Western Railroad Discussion > Morning with the A-Train

I got up before the sun rose on Monday morning which is an extreme rarity for since I normally don't go to bed until around 3 a.m. The purpose, to get some early morning shots of DCTA's borrowed Budd RDC's on the newly opened A Train line before the DMU's arrive this fall. I found a couple spots on the north bank of Lake Lewisville to start the morning.

1. TRE RDC's 2012 and 2006 head DCTA train 5916 across the Lake Lewisville bridge enroute to Denton.

2. TRE 2006 and 2012 head back south 48 minutes later.

3. TRE 2010 and 2013 races traffic on parallel I-35E as it crosses the Lake Lewisville Bridge.

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After the 2010 passed by, I headed north towards Denton to look at a couple of angles in town. I found one I liked in time to shoot a southbound deadhead move.

4. TRE 2013 and 2010 head back to the yard at Lewisville as it runs along the Katy Trail on the south
side of Denton, Texas with train 5313.

After filling the gas on my Santa Fe for the last time, I headed home to get some sleep before heading back out later in the afternoon.

Enjoy

BNSFDS

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Cool train, you don't see that on TO much. Thanks for posting bro!

Love it! Great shots!

I have always been a huge RDC fan, with an affinity for them that goes back to a wonderful St. Louis Chapter NRHS excursion many years ago on B&O from St. Louis to Flora, IL, and then down the now-abandoned branch to New Shawneetown, IL. The consist included one of B&O's unique RDC diners. One of the most memorable trips I've ever taken.

I've felt for a long time that an RDC consist would make an ideal railfan excursion consist. Self-propelled (both for traction and lighting/heat/AC, but readily capable of diesel locomotive rescue in case of breakdown); mechanicals that are within the reasonable capabilities of skilled fans and external mechanical contractors (there are a lot of good diesel mechanics out there who could probably master the power train mechanicals in short order, and good carmen for the carbody and truck work, and electricians and HVAC guys for that stuff); good accommodations for passengers (including, yes, real Dutch doors!); light loading gauge, for travel on lighter rail secondaries and branches; and most of all, double-ended utility, with no need for a wye or turntable at the outer end of the trip. Just go to the other end, set up the controls, and away you go. Which is exactly what we did at a stub-end point in New Shawneetown, IL years ago. An ideal consist for exploring quiet branchlines and other rare mileage. Do it with one car, or several.

Of course, there are many obstacles. Operating crew qualification on the equipment: the controls (at least as they were back on that B&O trip) were different enough to probably require special qualification. All of the many complexities of just gaining the operating authority, particularly with Amtrak's appropriate rights now being a factor, as they weren't on that B&O trip in pre-Amtrak, prehistoric times. And that bugaboo of all bugaboos: insurance. I'd make a guess (before doing any calculations at all, even on a napkin) that the insurance cost would probably be almost insurmountable to be amortized on the relatively low passenger count on a two-to-four car RDC consist. I've been a rail excursion trip director for steam and diesel trips on Class 1 roads (SOU, NS, Chessie, UP), so I have a bit of background in these issues. It would not be easy.

But the thought has never faded away. It just seems so perfect. Some friends and I long ago figured up a bunch of ideal RDC trips out of St. Louis, and did some moderately serious planning on the idea. Our number one pick was for a trip on the old Katy along the Missouri River west of St. Louis, before it was all pulled up and turned into the very popular Katy Trail of today. If you've ever been on that trail, or adjacent Missouri Highway 94, during the peak of spring blooming of the dogwood and red bud, or during the peak of fall foliage about the second weekend in October, you'd know why we gave serious thought to the idea. The trip skirting the river, and beneath the beautiful, towering bluffs is one of the best in the Midwest. Plus it was just a really interesting piece of railroad.

The few RDCs that are left have made the rounds now between various operators. The time will surely come when they just won't be needed any more for regular service anywhere, or simply are no longer able to serve in the rigors of regular service. Let's hope that they don't get away when that time finally comes, probably in the not-too-distant future. At least a pair deserves to go to a museum -- hopefully an operating museum, and ideally one which could get them out on some special secondary and branch lines once in a while. They deserve it. And we can hope, can't we?



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/12/11 18:48 by ironmtn.