Two more shots from the Gotthard - can you ever have enough?
UBIQUITOUS ELSEWHERE IN Switzerland, the Re 460 ‘Lok 2000’ machines are less common visitors to the Gotthardbahn, although there are a few regular diagrams for these trademark SBB CFF FFS’s electrics. No. 460 013-6 Nord Vaudois rushes a strengthened IR2163 07.03 Basel SBB-Locarno between Altdorf and Erstfeld on April 25th, 2009.
Belgian loco design at its best!
CONTINUING OUR SURVEY of the finest in Belgian design, we present the SNCB/NMBS Class 26. Built at roughly the same time as British Rail’s Class 86, they provide an interesting contrast. While BR/English Electric went for boringly attractive, the fashionable stylists at builder La Brugeoise et Nivelles (BN) clearly attempted to pack so much character into the appearance of the 3,000V dc machines that you almost want to congratulate them, even though they failed so horribly. This pair, Nos. 2623 & 2620, were recorded at Antwerpen-Berchem on April 20th, 2009.
East St Louis’ colourful terminal railroad.
OVER FORTY YEARS old and still looking superb, Terminal Railroad of Association SW1200 No. TRRA 1239 rests at the RR’s Venice Yard, Illinois, servicing facility on May 29th, 2006. The bright red scheme with white trimmings has been amended with new FRA approved Scotchlite yellow sill striping.
Two shots from East Argentine in 2006.
BUILT FOR THE Penn Central in the summer of 1972 (making it just a few months younger than the photographer), Electro-Motive Division Leasing GP38-2 No. EMDX 781 was on hire to Burlington Northern Santa Fe when it was photographed at East Argentine, Kansas, on May 28th, 2006. The blue/white scheme, while simple and completely logoless, suits the design of the locomotive well.
Monster EMDs in Kansas City.
THANK GOODNESS FOR the Southern Pacific/Union Pacifc SD40M-2 rebuild programme, which saw the monster 20-cylinder SD45/SDP45s from several roads cut down to size (16 cylinders) by Morrison Knudson, for it has ensured that the characterful flared radiator carbody has continued to exist in quantities into the 21st Century. This is unpatch Espee machine No. SP 8690 (ex-BN 6567) powering unaided through ‘The Bottoms’ area of Kansas City, Missouri, on May 26th, 2009.