Metra Locomotive Assignments And Maintenance

Good eye!

179 was leant to the MILW for a photo shoot in Elgin. 107 was leant to the Rock to make up for the loss of 179.

LOTS of mechnical problems on the Rock lately. 203, 206, and 407 have all recently had traction motor problems. 408 is out of service with HEP issues. 212 is in the Rocket House getting engine work also- it broke a connecting rod.

107 and 179 are back on their proper districts.

Lots of breakdowns on the Rock lately. 408 and 410 had HEP problems. 410 is still in the shop. 408 is back running. 412 died on train 409 on Monday with air problems. It has been repaired and is also back running. 407 had air compressor problems on train 412 earlier this week, but it also has been repaired.

122 had a cab fire in Manhattan early this morning. Manhattan FD put the fire out. Unknown how much damage there is, but expect it to be out awhile.

I haven't seen 116 run in months. I have no idea what's wrong with it. 116 seems to break down more than any locomotive on the Metra system, it's broken twice as often as it runs.

401 was leading the break-in train this morning at CUS. It was in the shadows, so all I could see was the illuminated number boards.

401 was the protector yesterday morning, 02/18/2016, on CUS track 3. Got a good look that time.

I was reading somewhere that Metra is repainting engines 174 through 214 as Progress Rail is rebuilding them in Patterson, GA. That will be interesting seeing them in the same paint scheme as the MP36s. Does Metra intend on repainting all their locomotives or just those particular ones (seems like a waste seeing as how the F40s rebuilt a few years back were also repaited)?

I'm visiting Chicago from the UK in around 8 weeks or so and would like to catch the following locos in revenue service: -

166
184
213
401
406
423
425

If anyone can confirm the current status of these locomotives, whether running, away for overhaul, out of service etc, I'd appreciate it a lot.

401 and 425 are running on the Milwaukee/North Central lines.

166 is assigned to UP service and can be seen on any of the three Union Pacific lines (North, Northwest or West lines. In fact I was riding the doubleheader train last week on the Northwest line with it being pulled by 166, with 172 as the lead engine. BTW 166 has one of the most beautiful sounding P5 horns in the fleet. 213, last I remember is assigned to BNSF so there's a good chance you can see it running. 184, unfortunately is more than 1,000 miles away from Chicago; it's currently down in Patterson, Georgia being rebuilt by Progress Rail. That unit along with 174, 175, 183 and 194 were the first batch of locomotives to be sent off for rebuild (it was supposed to be only four locomotives however 194 had to be sent in early due to a fire last year on the BNSF line). Also last I remembered, 423 is at the 47th Street Shops getting its HEP conversion done however it could already be back in service. I think that one is assigned to Milwaukee District and North Central Service. The other guys in this forum would know more than I do.

Thanks LedZeppelinFan85 & F40CFan for the update.

I was hoping 184 might be back by now as it was already with Progress Rail when I visited in November.

You're most welcome jt42cwr. Progress Rail said that it could be 22 months before the first batch of locomotives leave their Patterson facility. Metra wasn't impressed with the job they did with 100 through 149 at their Mayfield facility so I'm guessing Patterson is redesigning them and making some changes with the rebuilding. And they need a rebuild badly. 174 had major nose damage and looked like an eyesore while running. 176 had a major fire a couple of years back on the UP NW line near where I live (it's still running and hasn't been sent in yet). I saw 214 (which has the Operation Lifesaver logo) running a couple months back out at LaGrange and was billowing so much smoke when it passed. 210 also smokes badly from the videos I've seen of it. Patterson also looks like a smaller locomotive plant than Mayfield so maybe they can't build as many locomotives at a time. Regardless 174 through 214 badly need rebuilding.

A similar question to that of JT42CWR if I may (unsurprising, as I'm going with him!)

I'm looking for:

98 & 99 (assume still Milwaukee side?)
140 - still UP?
198
202
404
415
423

thanks

Heard from a friend that 198 (a BNSF assigned F40PHM-2) may be temporarily out of service as PTC components were swapped out of that unit due to loading issues.

Thanks MetraBNSF - obviously not the answer I was hoping for but at least saves me chasing shadows!

If I'm not mistaken, 202 should be assigned to the Rock Island District.

404, 415 and 423 are normally assigned to the Milwaukee, but I thougght I read elsewhere that 423 is out for HEP conversion.