A Very Productive Sunday Morning

We were up early on Sunday for a pancake breakfast at the Willoughby Hills Community Center, a visit to Lake Metroparks Farmpark, grocery shopping at Heinen’s in Chardon, but also, of course, a great catch of a two-and-a-half late eastbound Lake Shore Limited with Midnight Blue P42DC No. 100 on the point and Downeaster F40 cab car No. 90213 in the consist. It was ideal weather of sunny and 62 degrees but very windy. We accomplished all this by noon.

It is not clear why the F40 cab car was on No. 48. It had gone west on Saturday morning on No. 49 only to turn around in Chicago and go back east that same night.

In the photographs above, No. 48 is shown passing the former New York Central passenger station in Painesville.

Article and Photographs by Edward Ribinskas

My Collection of 50th Anniversary Units Has Begun

Model trains, railroad collectibles, print photos, slides, slides, movies and video tapes all take up space in rooms, on walls, and in closets.

With the digital age a flash drive has no issues with taking up space.

I’m happy with digital images and I, like several others, have completed my collection of Norfolk Southern heritage units, Amtrak 40th Anniversary heritage units, and half of Union Pacific heritage units.

The new kids on the block are Amtrak’s 50^th anniversary units. I how have No. 108, the Phase VI unit; and No. 100, the Midnight Blue unit.

Recently in order to photograph any of the 50^th anniversary locomotives on train 48 close to home it train needs to be running at least an hour behind schedule.

Here are two occasions when that worked out. In the top image, No. 108 leads the eastbound Lake Shore Limited through Perry at 7:37 a.m. on July 29.

In the bottom image, No. 100 is on the point as No. 48 cruises past the former New York Central passenger station in Painesville on Sept. 10 at 7:53 a.m.

Article and Photographs by Edward Ribinskas

Combined Lake Shore Limited and Cardinal

The Cardinal’s equipment is on the rear of No. 48.

On Friday (Aug. 20) Amtrak combined the eastbound Cardinal and Lake Shore Limited as it ran through Northeast Ohio. 

This was due to a derailment in Indiana on Thursday morning but the Cardinal’s equipment had to be moved to New York. This made for an impressive 16 car train with three engines.

The reason I got up early however was because Amtrak P42DC No. 100, the Midnight Blue, and P42DC No. 46, the 50th Anniversary tribute locomotive, were both on the train.

I was hoping that it would be running a little late but alas the Late Shore did not live up to its reputation today as it was on time.  In fact it arrived 27 minutes early into Cleveland station.

I chased No. 48 east to Ashtabula hoping to get it in daylight and while the sun had started to rise it was pretty dark when it went by me at 6:40 a.m.

Also my camera misfired and cut off the nose of the 100.  At least the going away shot turned out nice. Oh well you can’t win them all.

Article and Photographs by Todd Dillon

Amtrak’s ‘Midnight Blue’ Passes Through

Amtrak’s Midnight Blue locomotive passed through Northeast Ohio Thursday and Friday mornings on the point of the Lake Shore Limited.

P42DC No. 100 wears a one-off dark blue livery that observes Amtrak’s 50^th anniversary and pays tribute to its workers who are assigned to overnight trains.

No. 100 was accompanied by P42DC No. 46, which is painted in the standard Phase V livery but carries the 50^th anniversary herald on its flanks.

That duo went west on No. 49 on Thursday and east on No. 48 on Friday.

A notable addition to No. 48 on Friday was the consist of Amtrak’s Cardinal consisting of two Amfleet II coaches, an Amfleet food service car, a Viewliner sleeper and a Viewliner baggage-dorm.

That equipment was being ferried to New York to make up the westbound Cardinal that will depart the Big Apple on Sunday morning.

It would have operated from Chicago to New York on Thursday night and throughout Friday but Train 50 was canceled east of Indianapolis due to a CSX freight train derailment 20 miles east of Indianapolis Thursday morning.

No. 50 of Thursday night terminated in Indianapolis and reportedly had a consist of one locomotive, one coach and one food service car.

The Cardinal consist was tacked onto the rear of No. 48. Throughout the summer Nos. 48 and 49 have operated with two P42DC locomotives, a Boston Viewliner sleeper, an Amfleet café car, four Amfleet II coaches, a Viewliner dining car, two New York Viewliner sleepers and a Viewliner baggage car.

In past years Nos. 48 and 49 have had two Boston coaches and four New York coaches.

Biden to Help Amtrak Celebrate 50 Years

President Joseph Biden will participate in a ceremony on Saturday to mark Amtrak’s 50^th anniversary.

The White House said the event will be held at Philadelphia’s 30th Street Station where Biden also is expected to promote his $2.3 trillion infrastructure plan.

Biden became known as “Amtrak Joe” during his time as a senator when he commuted on Amtrak between Wilmington, Delaware, and Washington on a near-daily basis.

As vice president under Barack Obama Biden continued to sometimes ride Amtrak

Amtrak is expected to showcase some of its special livery locomotives during the Philadelphia event, including the Salute to Veterans ACS-46 and two P42DC locomotives that have received 50th-anniversary inspired liveries.

The latter includes the Midnight Blue No. 100 and No. 46, which has the current livery with a large 50th anniversary herald.

Other locomotives are slated to receive heritage and/or specially designed schemes, but those units have yet to be released for revenue service.

The Midnight Blue unit was released from the Beech Grove Shops near Indianapolis last weekend and was the trailing unit on Monday night’s Capitol Limited that departed Chicago en route to Washington.

In a related development, Amtrak said Thursday it is selling 50 percent off tickets to mark its anniversary.

The fares are available on select routes and come with a maximum fare of $50 per segment.

Reservations must be booked between April 28 and May 5 for travel between June 2 and Nov. 14.

More details and bookings can be done at Amtrak.com. Terms and conditions apply.

Amtrak’s Midnight Blue Unit Now on the Road

Amtrak’s one-off Midnight Blue livery is now in revenue service on P42DC No. 100.

The unit was released over the weekend from the Beech Grove shops in suburban Indianapolis and ferried to Chicago on Monday on the westbound Cardinal.

No. 100 was added to the Cardinal in Indianapolis along with a  baggage car, Superliner sleeping car, coach, and coach-baggage that had just been rebuilt at Beech Grove.

The Midnight Blue livery is one of a handful that Amtrak is creating to celebrate its 50^th anniversary.