Nostalgia & History > Hanging Out at Oakland

Southern Pacific 7333, 8534, and 8319 with AMTK 301 between assignments Oakland, CA on August 28, 2001.  That's one heck of a fueling/sanding rack.

Enjoy,
Marty Bernard



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/29/16 00:10 by MartyBernard.

---

MartyBernard Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Southern Pacific 7333, 8534, and 8319 with AMTK
> 301 between assignments Oakland, CA on August 28,
> 2001.  That's one heck of a fueling/sanding
> rack.
>
> Enjoy,
> Marety Bernard

Amtrak units no longer call there for their diesel servicing as they have built their own covered from the elements fueling facility across the mainline at their coach maintenance yard ... and i guess for that matter neiher does SP huh ... 

You know, when I go by this spot now on the freeway, I simply cannot associate it with where I used to work thirty-odd years ago. Reality and recall just don't jive, and I drive away feeling disoriented. The final insult to my memory came a few years back when UP tore down that grungy old ex-Central Pacific shop in the photo background. The building was like a beacon orienting one to old times in the sea of the present. Now there is only sea.

EO
And the sea is all crap now...

Other than my dad, that old CP shop was my most direct connection with the SP. I used to work for a truck leasing company. We leased two pickups to West Oakland, and IIRC one to Bayshore.  One was a pristine white truck the plant manager drove, the other was a beat-to-death shop truck. More than once my coworker and I got the call to come down and rescue the shop truck. It broke down one of many times right inside that diesel shop - at 1am, of course. It was interesting to have the okay from SP to drive our repair vehicle right into the shop to do our work.

And EO's right. it's all one kind of crap or another today.  I heard rumors that when they tore it down, they found some old steam era parts buried way back behind some shelves, etc.  That might be just that - rumor.  SF Trains was offered a Victorian era - looking crane, but we had no way to move it...

Thanks, Marty. I think I've bored the masses with this story before... ")
Walter

All the changes occured after I moved to Oregon, so when back in 2004 I had a little time to railfan the area, I had a heck of a time just trying to get the fueling facilioty. Even while there I was disoriented and got upset at the changes. I'm glad I took photos and videos when it was still real SP property. - Tony

C an someone provide a  link to a Google map or a street interection so show where in Oakland the facility was located and see through Google maps what it looks like today?

Thanks, in advance.

Does 1707  Wood  St still survive? SP had quite a few offices within that Bldg. SP Commissary was close by.
Old coach yard across the mains. Well at least the tower remains at the Mole!

RuleG Wrote:

> C an someone provide a  link to a Google map or a
> street interection so show where in Oakland the
> facility was located and see through Google maps
> what it looks like today?

This view from the new 880 freeway (built in the late-1990's after the Loma Prieta earthquake destroyed its predecessor) offers a view looking broadside to the facility's location from the left side of Marty's shot:

https://goo.gl/maps/rcU52WnNkU72

If you go up to the upper left and select the April 2008 streetview of the same scene, you'll see the old shop building to the left and the old sanding rack to the right.