Passenger Trains > Rohr Turboliner story is near the end

The three rebuilt Rohr Turboliners that Amtrak, under David Gunn, stole
from New York State, where the then-Commissioner of the state DOT was
Joe Boardman, are nearing their end.

Stored at Bear DE for years after withdrawal from service, two are moving
to New Jersey for use in first responder emergency training (SIC) and
then will go to scrap.

The third set is to be scrapped on site at Bear by Amtrak.

About time. Hopefully the subject about restoration will simple end.

Posted from Android

Turboliner Memories.....

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41 years ago...seems like yesterday. San Diego, CA 9/14/76

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Those things did not like snow. I remember them in the Buffalo blizzard Jan - Feb 1977 and they were useless. One sat in Buffalo Central Terminal for 2 weeks having ingested snow.

It does not seem like 40 - 41 year ago at all. Feels like 20 years.

Does the brochure illustrate the Turbo being sucked into a Black Hole?

Look at all those well dressed, well behaved people.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/12/18 09:03 by Englewood.

From my POV as a passenger, they were nice to ride on, plus I liked the big windows.

The rode well and I liked the big windows, but a trip to the bathroom in the vestibule in January was not fun.
But they required a technician to ride, were of a limited and fixed capacity, and were fuel hogs,

Helicopter engines designed to fly through the sky find themselves running underground in Manhattan railroad tunnels and in upstate NY's fine blowing snow. What could go wrong with that?

utwazoo Wrote:
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> 41 years ago...seems like yesterday. San Diego, CA 9/14/76

I photographed one of them going past the Olive station sign and packing house on what was then the ATSF's freight-only Olive District in Orange County. Now that line sees multiple Metrolink trains each day. Also shot it at Green River in Santa Ana Canyon crossing over the Santa Ana River on what was then a single track bridge.

After I shot it at those two locations I then proceeded to my seasonal job at Disneyland while I was in college, piloting submarines. I'm a veteran of the Disneyland Navy! Still waiting for the benefits.

In the early 90s, I rode the head end from Albany to NYC once, at 100+ MPH on some stretches with at grade crossings. When I realized that, and the fact that -- had we hit something substantial -- the cab crew and I would have been squashed between the spinning turbine and the object ahead, I decided that it was a once in a career event...and for me, it was. Great ride, though!
My hat is off to the crews who made that run daily in the turbos, until they were replaced by far more crash worthy P-32DMs.

Been nice to have one saved for a museum.

I'm surprised HSR_Fan's not here, he's been crying ever since Amtrak stole them and trashed them, this news he'd be crying like he lost his only child!

Posted from Android



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/14/18 12:45 by ProAmtrak.

A couple of the guys I know who ran them, weren't huge fans of them. The technician wasn't always able to keep them running to their destination.

If the bean counters today added up the cost of fuel and maintenance on these things, they'd expedite their retirement. The only thing stolen in this deal was the money from the NY state residents for this still-born project.

One of the French RTG sets would have been better for saving!

There may be a power unit of some sort sitting in a field in Indiana.

Posted from Android

Lurch_in_ABQ Wrote:
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> Helicopter engines designed to fly through the sky
> find themselves running underground in Manhattan
> railroad tunnels and in upstate NY's fine blowing
> snow. What could go wrong with that?


The trains switched to third-rail in the NYP tunnels.

mp51w Wrote:
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> One of the French RTG sets would have been better
> for saving!


There is one power car at the French railway museum Cite Du Train in Mulhouse.

Alexander