Apparently the few hours battery charge on the track did help the ailing rechargeable 9V battery. When I turned on the engine and hit reverse after a few seconds, it did not immediately click and went through the process of going into forwards and backwards (just like with the alkaline battery), though it still did not move.
At least I know it is still charging and I did not cook that board. It's still not moving though, indicating there is still a larger problem. The rechargeable battery may not have a full charge, but the alkaline one did and I had the same result. As a process of elimination, I'd say it no longer is the battery that is the problem.
Could it be that somehow the system locked itself in neutral/reset? One of the trouble shooting tips s to initiate the reset process to make it move again. I might try this later today. I'll let everyone know how that goes. Thanks again.
