Strange Looking Locomotive at South Station

[CGRLCDR]

This past weekend I saw a strange looking locomotive parked in a railyard next to South Station. It was white with red pin striping (if I remember correctly) and it generally looked like an elongated GE 44 tonner except that it had four trucks instead of two. Did anyone else see this locomotive or does anyone know what it is and who it belongs two?

[CSX Conductor]

I haven't heard of anything foreign being around. What yard are you referring to? Perhaps you saw the old Alco at the old First Street Yard which was formerly the Boston Railway Terminal?

[CGRLCDR]

I've lived in Jersey for years now and don't know the railyards in Boston that well. Here's what I remember.

I was heading from Quincy north on Rt 93 attempting to get onto the Mass Pike west, only the entrance ramp was blocked last Saturday morning. In that area just before going into the South Station tunnel I glanced over and saw the "phantom" locomotive. I'm not sure what yard it was, but it was the one that you can see from 93 in that area.

As stated, it was white with a center cab like a GE 44 tonner with four sets of trucks. It so closely resembled a 44 tonner, my guess is that it is a large GE switching locomotive.

The Big Dig doesn't seemed to have solved any of the traffic problems in that area, but if you happen to be tooling around that area on Rt. 93 please keep an eye out for this machine.

One non-railroad related note. While driving around Boston I noticed a couple of tunnel entrance ramps leaking water onto the roadway. In fact, I'll bet that why the State Police had the entrance to the Mass Pike blocked off Saturday morning. I went through there the day before and that's one of the leaky on ramps.

[130MM]

I believe what you saw was a "critter" that the MBTA bought for MW work on the Rapid Transit lines. I'm sure there is someone on the board who can supply the specifics. It is indeed painted white. I'm guessing you saw it parked in the Red Line's Cabot Yard.

DAW

[CSX Conductor]

I forgot about that one until I saw it last night.

[CGRLCDR]

130MM, thanks for the information. I was beginning to think I had dreamed the whole thing. Now what exactly is a "critter" and does anyone know where I can get more information on it and perhaps some pictures?

[GP40MC1118]

That's the 04443, a Plymouth bought in 1987 Model CR80.

Dave

[Otto Vondrak]

Try the MBTA forum.

-otto-

[CGRLCDR]

I was looking at the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority (MWRA) website and happened upon the their Railroad page.... http://www.mwra.state.ma.us/03sewer/html/railroad.htm It's pretty interesting. FYI - The MWRA Railroad is the Fore River Railroad which was started by Thomas Watson who developed the telephone with Alexander Grahm Bell (for you telephone buffs).

As I scrolled down the page I came across a picture that looks almost exactly like the "mystery" locomotive that I saw at South Station. Here's the link... http://www.mwra.state.ma.us/03sewer/rai ... 14_640.jpg It is a 65 ton Whitcomb; the caption indicates that it was manufactured in 1918, but I think that is a typo and that it was probably born in 1948. The color scheme on the locomotive that I saw was different than show in this picture, but the configuration is pretty close to the one I saw parked in the yard.

Here's another picture that I came across of a 65 ton Whitcomb that also looks like the mystery locomotive. http://www.davehonan.com/other/cargill- ... 5-04-l.jpg

[CSX Conductor]

The second one looks like an exact match, since the Fore River unit has high noses, which the MBTA one didn't.

I tried taking a few shots of the unit @ Cabot with a camera phone, but they were no good.

[paulrail]

Back in the early fifties, I remember the Fore River Railroad # 14 (it's twin sister was # 12) running over to East Braintree from the shipyard to pick up the freight cars that the New Haven RR dropped at the E. Braintree yard. I recall that I was amazed at the color because all I saw on the New Haven was green and gold, DL-109s or orange and green RS-2s!

I believe it/they was painted in a cream or light yellow body with maroon trim. The amount of traffic to and from the shipyard in the late forties and early fifties was still huge. The Korean war was on and ships were still being built and overhauled at that time.

There is a great article about the FRRR in Frank Kyper's book "The Railroad that Came Out at Night" (the Union Freight RR in Boston) It is called "The Railroad that Carried Battleships."....there are some nice pictures of the Fore River's steam locomotives as well.

Paul

[CGRLCDR]

I saw the mystery locomotive last week at South Station again. I finally found it on the web..... https://c2.staticflickr.com/4/3667/1048 ... b1dc06.jpg" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[ferroequinarchaeologist]

That is a Plymouth CR-8 used in maintenance work, and it has been around for many years. I remember seeing it at Wellington about ten years ago. Plymouth Locomotive Works is now out of business.

PBM

[F-line to Dudley via Park]

That's the rapid transit division's work locomotive 04443. Lives at the Red Line maint facility at Cabot Yard, right across the tracks from the Amtrak yard and the South Station leads: http://goo.gl/maps/6a1aH" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;.

50-ton, 700 HP, built 1987 by Plymouth. And has its wheel profile ground for running on the tracks of the 4 MBTA rapid transit lines, so it isn't used for commuter rail maintenance at all. I'm not sure how they transport it between the Red Line and Orange, Blue, etc. when it has to do heavy work elsewhere. There's no interconnections between rapid transit lines, or any currently active interconnections between the rapid transit lines and adjacent commuter rail lines. So they must be they must be able to transport it on a flatbed truck without too much trouble in order to get it between one point in the system and other.

[BostonUrbEx]

it isn't used for commuter rail maintenance at all

...

There's no interconnections between rapid transit lines, or any currently active interconnections between the rapid transit lines and adjacent commuter rail lines.

Which raises the question as to why it is at South Station at all.