Metra Locomotive Assignments And Maintenance

Thanks for the correction, guys. While I would obviously never intend to provide inaccurate information, it sounded credible enough to be worth a post to check out. Ah well...darn...I had my hopes up there for a while!

No worries! I wish there were new F40s coming- preferably NOT built by Progress this time. Our power is beyond worn out. Oh well. That's not to say it won't soon happen!

Its all good. I had a manager tell me presidential cars are coming. What are those? You know gallery cars! Like what we have already? No they are presidential......Ok so if you see cars that look like politicians roaming about, you will know.

Thanks guys.

After spending several months at Western Avenue, 416 is back out and about.

401 was down at KYD yesterday with a fresh coat of paint on it for Family Days. Also they sent 109 down there for the celebration.

109 actually went to KYD a couple weeks ago. The paint on the corner of the cab roof on the fireman's side was peeling off. KYD paints all of Metra's equipment now.

They touched up the trucks and fuel tank on NIRC 1 as well. It looks nice!!

412 got its trucks painted and the safety striping on the nose was re-done- both of those were done at 47th. It will be leading a test train over the Englewood flyover so they wanted it to look nice for the press.

109 and 401 are now back on the Milwaukee District, having been delivered on Wednesday. When it was delivered to Western, 401 was listed as non-operational; so it will be interesting to see whether they wait to put it back into service until it receives the HEP engine modification or not.

According to Trains News Wire, Metra has acquired three ex-Go Transit F59PH's from Rail World. The units are former Go Transit 526, 530, and 532. According to the article, the units are to be worked on and repainted by Thoroughbred Mechanical Services in Altoona, PA, before coming to Metra in 2015.

Interestingly, it looks like the units will go to the Milwaukee District...as they will not be equipped with cab signals.

I've heard they will primarily run on the Heritage Corridor which makes sense since both the HC and Milw share the same locomotive pool.

Metra, buying something without a 645 prime mover?

Let me get back into the chair I just fell out of.

The old Chief Mechanical Officer retired.

Still, it doesn't make much sense to me to have 3 710 units in a fleet of 645s, but I'm only a peon.

Another fine Progress unit bit the dust!

144 blew its engine yesterday morning on train 13 on the UP-W. It's getting transferred to 47th Street for repair sometime this afternoon.

That explains why 144 was sitting all by itself on the "dead" track at Western Ave. yesterday afternoon.

And also explains why commuter control decided to cover the schedule with 19's equipment, which usually terminates at Elmhurst and turns to 34. In this case it ran west (I'm guessing to West Chicago, not sure) then returned east as "34X".

Tough week on the Geneva sub in general, for both Metra and freight; and has made for some interesting radio chatter, to say the least...

Saw 215 at CUS last night sporting an Operation Lifesaver livery.