Nostalgia & History > BRLAT at Davis, CA

Another repost, but what the hell. Two shots of the BRLAT around Davis, CA.

1. The price of gas is $0.85/gallon cash and $0.89/gallon credit as SP SD40R 7329 leads the BRLAT off the West Valley Line and onto the east leg of the wye at Davis, CA on January 7, 1987 for the short trip east on the Cal-P to Elvas Tower in Sacramento where it will head south down the San Joaquin Valley.

2. Late in the day in the early Spring of 1987 the BRLAT behind SP SD40R 7332 has cleared the West Valley Line and is accelerating eastward on the Cal-P just east of Davis, CA at MP 78 for the trip to Elvas Tower in Sacramento where it will head south down the San Joaquin Valley.

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Great photos, John. That second photograph is superb.

Ryan

Great stuff repost all you want.

Very nice look back.
JB

Wow, those are great photos, and bring back memories.  After graduating from Berkeley, I spend about 15 yrs being a 'ski bum" in Lake Tahoe.  Then I decided it was time to grow up and go back to school at UC Davis.  My second year I got an apartment just off the West Valley line where is crossed under Covell Road.  I could hear the power being throttled back as they entered town and headed for the first crossing, and if I hurried, I could catch the train as it threaded its way through the wye and headed east.  Lots of tunnel motors, SD40Rs and SD45Rs.  Not as dramatic as what I'd witnessed on Donner Pass all those years, but good times nonetheless. Thanks for the trip through time.

Elizabeth

Where did they perform the crew change on the BRLAT?

Nowadays, that West Valley Line is a terribly underused UP asset.  Flat and fast, yet it never sees UP trains, only the regional shortline (which does a very healthy business all along the line),

Also, you can see the speed board in the 2nd photo for westbound trains for their approach to the Davis station.  Note it reads "45" mph.  SP ran thru Davis fast, and even faster with passenger trains.  But now?  UP has a 30 mph speed restriction.  SP could handle it.

lynnpowell Wrote:
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> Where did they perform the crew change on the
> BRLAT?
​Sacramento

Very nice look back!  Man, I really like that second shot.  It reminds me a lot of a picture on page 50 of Wheels Rolling West.

JCL

coach Wrote:
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> Nowadays, that West Valley Line is a terribly
> underused UP asset.  Flat and fast, yet it never
> sees UP trains, only the regional shortline (which
> does a very healthy business all along the line),
>

I'm not sure why you think this is true. There is very little reason for the UP to need this line for through trains. The SP felt the same way, leading to its spin off in 1993.


> Also, you can see the speed board in the 2nd photo
> for westbound trains for their approach to the
> Davis station.  Note it reads "45" mph.  SP ran
> thru Davis fast, and even faster with passenger
> trains.  But now?  UP has a 30 mph speed
> restriction.  SP could handle it.

The physical plant in better now than it ever was in (latter) SP days. That means one of (at least) three things happened;

1. The City of Davis requested a lower speed limit.
2. UP lowered the speed limit over safety concerns.
3. The UP lowered the speed to save on maintenance costs on the curve.

Either way, the UP clearly knows how to "handle it."

It should be noted that the UP raised the speed limit through Chico. From 35(?) to 60 miles per hour.

coach wrote: 
"UP has a 30 mph speed restriction."
 
Are you sure?  When I lived in Davis 10 years ago I recall that the Snow Trains and Fun Trains would blast through town at something much faster than 30 mph.  It struck me as being pretty dangerous, since the freights, I think, would keep it at 30.  And except for the couple dozen Snow/Fun trains, all passenger trains would stop.  

If UP really wanted to improve speed on the California Pacific, they'd add another half-crossover somewhere east of town so freight trains wouldn't need to use the 10 mph crossover by the wye when switching tracks...  

Ted in OR

gobbl3gook Wrote:
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> Are you sure?  When I lived in Davis 10 years ago I recall that the Snow Trains and Fun Trains would
> blast through town at something much faster than 30 mph.  It struck me as being pretty dangerous,
> since the freights, I think, would keep it at 30.  And except for the couple dozen Snow/Fun trains,
> all passenger trains would stop.  

Amtrak & Capitol Corridor trains are allowed 55 mph through Davis. Of course most of them stop there, so normally only the Snow/Fun trains would get to do it at 55.

> If UP really wanted to improve speed on the California Pacific, they'd add another
> half-crossover somewhere east of town so freight trains wouldn't need to use the 10 mph crossover
> by the wye when switching tracks...  

​They did install at crossover at Webster, about 5.5 miles east of Davis, back in 2013. If they really wanted to improve speeds they would have made it a 60 mph crossover instead of 40 mph...

"They did install at crossover at Webster, about 5.5 miles east of Davis, back in 2013." 

Glad to hear it.  I'm behind the times, I guess.  

That must make things much easier for the dispatchers.  I saw plenty of long freights rolling through that 10mph crossover in the mid 2000s.  Clog up both mains for at least 10 minutes just to switch tracks.  

https://www.google.com/maps/@38.5646397,-121.6453225,401m/data=!3m1!1e3

Ted in OR

Great shots John! It's fun to see what Davis looked like before my time. 

Jake Miille
Chico, CA
Jake Miille Photography