Passenger Trains > 393(16) & 390(17) Cancelled

After repeated delays of 393’s 4:05 pm departure, the last to 8:15, they finally pulled the plug on it and tomorrow’s return.  Supposedly because 390(16) got in 2 hrs late.  Can’t Chicago put together another train?  Maybe they waited on this equipment only to find a bunch of cars BO’d.

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I was wondering about that. You'd think with less than half the service operating a spare trainset can be at the ready for a train originating at a major hub...and yet. The weather is indeed awful, though. Way back at 4pm-5pm 393 actually had a route lined on ACTS from 16th to Kensington. Seeing that I always assumed something would actually have to be on the move, but I guess not.

Yeah I watch ATCS as well. No route cleared = no train. I keep it running on a machine I can remote to from my phone so I can check it in the field.

One time I was awaiting 58 at Matteson and decided to watch from the fan platform instead of Metra. I got up there, sat down, and checked ATCS only to see she was routed on 2 instead of 1. Not a big deal but rare and would look the same from the fan platform. I got over to Metra ASAP to witness the uncommon track assignment.

The reason was mentioned in one of the earlier Charger Woes threads, the Hiawatha one:

"393/390 went way late before being cancelled ,they had 4629 on that which suffered an unrecoverable computer fault that locked the brakes up tight,then had problems with some of the cars..."



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/17/21 06:53 by GenePoon.

How about an experiment in Chicago?   Take a train like 393: put five Charger engines on the front and back, and see if even ONE of them can make the trip?  I am thinking back to the days when the E-units in the 70s were tired and old.  They would dispatch the Broadway Ltd. with four e units, knowing that at least one of them would crap out and shut down, but the other three would make it to Harrisburg.   It seems these Chargers are so over-engineered, that any little thing shuts down the unit.  Simple is sometimes best.  

What about a $5000 prize to the Chicago mechanic who can get a Charger operating for 300 miles?

I’ve seen GEs on it lately.  As I said, I don’t know why they didn’t scrape together other equipment and call a crew.  Don’t they have a yard full of cars and a bunch of GEs idled from LD reductions?  Or is there a shortage of working GEs as well?

Does 390 / 393 normally run with a CDL-based crew who takes it home each evening or would one crew for the full turn put them over HOS?  BTW, later on last night AA tweeted that there would be bustitution for 390(17).

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Is that USB charger one of those dollar store gems that get red hot in 20 minutes ? 

Sir, my Siemens Charger joke is based on a genuine Apple cube!

MEKoch Wrote:
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>   It seems these Chargers
> are so over-engineered, that any little thing
> shuts down the unit.  Simple is sometimes
> best. 

Simple isn't possible with Tier 4 I'm afraid. EMD/Progress Rail is having similar issues with their Tier 4 freight locomotives; that's why they are still elusive.

GE seems to be having the best luck,but alas, they don't offer a Tier 4 passenger locomotive.