| Title: |
Amtrak 1917 |
| Description: |
Amtrak 1917 was at New Orleans Union Passenger Terminal on New Year's Day 1976, having just arrived on the PANAMA LIMITED. It was one of six heater cars rebuilt from Amtrak E-units by the Illinois Central Gulf at its Paducah Shops between December 1975 and February 1976. The 1917 was photographed on what may have been its very first run. When new, all of these were regularly used on the PANAMA LIMITED; which still had steam-heated cars but was being powered by new P30CH units (as well as SDP40F's).Originally given 4-digit car numbers 1916-1921, they received 3-digit locomotive numbers 667-671 in July 1977. This was done to address a union complaint that road crews were improperly moving cars within terminals. Inbound trains crews would bring the heater cars out to the engine terminal to be serviced with their road power, and outbound crews would bring them back into the station. Under the union agreement only yard crews could move cars within terminals, and the union said that the 4-digit numbers proved that Amtrak considered these cars; so the railroad solved the problem by giving them 3-digit locomotive numbers! The 1917 was built in October 1955 as Union Pacific E9B 971B, was leased to Amtrak as the 1469 in May 1972, and sold to Amtrak at the 469 in August 1972. Amtrak retired it in 1983 and sold it to Golden Arrow Line Tours. |
| Photo Date: |
1/1/1976 Upload Date: 2/4/2010 12:28:58 PM |
| Location: |
New Orleans - NOUPT, LA |
| Author: |
Michael Palmieri |
| Categories: |
RollingStock |
| Locomotives: |
AMTK 1917(Heater Car) |
| Views: |
1678 Comments: 0 |
