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Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 4 - Houston (LRV accients #117 in Feb and 116 in Mar, 2010)

Posted by Gold_12th on Sun May 23 20:15:12 2010, in response to Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 4 - Houston, posted by FYBklyn1959 on Tue May 18 21:18:39 2010.

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Yep, he caught the two junker LRV that crash into an old and a new buses.


117

Before (February accident) Bus vs Light rail accident #1



After



116
Before:


After:


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(936556)

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Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 6 - Phoenix

Posted by Jon Bell on Sun May 23 21:21:30 2010, in response to Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 6 - Phoenix, posted by PHXTUSbusfan on Sun May 23 15:11:56 2010.

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I picked up a newspaper there (Arizona Republic) which referred to an earlier article about the apparently forthcoming transit cuts by correcting last year's light rail ridership figures, to 11.4 million from 11.6 million. Or was it the other way around? Either way, it gives you an idea of thr ridership.

From my own limited experience, ridership seemed very solid on all the trains I rode on Saturday, and picked up significantly in late afternoon when a lot of people rode to the baseball stadium for a Diamondbacks home game.


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Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 6 - Phoenix

Posted by Jon Bell on Sun May 23 21:24:13 2010, in response to Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 6 - Phoenix, posted by The Flxible Neofan on Sun May 23 14:42:44 2010.

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The climb is definitely worth it if you're in shape. Those steps on the last section are pretty irregular and some of them are very deep, so I had to get a lot of help from the handrsil. I wish I had been able to get there in the morning to get better light on downtown Phoenix to the west.

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(936574)

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Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 1 - New Orleans

Posted by Train Man Paul : Metro-North's Best Conductor FOR ALL 3 LINES!!! on Sun May 23 22:04:32 2010, in response to PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 1 - New Orleans, posted by Jon Bell on Sun May 16 00:21:04 2010.

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They all look good to me!!! Great work on all of your photo sets!! :-)

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Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 7 - Tucson

Posted by Jon Bell on Sun May 23 23:10:11 2010, in response to PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 1 - New Orleans, posted by Jon Bell on Sun May 16 00:21:04 2010.

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I got a quick look at the Old Pueblo Trolley this afternoon. The ex Hiroshima car was on duty today, which kind of disappointed me because I've seen it already on previous visits. I was hoping to see the ex Brussels car in action. Maybe next time.

Let's start at the end of the line at University and Tyndall, near the U of Arizona main gate.



Part way down University Avenue, we pass a fraternity house:



Going round the corner at University and 4th Avenues (actually going the other way from 4th onto University):



The motorman changes ends at 4th Ave. and 8th St. near the carbon.



Last year the underpass that takes 4th Ave. underneath the UP mainline was rebuilt with streetcar tracks to carry the OPT into downtown, and later to be used as part of Tucson's modern streetcar project. Here's the entrance to the new underpass, looking south along 4th Ave.:



And here are the tracks emerging from the other side of the underpass and splitting into a one-way loop, bearing to the right along Congress Ave., then going round the block via 5th Ave. and Broadway, and returning along Toole Ave. to the left.



The OPT isn't using this trackage now. I read somewhere that they started to use it last fall, then one day they had an accident. A trolley stopped on the incline coming out of the underpass had a brake failure and rolled into the car (automobile) behind it. So the currently-operating cars are having their brakes beefed up. In the meantime they're reversing on 4th Ave. at 8th St. like they used to, except that it's now a bit north of the intersection instead of a bit south of it.

Next stop, San Diego and vicinity on Tuesday and Wednesday.


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Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 7 - Tucson

Posted by arnine on Mon May 24 00:07:13 2010, in response to Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 7 - Tucson, posted by Jon Bell on Sun May 23 23:10:11 2010.

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More Cool Pics


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(936635)

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Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 7 - Tucson

Posted by ebtmikado on Mon May 24 07:36:57 2010, in response to Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 7 - Tucson, posted by Jon Bell on Sun May 23 23:10:11 2010.

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Tucson seems to be doing a nice job. But I don't find that Hiroshima car very attractive. Nice photos.

Lee

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Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket - change in plans

Posted by Jon Bell on Mon May 24 12:50:44 2010, in response to PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 1 - New Orleans, posted by Jon Bell on Sun May 16 00:21:04 2010.

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My left foot (which I broke in a bicycle accident several years ago) has been acting up. It was a bit swollen when I got to Tucson, after sitting in the car for six days plus two days of walking, and it was worse Sunday night after two more days of walking. So I'm going to stay here another day, keeping my feet elevated and taking Ibuprofen. Then I'll skip Southern California and return home via the I-40 corridor.

That will still give me a bunch of stops (some or all of Albuquerque, El Reno, Fort Smith, Little Rock, Memphis and Nashville), so this isn't the end of the pictures. :-) But it will be a few days before I get to Albuquerque.


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Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket - change in plans

Posted by arnine on Mon May 24 14:29:50 2010, in response to Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket - change in plans, posted by Jon Bell on Mon May 24 12:50:44 2010.

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Feel better man

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Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket - change in plans

Posted by arnine on Mon May 24 14:29:50 2010, in response to Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket - change in plans, posted by Jon Bell on Mon May 24 12:50:44 2010.

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Feel better man

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Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket - change in plans

Posted by GP38/R42 Chris on Mon May 24 16:07:12 2010, in response to Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket - change in plans, posted by Jon Bell on Mon May 24 12:50:44 2010.

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Oh what a shame, I was looking forward to the San Diego stuff!
This has been a great thread, thanks for all the photos and updates.
Hope you are felling better, and I look forward to the Albuquerque, etc stuff!!
I always wanted to do a trip like this, but I usually only have the time to travel in the winter, and the weather for road trips is so unpredictable in January and February. As it was last year I drove down from NY to Florida and it took me four hours to get through Maryland, the snow was so bad in one of those blizzards. I drove to Miami (for the Pro Bowl, and some other stuff we had to do around there, stopped for three nights in Orlando, and then went off to New Orleans. I was there accidentally for the Saints parade, and that was some treat, and since I booked my hotel long before the Saints were even a thought in the superbowl, I got a great rate, and a room all there. I took a diagnal Interstate route home from Louisiana back to NY which took me through to Chatanooga and then the spine of Virginia before winding up back in NY. Fun trip, but I had to leave New Orleans a day early because of another snow storm that was htreatening the south, Alabama and Mississipi got slammed the day after I went through them.

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Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket - change in plans

Posted by Easy on Mon May 24 16:19:54 2010, in response to Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket - change in plans, posted by Jon Bell on Mon May 24 12:50:44 2010.

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Too bad. We'll railfan next time then. Sounds like it's still a great trip too.

Maybe try aspirin. I think that aspirin does better with inflammation than ibuprofen. That's mainly just for the pain, right?

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Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket - change in plans

Posted by GP38/R42 Chris on Mon May 24 17:26:01 2010, in response to Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket - change in plans, posted by Easy on Mon May 24 16:19:54 2010.

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It's funny (well not funny, but you know what I mean), the first time I went to San Diego, was when I was about 22, and I went with my cousin, it was my first time in California, and he go bit by some strange spider the night before we left NY, and by the morning he could hardly walk at the airport. I remember we went to railfan over at the Santa Fe station where the Amtrak trains and trolly trains meet, and he could barely walk there.
We wound up asking the hotel manager if they knew of any doctors he could go to and we wound up with some doctor that traveled to hotel rooms (it was getting later in the day and it was either that or go to the emergency room), and he gave him some sort of shot, and it was better the next day thankfully....but this story reminded me of that.

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Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 8 - more Phoenix

Posted by Jon Bell on Mon May 24 19:05:30 2010, in response to PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 1 - New Orleans, posted by Jon Bell on Sun May 16 00:21:04 2010.

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While I'm sitting here with my legs up, resting my feet, here are a few more pictures from Phoenix. I stopped by the Phoenix Trolley Museum which is right by the light rail line, but it had closed for the summer. Last day was exactly one week earlier. It re-opens October 9. I did get a few pictures walking around outside the fence. Apparently they can run car #116 back and forth along about 150' of track.









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Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket - change in plans

Posted by Jon Bell on Mon May 24 19:13:12 2010, in response to Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket - change in plans, posted by Easy on Mon May 24 16:19:54 2010.

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Actually, it's mainly for the swelling. Both aspirin and Ibuprofen help with inflammation. The foot looks better already, most of the red color is gone and there's not as much swelling.

Cutting out part of the itinerary will give me time to take the rest of it easier. I can do shorter travel days, or spend an extra night somewhere to rest if necessary. I think part of the problem is that I had some really long days on the road or sightseeing on my feet.


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Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket - change in plans

Posted by Jon Bell on Mon May 24 19:18:59 2010, in response to Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket - change in plans, posted by Easy on Mon May 24 16:19:54 2010.

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I'll be out there sometime, probably fly (or better, take Amtrak).

Last night I thought, if my foot looks like this after two days here, what is it going to look like after five straight days of sightseeing?

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Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 8 - more Phoenix

Posted by arnine on Mon May 24 19:25:34 2010, in response to Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 8 - more Phoenix, posted by Jon Bell on Mon May 24 19:05:30 2010.

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Cool pics

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Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket - change in plans

Posted by Easy on Mon May 24 20:36:58 2010, in response to Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket - change in plans, posted by GP38/R42 Chris on Mon May 24 17:26:01 2010.

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Good for you. We call such doctors "street pharmacists".

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Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 9 - New Mexico Rail Runner

Posted by Jon Bell on Fri May 28 00:50:52 2010, in response to PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 1 - New Orleans, posted by Jon Bell on Sun May 16 00:21:04 2010.

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Today I toured the New Mexico Rail Runner (NMRX). A convenient place to stay if you have a car is Bernalillo, about 15 miles north of Albuquerque. A Motel 6 and a Super 8 are within easy walking distance of the US 550 / Sandoval station. The Motel 6 is a bit further away (still only a ten-minute walk), and you have to cross a busy intersection next to the I-25 exit (with the help of pedestrian signals), but it's cheaper, so I stayed there.

My room is on the second floor at the front, so I can see the trains out my window as they go by:



I started my tour with the 7:46 from US 550 / Sandoval, which arrived in Santa Fe at 8:53 (actually about nine minutes after these scheduled times).



This is the old ATSF depot, at the end of a branch line from Lamy which is now operated by shortline Santa Fe Southern Railway. NMRX and SFSR share the final four miles of track into Santa Fe. SFSR operates excursion trains including a Friday run which carries freight cars if needed. I was tempted to stay another day just for this.

Here's the end of track at Montezuma Street:



After spending a couple of hours wandering around downtown Santa Fe (which is celebrating its 400th anniversary this year, by the way) and eating brunch at a cafe on the Plaza which is the heart of town, I boarded the 11:33 and rode it all the way to the southern end of the line at Belen, arriving a couple of minutes after the scheduled time of 1:43. I had just enough time there to go up on the bridge that spans the throat of the BNSF yard which is behind me in this picture:



The train left at 2:00 to return to downtown Albuquerque, but didn't go any further, so I had some time to kill there. I wandered around a bit, got a slice of pizza to tide me over, and returned to the station to catch the first northbound afternoon train at 4:18. A lot of other people had the same idea:



Finally, at 4:45 I arrived back at my starting point and walked back to the Motel 6 to freshen up. I set out with the car to get some pics along the line, but a bunch of late-afternoon thunderstorms spoiled the results. Here's one that shows NMRX on newly-built trackage in the median of I-25 south of Santq Fe:



This track provides a shortcut between the BNSF tracks that are also used by Amtrak, and the SFSR from Lamy, so NMRX doesn't have to go all the way out to Lamy to get to Santa Fe.



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Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 9 - New Mexico Rail Runner

Posted by arnine on Fri May 28 07:19:37 2010, in response to Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 9 - New Mexico Rail Runner, posted by Jon Bell on Fri May 28 00:50:52 2010.

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Great pics

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Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 9 - New Mexico Rail Runner

Posted by FYBklyn1959 on Fri May 28 10:02:29 2010, in response to Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 9 - New Mexico Rail Runner, posted by Jon Bell on Fri May 28 00:50:52 2010.

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Nice pics. New Mexico scenery is beautiful. My mom and I drove past that very spot (of course no Railrunner back then!) when driving from NYC to LA in 1976 (unless that is a part of I-25 that wasn't completed back then). We stayed overnight in Denver, then rode down I-25 to Albuquerque, spent the night there, then continued on 25 to Las Cruces, where we picked up I-10 for the rest of the way (stopping in Tucson to visit some friends).

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Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 4 - Houston (LRV accients #117 in Feb and 116 in Mar, 2010)

Posted by FYBklyn1959 on Fri May 28 10:04:15 2010, in response to Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 4 - Houston (LRV accients #117 in Feb and 116 in Mar, 2010), posted by Gold_12th on Sun May 23 20:15:12 2010.

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Wow, fast work by MTA maintenance staff (guess they've had a lot of experience with that sort of thing) :(

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Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 10 - Fort Smith

Posted by Jon Bell on Sun May 30 23:39:16 2010, in response to PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 1 - New Orleans, posted by Jon Bell on Sun May 16 00:21:04 2010.

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I visited El Reno, Oklahoma yesterday, but alas, the Heritage Express Trolley doesn't run on Memorial Day weekend. The county historical museum that operates it is also closed for the holiday.

However, I had better luck in Fort Smith, Arkansas today. Fort Smith Birney #224 was running as usual, and since this is a weekend, the carbarn was open, which was not the case on my previous two visits.

Here's #224 waiting for passengers at the Fort Smith History Museum, where you can buy tokens for the ride. There's no regular timetable. Whenever somebody shows up that wants a ride, they go.



A couple of blocks north of the history museum, the line turns to run in the sidewalk of Garrison Avenue, downtown Fort Smith's main drag.



Entering the carbarn at the end of the afternoon:



Interior of #224:



Inside the carbarn, Hot Springs #50 is slowly nearing completion:



And they have started restoring an ex-Veracruz open bench car from the Trolleyville collection:



Next stop: either Little Rock or Memphis, depending on how I decide to deal with the situation that Little Rock's transit system apparently doesn't run at all on Memorial Day (tomorrow).


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Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 11 - Little Rock

Posted by Jon Bell on Tue Jun 1 23:40:55 2010, in response to PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 1 - New Orleans, posted by Jon Bell on Sun May 16 00:21:04 2010.

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I arrived yesterday afternoon from Fort Smith, and went into town today. I easily found free on-street parking on Main St. in North Little Rock, along the streetcar line. If you ever do this, watch out that two blocks of Main in the heart of downtown NLR are restricted to two hours parking. Further north there's no problem.

At the carbarn, a block north of where I parked:



In Little Rock itself, a car turns from President Clinton Ave. (formerly Markham St.) onto Commerce St.



The most recently built section is along 3rd St. to the Clinton Presidential Library. Unlike the rest of the system which is single track, this section is double track, using the curb lanes:



Back in North Little Rock, on Main St. This area is being transformed into the "Argenta Arts District," with cafes, art galleries, etc. I hope they keep the old drug store:



The route in NLR loops southbound on Maple, where new townhouses are going up:



The former Junction [railroad] Bridge has recently been converted to a pedestrian bridge across the Arkansas River, giving a good view of streetcars on the Main St. Bridge. I wish I had done this shot in the morning when the light was the other way!



Late in the afternoon I moved on to Memphis for the night. I'll drive into town tomorrow.


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Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 11 - Little Rock

Posted by GP38/R42 Chris on Wed Jun 2 06:44:31 2010, in response to Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 11 - Little Rock, posted by Jon Bell on Tue Jun 1 23:40:55 2010.

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Nice John. That streetcar looks almost like the Tampa Streetcars in Florida.

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Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 11 - Little Rock

Posted by arnine on Wed Jun 2 08:07:23 2010, in response to Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 11 - Little Rock, posted by Jon Bell on Tue Jun 1 23:40:55 2010.

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Nice pics :)

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Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 11 - Little Rock

Posted by Jon Bell on Thu Jun 3 23:17:05 2010, in response to Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 11 - Little Rock, posted by GP38/R42 Chris on Wed Jun 2 06:44:31 2010.

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Yep, they're the same model from Gomaco that Tampa uses. Memphis has one too, and you'll see it in a day or two. Charlotte's Gomacos are basically the same, but they have a different "skin."


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Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 13 - Nashville

Posted by Jon Bell on Thu Jun 3 23:33:49 2010, in response to PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 1 - New Orleans, posted by Jon Bell on Sun May 16 00:21:04 2010.

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No, I didn't skip part 12. I'm reserving it for Memphis, when I get around to going through that batch. I was too tired to do anything with them when I got back to the motel last night, and tonight I need to go to bed early.

I had planned to arrive in Lebanon, about 30 miles east of Nashville, in time to catch one of the two afternoon round trips of the Music City Star from Lebanon to Nashville and back. But going through Nashville, I got caught in a huge traffic jam on I-440, in which I took an hour to go three miles. (I timed it and watched the mile markers.)

So when I finally got east of Nashville, it was too late to catch one of the inbound trains. I did drive past some of the stations and snapped an outbound train at the Hermitage station:



Tomorrow I'll try to get up early enough to ride one of the two morning round trips. One way or the other, I'll have some more pics tomorrow.

An oddity: the ticket vending machines at the stations take only $5 and $20 bills, no coins, and no credit cards. They don't give any change, either. The single-trip on-the-spot fare from all stations except one is $5.00. $20 must get you four tickets.

If you buy tickets in advance from off-station sales outlets, you save money, and the fare runs from $1.60 to $5.00 depending on how far you are from downtown Nashville.

You can't buy tickets on the train, so the machine at Lebanon had better work for me tomorrow morning!


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Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 13 - Nashville

Posted by arnine on Fri Jun 4 07:10:15 2010, in response to Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 13 - Nashville, posted by Jon Bell on Thu Jun 3 23:33:49 2010.

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Cool pic :)

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Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 14 - more Nashville

Posted by Jon Bell on Fri Jun 4 22:37:48 2010, in response to PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 1 - New Orleans, posted by Jon Bell on Sun May 16 00:21:04 2010.

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This morning I did another early-morning train excursion, fortunately not as early as the one in Austin. I got up about 5:30 AM to catch the 6:40 from Lebanon:



The interior should look familiar to anyone who has ridden Metra in Chicago:



After passing an outbound train just east of Donelson, we arrived at Riverfront station in Nashville at 7:30:



Fifteen minutes later, the train left again to return to Lebanon, completing the round trip at 8:40.

This line is rather un-photogenic, with few publicly-accessible spots that I could identify for line-side photography. When it's not well back from nearby roads, it's mostly lined with trees or kudzu. There are a few road crossings, but most of them are hemmed in by trees. In the vicinity of Mt. Juliet, Division Street runs close to the track and provides clear views, but there are very few places to pull off the road unless you use someone's private driveway.

One spot I noted was a bridge that carries the line over US 70, about five miles west of Lebanon. After I arrived back in Lebanon, one more train was due to follow, and I figured I could snap it at that bridge. When I was coming up on the bridge, I decided the picture would look better from the other side of the road, so I went under the bridge, doubled back to pass under the bridge again, and pulled off onto the wide shoulder with (I thought) a few minutes to spare. I looked in the rear-view mirror as I was reaching into my camera bag and… there went the train! Apparently they don't pay close attention to the schedule on the reverse-direction trips since they're basically deadheads anyway. I think there was one other person besides me and the crew on my return train.

My inbound train was pretty well filled when we got to Nashville, but the return train was practically empty. I think the only reason they run the reverse-direction trips is that Riverfront has only a single track, and there's apparently no place nearby to store more than one train during the day. So they have to run two out of their three trains back out to Lebanon to keep them there during the day.

Oh, and the ticket machine at Lebanon obviously did work. It dispenses a card that looks like the magnetic farecards that other systems use, but without a magnetic stripe. The conductor validates it the old-fashioned way, with a hand punch. That explains the $20 option: you can buy four tickets at once and save the rest for other trips.

On the other hand, the ticket machine at Riverfront didn't work, but there was a guy in the station selling tickets anyway.


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Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 15 - Chattanooga Choo-Choo Trolley

Posted by Jon Bell on Fri Jun 4 23:38:49 2010, in response to PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 1 - New Orleans, posted by Jon Bell on Sun May 16 00:21:04 2010.

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After my morning excursion on the Music City Star in Nashville, I scooted down I-24 to Chattanooga, the last stop on this trip. The Chattanooga Choo-Choo complex (the former Terminal Station) has a short trolley line within its grounds. It uses an ex New Orleans Perley Thomas car that ran on the original Canal Street line.

This line was built in a long U shape, running from one of the station platforms, out past some of the other buildings in the complex, and finally doubling back to end up next to a theater on the other side of the entrance from the terminal building. That theater has since been converted for use of part of CARTA's (the local transit system's) headquarters, and the trolley now uses only about half the line, from the terminal out to the end of the grounds, a few hundred yards. Brief excursions run every two hours.

At the complex, you can stay in one of several railroad cars that have been converted to hotel accommodations. I tried to book one of them, but couldn't get a room anywhere in the complex, either a normal room or a railroad car. When I got there, I found out why: the Tennessee State H.O.G. (Harley Owners Group) is meeting there this weekend. The grounds are full of motorcycles, vendors' tents, etc. And the sound of motorcycle engines, of course.













Tomorrow morning, on my way out of town, I'll probably stop at the Incline Railway.


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Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 14 - more Nashville

Posted by arnine on Sat Jun 5 07:59:48 2010, in response to Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 14 - more Nashville, posted by Jon Bell on Fri Jun 4 22:37:48 2010.

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Great pics :) It is also the same interior at CalTrain from SF - SJ

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Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 14 - more Nashville

Posted by FYBklyn1959 on Sat Jun 5 23:42:45 2010, in response to Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 14 - more Nashville, posted by arnine on Sat Jun 5 07:59:48 2010.

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Those must be Nippon-Sharyo cars then. They haven't built too much for the US:

CalTrain
NICTD (I think)
Music City Star?
LA Metro Blue line P865 LRVs

Anything else?

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Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 14 - more Nashville

Posted by arnine on Sun Jun 6 08:17:54 2010, in response to Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 14 - more Nashville, posted by FYBklyn1959 on Sat Jun 5 23:42:45 2010.

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That sounds right. There is a Chicago area system (might be NICTD) that uses them too but not sure

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Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 9 - New Mexico Rail Runner

Posted by Train Man Paul : Metro-North's Best Conductor FOR ALL 3 LINES!!! on Sun Jun 6 14:05:45 2010, in response to Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 9 - New Mexico Rail Runner, posted by Jon Bell on Fri May 28 00:50:52 2010.

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That is a very sweet looking paint scheme!! Nice catch and nice photos, Jon!! :-)

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Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 13 - Nashville

Posted by Train Man Paul : Metro-North's Best Conductor FOR ALL 3 LINES!!! on Sun Jun 6 14:07:07 2010, in response to Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 13 - Nashville, posted by Jon Bell on Thu Jun 3 23:33:49 2010.

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Nice work shooting the Music City STAR commuter rail!! Nice photos, both parts!! :-)

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Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 13 - Nashville

Posted by Nilet on Mon Jun 7 17:55:38 2010, in response to Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 13 - Nashville, posted by Jon Bell on Thu Jun 3 23:33:49 2010.

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Nice pics!

What's the railfan window status on those trains?

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Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 16 - revisiting New Orleans

Posted by Jon Bell on Sun Jun 27 23:58:25 2010, in response to PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 1 - New Orleans, posted by Jon Bell on Sun May 16 00:21:04 2010.

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After I returned home from this junket, my wife and I went on another trip, so only now do I have time to start making web pages and fixing up more pictures for them. Here's some more stuff from New Orleans:

Looping on Canal from Carondelet to St. Charles:





Some more views from the monument at Lee Circle:










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Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 17 - even more from New Orleans

Posted by Jon Bell on Mon Jun 28 00:00:54 2010, in response to PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 1 - New Orleans, posted by Jon Bell on Sun May 16 00:21:04 2010.

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Looking down the St. Charles neutral ground. Odd, I don't remember reading anything about NORTA running horsecars!



At St. Charles and Carrollton:



You all know the drill: wait and wait and wait for a car, and then four come along at once!



On Carrollton not far from the carbon:



Inside a Perley Thomas:






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Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 18 - the last ones from N.O.

Posted by Jon Bell on Mon Jun 28 00:03:10 2010, in response to PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 1 - New Orleans, posted by Jon Bell on Sun May 16 00:21:04 2010.

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Finally, a couple of odds and ends from the Canal Street line:





And a couple from the Riverfront line:







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Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 13 - Nashville

Posted by Jon Bell on Mon Jun 28 00:10:11 2010, in response to Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 13 - Nashville, posted by Nilet on Mon Jun 7 17:55:38 2010.

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Oops, I missed this one! Better late than never...

I didn't get any pictures of the cab-car end of the train, but I remember seeing the aisle window. I assume the physical setup is just like when these cars were running in Chicago. I didn't think to try to use it, so I don't know if the crew gets antsy about it.


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Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 14 - more Nashville

Posted by Jon Bell on Mon Jun 28 00:13:28 2010, in response to Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 14 - more Nashville, posted by FYBklyn1959 on Sat Jun 5 23:42:45 2010.

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I'm pretty sure these cars aren't by Nippon-Sharyo. Nashville RTA got them secondhand from Metra, and they're fairly old.


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Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 14 - more Nashville

Posted by Jackson Park B Train on Mon Jun 28 00:40:53 2010, in response to Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 14 - more Nashville, posted by FYBklyn1959 on Sat Jun 5 23:42:45 2010.

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I think not. The cars have the look of old PS/SLC bilevels either ex SP, or the various Metra predecessors (C&NW or Rock Island. The Nippon Sharyo cars on Metra and NICTD are all corrugated (BUDD clone) stainless steel bodies. Metra has been selling off their older cars.

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Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 14 - more Nashville

Posted by WillD on Mon Jun 28 00:54:40 2010, in response to Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 14 - more Nashville, posted by Jon Bell on Mon Jun 28 00:13:28 2010.

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Yes, those are definitely former Chicago and Northwestern, or Rock Island Gallery cars. Unfortunately I lost the numbers of the Metra cars that correspond with the Nashville cars. But they should all be of the flat-sided, eight window cars built sometime between 1960 and 1970 and numbered somewhere between 7500 up to 7800, with the cab cars from the 8700 series. I believe all of the Music City Star cars are former C&NW cars, but again I can't confirm that cause I can't find the numbers.

In any event the Nippon Sharyos look quite radically different at the car ends, with the taller windows coming much closer to the end of the carbody. It's difficult to see, but in the photo below the lead car is a Nippon Sharyo, while the trailers are older Pullman/St Louis cars of the type MCS purchased from Metra.



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Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 16 - revisiting New Orleans

Posted by arnine on Mon Jun 28 06:31:44 2010, in response to Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 16 - revisiting New Orleans, posted by Jon Bell on Sun Jun 27 23:58:25 2010.

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Cool pics :)

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Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 17 - even more from New Orleans

Posted by arnine on Mon Jun 28 06:33:46 2010, in response to Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 17 - even more from New Orleans, posted by Jon Bell on Mon Jun 28 00:00:54 2010.

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cool pics

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Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 18 - the last ones from N.O.

Posted by arnine on Mon Jun 28 06:34:16 2010, in response to Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 18 - the last ones from N.O., posted by Jon Bell on Mon Jun 28 00:03:10 2010.

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cool :)

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Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 13 - Nashville

Posted by Nilet on Mon Jun 28 16:53:48 2010, in response to Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 13 - Nashville, posted by Jon Bell on Mon Jun 28 00:10:11 2010.

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Ah, well as long as physical access is available then the antsyness of the crew will change day to day and it should be possible to get there with a little diplomacy. I'd better take my Southern accent out of the closet and see if it still works.

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Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 12 - Memphis - Mud Island Monorail

Posted by Jon Bell on Sun Mar 13 03:12:24 2011, in response to PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 1 - New Orleans, posted by Jon Bell on Sun May 16 00:21:04 2010.

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I've finally gotten around to "processing" the pictures I took in Memphis last year.

I spent only part of a day there, because I was suffering from sunburn from spending a day walking around Little Rock, which also aggravated my left foot which had been bothering me since Phoenix and Tucson (and caused me to skip Southern California on this trip). So I rested in my motel for part of the day and didn't drive into Memphis until mid-afternoon.

I explored both the Mud Island Monorail and the Main Street Trolley. Here's the monorail, proceeding between the terminals at the convention center and on Mud Island. This is a cable-hauled suspension monorail, sort of a hybrid between the Pittsburgh/Johnstown inclines and the Wuppertal Schwebebahn.





















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Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 12 - Memphis - Mud Island Monorail

Posted by chud1 on Sun Mar 13 04:52:59 2011, in response to Re: PHOTOS: Jon's Juice Junket, part 12 - Memphis - Mud Island Monorail, posted by Jon Bell on Sun Mar 13 03:12:24 2011.

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great pictures, don't get mud in ur eye,
chud1

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