MBTA Commuter Rail Work Equipment

[GP40MC1118]

Sidedump addition:

MBTX 21 - An ex-Amtrak Difco sidedump painted solid orange. Car is over to Readville Yard.
Don't know its original Amtrak roadnumber or other data.

Dave

[NellsChoo]

I was told that #904 is a GP9 body with GP18 guts... or visa versa... can anyone confirm? I did a search on the forum and didn't see an answer.

[sery2831]

The 904 was built as a GP18, downgraded in a rebuild to a GP9 in 1981.

[NellsChoo]

Ah, so the opposite of what I thought? GP18 with GP9 power?

[diburning]

Just saw a crane with a flat car at South Station. Crane is black and looks beat up. Flat is yellow/orange with reporting marks KRL. Not sure if being used MBTA or Amtrak.

[BostonUrbEx]

Not the same work equipment, but I saw some red MOW equipment at the very southerly end of the Southampton Yard tail track a week ago. Is this MBTA, Amtrak, or rented by one of them? It was red, as I recall. Or red and black. Not sure what either piece was used for, either.

[MBTA F40PH-2C 1050]

That is being used by Amtrak, unsure if they own it, I'm going to say yes. They were putting together a new switch that will be placed in TOWER 1 next weekend...it is going to replace the 31B switch in the interlocking

[TJ209]

I saw the MBTA work train at Anderson RTC on Wednesday. MBTX C-1 (the caboose) led the train into the station before being left up the line while MBTX 904 (the blue GP9/GP18) dropped four loads of ties on the siding. Once the side dumps were uncoupled from the locomotive, the crew picked up the caboose and headed back into Boston. Pan Am LA-3 showed up about an hour later and brought the tie loads to Lawrence.

Here's a video of it all happening:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ajo1dprHFWQ" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

I've got a few questions if you guys don't mind. First, what's the deal with this locomotive? If it was built as a GP18, then downgraded and rebuilt as a GP9, what it is classified as? Would you call it a GP9 or would you call it a GP18/GP19? Second, does anyone have any more information on the caboose? I've heard it was built by CP, but other than that I couldn't find out much about it. Thanks to GP40MC1118's post I now know it's ex-Ontario Hydro, ex-CP, ex-Perini, and ex-MP, so I'm going to look into those, but what about its current reporting marks? Why do they read "MTA" instead of "MBTX?" I don't mean to be annoying with these questions, but I've always been interested in this train, and seeing it the other day rekindled my curiosity!

-TJ

[GP40MC1118]

The 904 is classified as a GP9 by the MBTA. The reason is was once classified as a GP19
was due to its days on SEMTA when it was rebuilt by Peaker Services. They actually
called it a GP19. I don't have my notes right now, but all the 900 series came from SEMTA
and cycled through Peaker. The long gone 901 or 901 was once classed as a GP10. (And
I have seen the Peaker rebuild builder's plate). There was an article in Extra 2200 South
on the SEMTA/Peaker way back when.

As for the caboose, the MBA reporting marks date back to a point where the T had to stop
using the XMBT mark. They registering the MBA mark instead. Few pieces of equipment
got this...maybe two flatcars. The T finally went to the MBTX mark. Like much of the
MW fleet, they are not a priority item, so I guess the MBA will stick around till who knows
when. They did re-stencil the sidedumps, hoppers and gondolas though, since these go off-line
occasionally.

The MBA/C-1 caboose is ex-Ontario Hydro, CP. The ex-MP road transfer caboose is ex-MP/Perini.

D

[130MM]

Just saw a crane with a flat car at South Station. Crane is black and looks beat up. Flat is yellow/orange with reporting marks KRL. Not sure if being used MBTA or Amtrak.

That was an Amtrak crane. The T does not own a locomotive crane.

DAW

[130MM]

Not the same work equipment, but I saw some red MOW equipment at the very southerly end of the Southampton Yard tail track a week ago. Is this MBTA, Amtrak, or rented by one of them? It was red, as I recall. Or red and black. Not sure what either piece was used for, either.

The red surfacing equipment is owned by the track contractor working on the Columbia Jct. rebuild on the Red Line.

DAW

[GP40MC1118]

The red MW stuff is RJ Corman...

D

[BostonUrbEx]

The red MW stuff is RJ Corman...

D

A Google Image search for "RJ Corman equipment" turns up exactly what I saw. So, which is it? Amtrak work? Or Malfunction Junction? Or both? And does this stuff come in on truck, or was it brought here on its own power/on flatbeds? Wondering how/where they would get it onto the Red Line if it came in by itself/on flatcars.

[GP40MC1118]

Don't know how it got there. Presumably trucked in. Have been seeing this stuff for months
now coming up the Xway this summer & fall. This is Red Line work only.

D

[TJ209]

The 904 is classified as a GP9 by the MBTA. The reason is was once classified as a GP19
was due to its days on SEMTA when it was rebuilt by Peaker Services. They actually
called it a GP19. I don't have my notes right now, but all the 900 series came from SEMTA
and cycled through Peaker. The long gone 901 or 901 was once classed as a GP10. (And
I have seen the Peaker rebuild builder's plate). There was an article in Extra 2200 South
on the SEMTA/Peaker way back when.

As for the caboose, the MBA reporting marks date back to a point where the T had to stop
using the XMBT mark. They registering the MBA mark instead. Few pieces of equipment
got this...maybe two flatcars. The T finally went to the MBTX mark. Like much of the
MW fleet, they are not a priority item, so I guess the MBA will stick around till who knows
when. They did re-stencil the sidedumps, hoppers and gondolas though, since these go off-line
occasionally.

The MBA/C-1 caboose is ex-Ontario Hydro, CP. The ex-MP road transfer caboose is ex-MP/Perini.

D

Thanks for the info, man. That's awesome.