, after leaving the Amtrak, former C40 depot a few blocks down

page 6

the street. But the JWR was not to be seen. Moving down to the other station, |
found the single dome car from Newport News waiting, with switcher attached, but no
sign of the train from Washington. It was expected to pull in about one hour behind

its 8:05pm scheduled arrival time. There was a reason for this, | found. Eastbound
that morning it was about 5 hours late, meaning a Washington arrival so late that the
train was, in turn, late leaving there for its westbound trip. And the long delay

was said to be the product of a derailment at Cincinnati.

e Anaa Newport News-Charlottesville
; ame VA connection of the JAMES
WHITCOMB RILEY/GEORGE WASH-
INGTON, on this occasion
minus its dome, kicked up a
cloud of dust last mid-sua-
mer as it breezed thru Lee
Hall, VA at 75mph. Doug El-
lis photographed the con-
sist: Amtrak E unit, B&O
tavern-baggage 1351, and
SCL (ex-SAL) coach. There
is serious talk of replac-
ing this train with a bus
connection for the 3-hr,
20-min trip. A single

dome coach was an alter-
nate consist often seen.

oe. * s
Roe eat -

iS ange nee ire cnc Pirin Bl ric ea cae air he
of passengers was aboard. | was going only to Staunton, the first stop, about an hour

}

&

away, and spent that time in the darkened dome as we wound upgrade and thru the Blue
Ridge Tunnel, The train made up a couple minutes on that stretch, leaving Staunton
about 70mins late.
My plan was to catch the eastbound GEORGE WASHINGTON on the following mornin
in Staunton at 8:53, | thanked my good fortune that | hadn't done the an Hiin a
the previous day, when the train didn't arrive there until after one o'clock--or that
| hadn't decided to take the round trip from Charlottesville to Newport News that day.
The 11th dawned clear and cold, a temperature of under 20. Arriving at the station
found an agent on duty, two others waiting to board, and the word that the train was
20mins late. My ticket was back to Alexandria, where my car had been left the pre-
vious day, When the GEORGE WASHINGTON arrived, it was 35 rather than 20mins late.

The consist was similar to the previous evening, except with th j
the two diesel units this time, since the train is not turned in ETTA i T

of the dome seats were facing backwards, as has been remarked by previous travelers
over the route. The dome and legrest coach both were refurbished, as was the diner-
sleeper on the rear. The dining area was able to seat more than 20, with a 3-man
crew on duty. Unfortunately, however, the cooking stove had broken down, meaning
cold food, plus coffee for the passengers that day. The regular sleeper, by the way
was a Santa Fe job built by American Car and Foundry. i
With a pretty good load of passengers (more than on the previous evening), we

headed over the mountains and thru the tunnel under bright sunlight back to Char-
lottesville. Again, we made the run in several minutes less than the scheduled time.

page 7

Again, also, the switching at Charlottesville was nothing to get excited about, and
we were still about 30mins late leaving there for our run to Gordonsville, then north
a few miles to join the Southern at Orange. Our non-stop run to Alexandria went like
clockwork, however. From the time we left Charlottesville until the train pulled out
of Alexandria, after a brief stop, was but thr 50mins. The two hours allowed for
that stretch of 107 miles is about the same westbound as eastbound. Some extra time,
about 10mins, is allowed into Washington, Thus, the train probably got in there
about 12:55 or just 10mins late--just in time for a fast transfer to the northbound
MERCHANTS LIMITED at 1:05 for those continuing into the Northeast Corridor. What-
ever the exact arrival time in the District, it was a distinct improvement over the
late afternoon arrival of the previous day.

RIDING THE FIRST INTER-AMERICAN

by Alfred E. Ehm

Amtrak's newest train came into town January 27 with a whoop and a holler as only
befits the Lone Star State! After months of delay the INTER-AMERICAN finally rolled
south thru throngs of delighted people who had come to see or ride the new train on
this brightest of blue and golden days. Running nearly an hour late for most of its
journey, No. 21 carried 400-500 passengers, while as many as 10,000 may have come to
the right-of-way to see it pass.

The INTER-AMERICAN may well have been one of Amtrak's most carefully planned yet
most unprepared endeavors, On the previous Saturday, for example, when Amtrak's off-
shoot from the TEXAS CHIEF was to commence operation from Temple south, Austin had no
platform and no ticket agency, a contractor was rolling down three car lengths of
blacktop along a stretch of MoPac mainline on San Antonio's westside, and carpenters
in Laredo were pondering the best method of turning a little room in the MP's depot
into a ticket office.

Yet, in spite of the many obstacles and numerous snafus, Amtrak completed one of
the most successful promotional undertakings so far--all without advertising, and
only more or less casual mention in the press. Those who came to ride or to look
obviously enjoyed every minute of it and Amtrak received
city thru the news media.

With this report in mind | rode the train from Austin to San Antonio
and also saw it return the next day. Having availed myself of 2
one of Greyhound's new "Super 7s" to travel to Austin,
| arrived in ample time for a leisurely break-
fast and the necessary 15-minute walk
from downtown over to the for-
mer MP depot off Lamar
Boulevard.

we
~”

ne ee ne
aaee

r i

B mer
ere 600 people. showed up.

4

TV cameramen filmed the welcoming ceremony at San Antonio, wh

a good deal of free publi- gg

Since it was some 80 minutes to train time, the crowd was quite thin. Aa area in
front of the station had been roped off and equipped with a lectern, and a handful
of Chamber officials were waiting, Two ticket clerks were unable to answer fully
the many telephone calls and people asking for information, but were later assist-
ed by two off-duty Amtrak men from San Antonio. MoPac had grudgingly turned over
to Amtrak what used to be the segregated waiting room some ten years ago,.a space
in the rear of the building about twice the size of a living room, and had also

ae off from the former large ticket-operating office a cubicle about 15

eet.

j As train time of 10:50 approached
large crowd was milling around the station and along the
tracks. When the announcement was made at about ;
ten o'clock that the train would be an hour

( late, the crowd seemed to accept it
ood-naturedly and soon turned

( o listen to the fine

' musical talents 3

of an

the big parking lot had become filled and a

wee ee

pe OEE Pa Me Page Meet ain
At Austin the crowd swarmed
around the train. Seen are
the two Amtrak E9A units in
UP yellow, renumbered 428
and 420, Both engines have

eight-man group, part of
Texas marchin
Then, after it was announced that the train had
left Taylor ten minutes earlier, the restless crowd
of some 2,000 formed a solid wall across the right-
of-way in anticipation of the promised train, when
unexpectedly a dissonant horn sounded in the dist-
ance and the yellow UP engines, warning light flash-
ing on the cab roof, came slowly around the bend,

since been withdrawn from
the route.

- | While part of the crowd surrounded the speaker's platform to listen to the ten-

minute ceremony, an even larger mass surged toward the silvery train, After a few

af minutes the engineer pulled the train up to allow boarding of the last three cars

which had been reserved for Austin. (A half hour before the train's arrival it

was announced that over 175 tickets had already been sold!) And then, after the
last speaker had wished guests and passengers farewell and a pleasant journey, the
distinctive sounds of a Mariachi band could be heard and it was time to get aboard.
It took another good five minutes to get everyone back on board, and the train
rolled slowly south to cross the bridge over the Colorado. Next stop San Marcos
and another trackside ceremony!

For this inaugural run Amtrak had put together an attractive 12+car train--al]
but one in Amtrak colors. Pulled by Amtrak E9As 428 and 420, part of a group of
UP engines leased for service on the TEXAS CHIEF, the train consisted of coach
4821, AUT 200 "Linoma" (an observation dome leased from Autoliner), chair-cafe car

8400; coaches 4855, 4541, 4531, 4825, lunch-counter-lounge 8351, coaches 5227
B25? EROS and B20. URL B81 oe n lupch-counter-lounge 8351, Rest Fron to

oe
a

=> Some of the

m= crowd of 2000
g at Austin ga-
ther in front
wera of the station
as the first

F: INTER-AMERICAN

ing the start
of ceremonies.

te ss a

former NORTH COAST LIMITED, appeared in its native two-tone green. (
cars came from the Seattle-Vancouver route: car 8400, which was originally built for the
former INTERNATIONAL, and "Linoma," which ran last on Amtrak's PACIFIC INTERNATIONAL. )

The train was especially attractive because a number of the cars had apparently been
polished. Some of the coaches had been refurbished. Car 8400 served as the revenue
diner and was staffed by Amtrak employees, the girls wearing bright-colored smocks over
their regular uniforms, One of the officials told me later that the food ought to be
good since the manager of one of Amtrak's commissaries served as chef. | did not have
an opportunity to sample the food or even peek at the menu.

The first two cars were reserved for dignitaries and for the press. About half a do-
zen Amtrak girls working from a bar underneath the dome regaled the guests with a seem-
ingly endless supply of sandwiches, dips and chips, beer and cordials. The MoPac crew
consisted of a jovial conductor and forty- : J
ish trainman, both in uniforms seemingly
borrowed from the local Little Theater.
They did not collect the tickets in the
obsessive manner as is still done occas-
ionally on the SP, but collected their cou-
pons in a casual way, almost as if it were |
an activity to pass the time. A large group
had commandeered the last car where the |
temperature was at least 95 degrees and,
having spread their portable bar across two
or three seats, proceeded to party their = ==
way down to the border. ne

The 84-mile ride to San Antonio on this |.
cloudless winter day was pleasant enough, ~~
even over some of the rough MP track. |
had the opportunity to visit the dome and
to chat with four or five Amtrak officials
while comfortably sitting in one of "Lino- ma
ma's” purple lounge chairs. Equipped with paiar
appropriate credentials--a copy of RIN in ‘oe R
ny pocket--| was readily admitted to this J We
restricted area, but later learned that
almost all of those occupying the dome
were actually neither dignitaries nor ac-
credited members of the news media, but
rather ordinary passengers who had simply
crashed the party and now partook of Am-
trak's hospitality.

E g M

Sm E SU SSS

Congressman Henry B. Gonzalez of San Antonio
welcomed other Ape Amtrak officials &
0

page 10 guests, then rode to Laredo.

arrives, await-

Interestingly, two

Over a dozen Amtrak officials, mainly from Washington, were on the train, among them
two Vice Presidents--Gerry Morgan of Government Affairs and David Watts of Planning--
and A. R. Lowry, the Superintendent of Operations for the Midwest region. That Amtrak
is conscious of the importance of maintaining cordial relations with elected officials
especially members of Congress, was readily apparent. Practically the whole Government
Affairs department was on hand to greet and entertain the various public officials.
Later, after the 10-min stop in San Marcos and another ceremony with speeches and hand-
shakes and a uniformed color guard from Gary Job Corps Center, Congressman Jake Pickle
of Austin came into "Linoma's" lounge and accompanied by "Los Conquistadores"--the 5-man
Mariachi band--gave a rendition of "Home on the range" and "The eyes of Texas are upon
you" on his harmonica. |

During my 90mins on the train | spoke with a few Amtrak officials. Most rewarding
was my chat with Charles Warwick of Amtrak's Public Information Office. A soft-spoken
and courteous man, he immediately brought me a press kit and an Amtrak lapel pin and
directed me to the sunken bar beneath the dome where red-coated Amtrak girls handed me
a thick turkey sandwich and an ice-cold drink. We talked about the multitude of prob-
lems faced by Amtrak, the prospects of increased service this summer, the many obsta-
cles encountered in getting this new train started, Concerning service thru Arkansas
from St. Louis, he pointed out the lack of money and the pressing need to institute
service to Cleveland. When | pressed him about the degree of cooperation by the rail-
roads, he declined to comment, but reading between the lines of remarks made by various
Amtrak officials, | felt it was clear that the Corporation's major obstacle is resist-
ance on the part of the railroads. (The San Antonio Light quoted an unnamed Amtrak of-

| ficial: "Some railroads are great but MoPac is just not too pro for passenger service.*)
We arrived San Antonio 75mins late--not bad considering the delays en route. A crowd
pe 500-600, including Congressman Henry B. Gonzales, the mayor pro tem, the county
judge, and a dozen Chamber officials in red coats, were waiting as the train pulled in,
Comically, a wedge of some 80 riders wanted to board the first two reserved cars, pre-
venting the officials from getting off. There was much picture taking, with the four
Congressmen--Bob Eckhardt of Houston, Abraham Kazen of Laredo, Jake Pickle, and H. B.
Gonzalez of San Antonio--as the center of attraction. The train left 25mins later with
about 350 passengers aboard.

San Antonio's relatively small turnout can be attributed to two causes. First, the
i newspapers did not bother to mention the event in their Saturday editions and many peo-

ple consequently forgot. Secondly, the city was included in Amtrak's original service
plan and as such was not as concerned about the new train as other towns along the line
which have not had any rail service in years. San Antonio does not have an effective
city-county Amtrak committee as Dallas, for example, and the chamber of commerce along
with the two local governments has been more content with issuing bland statements
about the need for more train service than actually working for it in many directions.

| was unable to ride the train to Laredo, but can report thru a reliable source that
arrival was about 80mins late. Reportedly some 1,500 people, including city officials
and the Laredo High School band, were at the MP depot to welcome the train. About 15
taxis were marshalled outside the depot to carry the passengers across the International
Bridge and to the NdeM's station, altho only part of the group continued their journey.
For the return trip Amtrak moved "Linoma" to the other end and dead-headed the last
five cars,

Amtrak issued a separate timetable--NRPC Form 6--which combined the schedule of the
TEXAS CHIEF with that of the new train. The 4x9 timecard was freely available on the
train but is not to be had at the local Amtrak depot even tho 50,000 were printed.
Passengers in San Antonio are boarded at the site of the former (International and Great
Northern (MoPac) depot, almost 2 miles west of the Amtrak (SP) station served by the

SUNSET, The reason for this absurdity was SP's resistance to allowing the INTER-AMERI-
CAN the use of its tracks and present depot. Passengers are carried between the SP sta-
tion and the boarding site by a bus of the San Antonio Transit Co. The vehicle, a Grey-

Abe "Challenger," pulls up to the train and drops arrivals off clo

to their hot
before returning to the Amtrak depot, Amtrak obviously expects to ae a Rees
|

| page 11

page 12

site, since two water tanks are to be installed which will serve as surge tanks to

speed up the servicing.

Patronage and on-time performance are relatively good. The train consists of three
cars, Amtrak 4820, 4821, and 8400, and on several occasions when | observed it, carried
about 80-100 passengers. Amtrak has run one ad so far, an announcement in one newspaper
on Feb. 13. Austin is so far the leading city in ridership, Altho exact loading fig-
ures are unavailable to me, | got the boarding figures for the southbound train at Aus-
tin for 3 consecutive Saturdays: Feb. 10, 107 (!), 178, 47, and 24%, 76 passengers.

The Sunday train carries numerous college students returning to their universities in
San Marcos, Austin and Ft. Worth. This shoots down the railroads' claims that the young
generation disdains trains in favor of other modes.

Aatrak's tariff for the new run matches the company's general pricing structure. The
only concession to innovation is a 5-day roundtrip excursion fare--§30 Ft. Worth to Lar-
edo and return, against a single fare of $20. San Antonio-Austin is $3.75, to Ft. Worth
$13.25. Not much of a bargain really since you can fly in a jet of any of 3 airlines
between Dallas and Houston or San Antonio for $13. In my personal view Amtrak's fares
are too high by 15-20%. Amtrak's experimentation with fares in the Boston and Milwaukee
corridors clearly indicates that patronage is a direct function of the pricing structur

Altho the INTER-AMERICAN is a "compromise," as Amtrak admits, Texas is nevertheless
glad to have this little train. |f patronage continues, it will hardly be another month
before another coach and larger cafe car will be needed. Daily service is obviously out
and so is a rearrangement of the present schedule in the near future to establish direct
connections with the TEXAS CHIEF, But the train is running, and that's what counts!

Urban-Suburban Transit

One of the chief roadblocks to breaking the Highway Trust Fund so its money could
be used for rapid transit purposes as well has been Representative John C, Kluczynski,
Democrat of Illinois. Late in February the media reported that Kluczynski had finally
seen the light and announced that he has broken with the highwaymen. He holds the im-
portant position as chairman of the House subcommittee on roads of the Public Works
Committee. "Seeing the light" involved pressure from Chicago Mayor Daley, whose city's
Transit Authority faces a $45 million deficit, and the receipt of 7,000 coupons from
readers of Chicago Today that urged him to change his position. The Highway Action
Coalition has called Kluczynski one of its chief roadblocks..... The Boeing Company
was the lowest bidder for an order of 230 new trolleys, 150 to go to Boston and 80 to
San Francisco. Boeing's Vertol Division bid $63.2 million for the job, and the San
Francisco Public Utilities Commission voted Feb. 27 to approve the contract. The new
rail cars will be the first such to be built in the U.S. since the early 1950's, San
Francisco currently uses the last streetcar built here, car no, 1040. The cars should

i
i

be running in about two years..... Commuters on the PATH (Port Authority Trans-Hudson)

line connecting New York & New Jersey could find theaselves without trains starting
March 3 unless talks to avert a strike by the Brotherhood of Railway Carmen that got
underway Feb. 27 pan out..... The new Secretary of Transportation, Claude S. Brinegar,
finally explained his stand on the highway-vsemass transit issue. He said he supports
use of highway money for transit, opposes a proposed 10,000-mile extension of the fed-
eral highway system, but is opposed to using federal subsidies for operating expenses
of transit systems..... The Southern Pacific, not surprisingly, this month rejected
the idea of using its Los Angeles-Chatsworth tracks for commuter operations, But L.A.
is now studying the possibility of buying or condemning all SP's property in the coun-
tyes... BART had a record number of passengers--39,747--on the Feb. 19 holiday, and
an earlier record of 37,983 the previous Monday holiday. An engineer hired to consult

on the question of BART safety and train defects reported that Rohr Corp. has delivered
cars with numerous defects. Rohr denied it turned out cars with known defects.....

Mixed Train of Thoughts

THE CRY OF "Elitism" is, we've judged, the almost universal reaction to Chief Justice
Warren Burger's successful efforts to gat cigar and pipe smoking prohibited in Metro-
club cars late last year. Now Senator Hugh Scott, Republican leader, has asked Burger
to reconsider his complaint and permit pipe smoking, since Scott is an "addicted" pipe
smoker..... WE HEREBY RETRACT the statement on the rear cover about rock-throwing. A
late report indicates that the throwing took place near Glendale, and it was bricks
heaved by some white male adult cretins, deliberately well-aimed, Part of the 4-hour
delay of the SNOWFLAKE SPECIAL was due to a collision with a truck. The authorities
believe they have the person who made the crank phone call..... THE SOUTHERN PACIFIC
may still see its Peninsula commute service upgraded, against its will. The San Mateo
County Board of Supervisors has kept the plan alive by ordering a commission to study
it... ILLINOIS CENTRAL GULF has had yet another derailment, reports Mike Blaszak.
One car of a northbd heavyweight commuter train from South Chicago derailed at the
throat of the Randolph St. Terminal during the morning rush hour Feb. 12, injuring no-
one seriously, but delaying about 30 other trains. Meanwhile the DOT has tentatively
approved a $7.5 million grant to buy 15 new bi-level cars for ICG. Specifications for
the cars won't be approved, tho, until completion of a study of last October's bad
crash in Chicago..... THE FAST MAIL, newsletter of 20th C. RR Club, reported in Feb.
the remarks of Amtrak Chicago Regional Sales Manager Steve Kabala made Jan. 13 at an
NRHS meeting: Chicago-Milwaukee TurboTrain speed should be 100mph, for a one-hour run
over the route. The trains will be extra fare, and may operate Chicago-Detroit besides
Chicago-St. Louis. Next summer look for a daily running of the NORTH COAST HIAWATHA,
routed directly into Portland, The CHIEF will not run this summer, having been judged
unsuccessful, so Amtrak might run a section of the SAN FRANCISCO ZEPHYR between L.A.
and Ogden. The DENVER ZEPHYR slumbercoach may be extended all the way to Oakland. All
present tri-weekly trains will see daily operation next summer. The addition of a
second Chicago-N.Y. train is being seriously considered if patronage continues high.
Amtrak wants to use CNY ex-PENINSULA 400 cars on a Chicago-Springfield run as the
LINCOLN LINER, End of Kabala's remarks..... DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION'S report &
recommendations regarding Amtrak is due out March 15. Those who have seen advance
copies express disappointment that the document is watered-down and unimaginative
(what else to expect from Washington bureaucrats?). It makes no exciting recommenda-
tions that would really help us achieve a balanced transportation system. It even
recommends dropping at least one present Amtrak train, the NATIONAL LIMITED. A pro-
duct of limited intelligence, no doubt..... CALIFORNIA ZEPHYR OBSERVATION cars have
been pulled off the NORTH COAST HIAWATHA, and it is reported that Amtrak will place
them on the TEXAS CHIEF--perhaps only for the inauguration of the rerouting through
Dallas..... EMBARRASSED AT THE horrible safety and driving conditions on the new
Interstate 5 Los Angeles- San Francisco, the Calif. Div. of Highways has--would you
believe?--constructed a windmill near Los Banos to give drivers something to look at
to avoid "highway hypnosis." We would like to suggest trains instead, which don't
have the lack-of-scenery problem and are far jess monotonous than driving..... BRITISH
TRAIN OPERATORS were to stage a 24=hr strike the end of Feb. to protest wage-price
freezes..... COOKS CONTINENTAL TIMETABLE, March issue, is a special big Centenary edi-

tion, Copy costs $3 surface mail or $6.25 air. Write: Thos. Cook & Son, Ltd., Publi-
city Dept., 45 Berkeley St., London i 1EB, England..... : i

QUOTES OF THE WEEK***

"Amtrak has been working hard to overcome its troubles, and the (Washington-Mont-
real) ski train did manage to generate a beguiling air of festivity. But the poor .
equipment, lumpy roadbed, still-sloppy service and late arrivals made the Tong trip
more exhausting than it should have been. The ski train may be an idea whose tine has
come, but Amtrak is not yet making good on the promise,"

--Newsweek Magazine, March 5

` page 13

Express Ads

DISCOVER AMTRAK! Our informed staff will be pleased to assist you with trip
planning, reservations and tickets. Write GREAT WESTERN TOURS, Sheraton-Palace
Hotel, 639 Market St., San Francisco 94105, or call us at 398-2994, "An AMTRAK
appointed agency dedicated to the pleasure of travel by train.”

WANTED: Old Railroad Public and Emply. timetables--steam and trolley--especial ly
those dated before 1935--also annual passes from abandoned railroads in Colorado,
Nevada and California, out-of-print railroad books, named train booklets or fold-
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D. C. Wornom, 1214 North LaSalle Street, Chicago, IL 60610, ©

PASSENGER TRAINS of Canada, North American commuter trains and streetcars are
among the new subjects added to Northwest Rail Images! line of color slide sets.
Two Canadian sets featuring CN, CP, ONR, GO, ACR, NAR, PGE and E&N now join our
three U.S. "Before Amtrak" sets. Other non-passenger sets available, too. Send
an SSE for a revised list of 14 sets, or 25¢ for list and sample, to Northwest
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CLEAR PLASTIC SLIP COVERS SPECIALLY DESIGNED FOR PUBLIC TIMETABLES $5 EACH, FREE
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THOSE NEW PASSENGER DIESELS everybody is talking about, get a photo of them! Be

on our mailing list. A postcard will do. Will send list when new units arrive
for service, SDP40F Photos, P. 0. Box 986, Colton, California 92342,

proudly announces
"RailFair: 1973"' will be a fascinating mini-convention for
railfans to be held March 17 and 18 at the La Saile, the lux-
urious hotel in the heart of Chicago's central business dis-
trict.
The TWENTIETH CENTURY RAILROAD CLUB promises
an interesting and entertaining weekend of railroad fun, in-

cluding:
--The Second Annual Railfan Luncheon
(tickets also sold separately for luncheon)
--"'Twentieth Century" at the Goodman Theatre
--Great AMTRAK trip with breakfast in the diner
--ICG Hazelcrest Shop Tour
--All transportation during convention
--Plus parties and much more
Reservations are very limited due to the size of the group
we can have at 'RailFair: 1973', so if the idea of a great
weekend of railfan fun interests you, hurry and senda
stamped, self-addressed envelope to:
TWENTIETH CENTURY RAILROAD CLUB
10700 South Seeley Avenue
Chicago, Illinois 60643

page 14

TWENTIETH CENTURY RAILROAD CLUB

See you there!

tN

D

n

. Springtime in Mexico, departing April 14

& 20 by private train, one and two week
comprehensive tours over Easter, starting
at $395.

Trans-Siberian Adventure, departs May

22, fully escorted, one month around the
world, exploring Russia in comfort, util-
izing the famous ‘“‘Express”. Return via |
Japan, inclusive at $2450.

. Canadian Color Holiday, September 22,

26, 29. From Vancouver by train (C.N.
& C.P.) to the Maritimes, discover the
quiet beauty of eastern Canada with bril-

liant autumn colors, 3 weeks from $995.

. Aztec Adventure, departing November 3.

Our own train, warm clear days, spectac- _
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to the Yucatan Peninsula, starting about
$855.

. California Minitours, departing all year.

Visiting the unusual and the beautiful by
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the Mother Lode, Big Sur, 2 to 5 days
from $46.

. Sierra Railroad, Saturdays and Sundays.

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“dinner in diner” trains, wine & cheese
specials, from $2.95.

Write for Free Brochures

p> OREAT WESTERN FOURB—)>
639 Market Street
San Francisco, California 94105