I Want My Cars Back

Does anyone know the statistics on the painted/ex-cnw cars? How many were scrapped and how many are still in service?

I dunno anything about scrapped cars. BUT... I did see some of the EX-VRE cars in consist at the yard on the MILW. District shops yesterday..

Maybe its been asked already, but what happened to the Red-painted RI bilevels?

Tadman wrote:Maybe its been asked already, but what happened to the Red-painted RI bilevels?

RTA only kept a handful of these (the best among others that were in various stages of decay due to neglect), and I think they were re-numbered into the upper 7800s after acquisition. Cabs were converted to coaches, and although Metra still got at least another decade of service out of them, it's likely they were among the first to meet their destiny with the scrapper when the MK/Amerail cars (74/8400s) began arriving. I'm pretty certain they were all off the property by 2001...

Some of them were probably scrapped, but IIRC, there were at least a few which made it all the way out to (and are presumably still operating) on VRE. Supposedly the RI bilevels have windows with edges which are slightly more squared in the corners (than their C&NW counterparts).

a few of the blue and red cars went to nashville, and a lot went to maryland and virginia.. a lot of the ones that made it to virginia were then apparently sold to nashville when the new cars arrived in VA.. i know for a fact a few went to nashville becuase I have seenthen in storage at the Music CIty star's yard whenever I drive throught there

I remember seeing their yard from the interstate in Nashville - beware to all those driving through, it's a fleeting vista of lots of random old passenger cars. I seem to recall seeing some single-level legacy cars too - not sure who owns them.

According to the '09 budget, Metra has also purchased back cars from Frontrunner... the newly opened system in Salt Lake City, Utah, which ended up not using any pullman cars... instead going with Bombardier and ex-NJT cars.

According to Issue 236 of the Passenger Train Journal, FrontRunner accepted 30 ex-C&NW bilevel gallery cars that Metra offered free to other transit agencys. All FrontRunner had to pay was $1,600 per car to move them. I wonder what it cost Metra to get them back.

7836 has been running around on trains out of the north side of CUS for the past few days.

I heard some of the ex-cnw cars were being scrapped in Utah.. I also saw somewhere online, I honestly forget where.. dozens of old passenger cars being stored in some desert locale... metra, NJT, and others.. ebing stored in the middle of nowhere in a desert someplace, presumably becuase there is no humidity to damage them any further.

F40CFan wrote:7836 has been running around on trains out of the north side of CUS for the past few days.

Looks like a Pullman is running on NCS, train #120 seemed to have it most recently... possible this is 7836.

Hello Metra RI
I think it was 7836 running back on 120 at Libertyville, I am glad to see it but I also hear that there are more than 5 I hear that there are at lest 15 or more. It was so nice to see it.

I saw a smooth-side car on a trian in evanston this afternoon..

Does anyone know how much refurbishing Metra has done to these cars other than painting the outside? What are the interiors like? They've been totally refurbishing the interiors of the 8200 series cars, I wonder if that is extended to the Pullmans.

F40CFan wrote:They've been totally refurbishing the interiors of the 8200 series cars, I wonder if that is extended to the Pullmans.

I rode in one of the refurbished 8200s last week, and they're not bad. The vestibule area is still a bit cramped, but they've got better lighting, and newer seats akin to those found on the 6000/6100 trailers. Some of the older CB&Q vintage 700/800 series cars had the the interiors overhauled in a like manner, so I'd hope the same treatment awaits the Pullmans. But I wouldn't be surprised if these upgrades don't cost as much, if not more than it did to re-acquire them.

Speaking of the 8200s, I saw one on UP/W a couple of days ago on a six-car set, didn't catch the number; might've been a "loaner". Also saw Pullman 7825 this evening on my way home sitting outside California shops, on the far north side of the yard, hooked to a couple of other cars that looked like cabs. The yard was empty otherwise; all the other rush hour sets had left for OTC already, so I don't think it was going anywhere soon...