Passenger Trains > Early Amtrak Question

Rather than post this on the Nostalgia Board, I thought it best to consult the experts on this board. 

This has been bothering me for many years.  When Amtrak first started up, they consolidated all the
trains at Union Station in Chicago and ran the "Super Chief," remember it was still called that for about a year,
into CUS as a backup move.  I have always wondered why, and I want you to think carefully about this.
At Joliet, the tracks run north and south, and the Santa Fe was west of the GM&O which ran into Union
Station.  (Santa Fe, of course, ran into Dearborn.)  When you looked railroad east, the Santa Fe was left
and the GM&O right.  However, at 21st Street, the GM&O was left and the Santa Fe right, looking east that is.
The two roads effectively crossed at Bridgeport on a double track bridge owned by GM&O, which became ICG.
So, why did the "Super Chief" back into CUS???  It seems to me to have been much simpler to pull straight
in and straight out.  (I believe they also backed out, but am not sure of that.)  I was told the diesel exhausts
would set off all the smoke alarms but I find that one hard to believe.  Any answers/guesses will be appreciated.

Nick Tharalson,
Marion, IA 

Nick:
I worked those trains then.  ATSF trains would pull out of their yards backing up towards Dearborn Station for several hundred yards.  Then they proceeded forward down to 21st and used the wye track onto the Penn Central sb tracks.  Then backed up across 21st St. and over the bridge arriving at CUS.  Reverse move was opposite. 

The tracks from 21st St. to Bridgeport were shared as far as I know.  The IC freights stayed on the southern most set of tracks, but GMO & ATSF seemed to use whatever track was open and available. 

I remember waiting at the the north end of the Joliet station on GMO/Amtrak trains for ATSF trains to clear so that we could enter the 2nd track closest to the station.  Likewise nb GMO/Amtrak passenger trains pulled into the Joliet Station on that 2nd track, but sometimes had to wait for a ATSF freight to clear on the track right next to the station.

ntharalson Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Rather than post this on the Nostalgia Board, I thought it best to consult the experts on this board. 
>
> This has been bothering me for many years.  When Amtrak first started up, they consolidated all
> the trains at Union Station in Chicago and ran the "Super Chief," remember it was still called that
> for about a year, into CUS as a backup move.  I have always wondered why, . . .

I was going to say, and it's consistent with what MEKoch reported, that the trains used the GM&O east of Bridgeport to CUS trackage at South Branch Bridge, and headed in/out of Union Station in the normal way.  It's the moves to/from the Santa Fe yards, which continued to be used until all servicing was consolidated at the former PRR facility, that needed to reverse direction at 21st St.  I recall John Reed, president of the ATSF at the time, say that they had no trackage rights agreement or other contract to use CUS trackage in place on May 1, 1971, but Santa Fe did it anyway without one to be cooperative with the new venture.

Was this associated with the ATS receivers on ATSF psgr locomotives and the fact there was 
a clearance problem at CUS that has since been remedied?  Remember, before Amtrak,  no units with
ATS operated into CUS.  In the latter 1970's, eastbound trains had their receivers removed at Fort Madison
and placed in the nose of the lead unit. After arrival in Chicago, it was reinstalled at the shop and the outbound train was backed
into CUS with the lead unit stopped beyond the end of the platform. At some point this tedious 
problem was resolved; how I don't know but there are no restrictions at CUS, at least on the tracks 
that 3 & 4 normally are platformed on.

3/4 was the very first bid job I was able to hold that got me off the extra board in the mid 80's (LSA, cafe).
When I first worked these trains, we went straight in at Chicago- loco to the bumper.
At some point, I don't remember the exact year, we began backing in.
The reason given was that the F40's were so loud that they made boarding/unboarding very difficult because you couldn't make yourself heard over the roar trying to help passengers find their cars, get to baggage or connecting trains etc.
backing in really really improved the situation. And because 3/4 carried it's sleepers on the tail end, 1st Class passengers got a more preferential treatment.

The ATS shoes came on & off at Ft Madison. That was the last/first location with a union employee to preform the task. So between Chicago-Ft M we ran at conventional speeds even though the territory was good for faster w ATS equipped locomotives.

That's how I remember it.
SR Bush
Dutch Flat

> When
> Amtrak first started up, they consolidated all the
> trains at Union Station in Chicago and ran the
> "Super Chief," remember it was still called that
> for about a year, into CUS as a backup move.

You think #4 regularly wyed itself before backing into CUS
in 1971-72? Why do you think that? Anyone got a pic
of it doing that?

The max speed between CHI and Fort Mad has always been 79mph under Amtrak, since the ATC system 
was removed circa 1970.