abbrail posted:Good Morning, SWSAT!!!
Got to see these guys this week - the Flats Industrial Railroad - Cleveland, Ohio.
SW1200 1202 and SW1500 1222
The viaduct on the right is the old west approach to Cleveland Union Terminal. The catenary bridges stretched over the tracks are the originals and can be seen in old photographs of the Terminal. Today the system is used by RTA's rapids.
Here's a back-in-the-day image of this area. The electrics were used to bring trains into the terminal. img: urbanohio.com
1222 is parked at the base of the FIRR's lift bridge over the Cuyahoga river.
That's the federal building behind 1222.
Quite an interesting adventure.
The electrics were before my time by just a few years. One of the local TCA members (Don Speidel) was an engineer on those locos. We had a discussion last summer about them, specifically about the sounds. I am writing code for one of the electrics and wanted to know if they had a whistle or horn and whether the bell was hand pull or mechanical. Don told me that otherwise they ran almost silent.
He also said that being an engineer on an electric passenger train was a suit and tie job; apparently quite prestigous. He was riding a train into NYC when the engineer came back to him and said come on up front; the next stop is where I live. Take this run into Grand Central. I'm going home! What a thrill!
Back to CUT, they had their own unique dwarf signalling system. I've seen pictures of the interlocking table in the Terminal Tower. Remember at one time there were 28 tracks servicing the tower.
Lou N
