2nd Generation Cowls. • • ATCHISON, TOPEKA & SANTA FE "FP45" Numbers 100-108- Original version, OMI #5991 MILWAUKEE ROAD "FP45" Number 1-5- Passenger service units, circa 1969 without dynamic brakes, OMI #5993 BURLINGTON NORTHERN "F45" Numbers 6614-6625 - (ex-Great Northern numbers 441-452) Circa 1980, OMI #5998 BURLINGTON NORTHERN "F45" Numbers 6626-6645 - Circa 1974, OMI #S999 Each of these fine models is beauti­ fully handcrafted in brass by Ajin Precision of Korea in HO scale. PACIFIC RAIL NEWS 0 500 River Line 2 Along the scenic Mississippi from St. Paul to Muscatine Steve Glischinski 3 2 � �J:v�n��!I������4 dellgh� �eam fans In California Elrond G. Lawrence 34 Focus California: 5P's Oakdale Local Branchline action in the Central Va lley Ken Rattenne 40 Focus Missouri: UP in Poplar Bluff A junction of three busy mains in the state's southeast corner Randy Woods M.D. Images: In the City The California Limited, led by AT&SF 3751, enters 48 Tunnel Two on Dec. 29, 1991. Elrond G. Lawrence The cities of the West offer a pleasing backdrop for railroading PACIFIC RAILNEWS and PACIFIC NEWS are registered trademarks of Interurban Press, a California Corporation. I DEPARTMENTS I PUBLISHER: Mac Sebree EXPEDITER FOCUS MISSOURI EDITOR: Don Gulbrandsen 4 40 AMTRAK/PASSENGER UNION PACIFIC NEWS EDITOR: Carl Swanson 6 42 ASSOCIATE EDITOR: Michael Falk SOUTHERN PACIFIC LINES 43 COMMUTER CONTRIBUTING EDITOR: Elrond G. Lawrence 9 SANTA FE SOO LINE EDITORIAL CONSULTANT: Dick Stephenson 10 45 12 REGIONALS BURLINGTON NORTHERN ART DIRECTOR: Katie Kern 46 PRODUCTION ARTIST: Tom Danneman 14 TRANSIT 52 IMAGES OF RAILROADING CONTRIBUTING ARTIST: John Signor 16 CANADA WEST 54 PRN LETIERS CIRCULATION MANAGER: Bob Schneider 18 ILLINOIS CENTRAL 54 PRN ADVERTISING INDEX © 1992 INTERURBAN PRESS 19 CHICAGO & NORTH WESTERN 55 PRN CLASSIFIEDS Mac Sebree, President/CEO FOCUS CALIFORNIA Jim Walker, Senior Vice President 38 Don Gulbrandsen, Vice President COVER: Running down the main street of Lansing, Iowa, 500 754 trundles southward on the River line in October 1985 in the days following the Milwaukee Road purchase. Following the west bank of the Mississippi from St. Paul, Minn., to Muscatine, Iowa, the little-known-but immensely scenic-route is a photographer's paradise. Fred Hyde PACIFIC RAI!.NEWS (ISSN 8750-8486) is published monthly by Interurban Press (a corporation). 1741 Gardena Ave.. Glendale, CA 91204. Second-class postage paid at Glendale, CA 91209 and additional mailing of­ fices. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to: PACIFIC RAILNEws, P.O. Box 6128, Glendale, CA 91225. SUBSCRIPTION RATES: 530 (U.S.) for 12 issues, 558 for 24 issues. Foreign add 56 for each 12 issues. Single copy $5 postpaid from Glendale office (subject to change without notice). CHANGE OF ADDRESS: The Post Office does not regularly forward 2nd Class Mail and PACIFIC RAILNEWS is not responsible for copies not forwarded or destroyed by the Post Office. Replacement copies/PO notifications will be billed. Please allow us at least four weeks for any address change. ADVERTISING RATES: Contact Interurban Press, P.O. Box 379, Waukesha, WI 53187; (414) 542-4900. MAGAZINE SUBSCRIPTION SERVICE: For all subscription problems and inquiries call: (800) 899-TRACK. Heading up the Super Bowl XXVI Special is 6269, the first UP SD60M with a two-piece windshield; the cab side bears the Safety Award for Palestine (Texas) Shops, one of 11 units so adorned honoring vari­ ous UP operations. The train, shown here at Omaha, departed Jan. 25 and took an all-Chicago & North Western routing to the Twin Cities. George R. Cockle WC ACQUIRES GB&W, Illinois. Its principle gateways that GB&W survived only by FRVR: Already the largest re­ include Chicago, Duluth/Su­ having no debt and an owner gional railroad in the United perior, Green Bay, Milwaukee, willing to accept a near-zero States, Wisconsin Central an­ Minneapolis/St. Paul and rate of return on investment. nounced on Jan. 8 that it plans Sault Ste. Marie, Onto Any abandonments, he to acquire three Itel railroads GB&W operates 227 miles of said, will be limited to no-busi­ in Wisconsin: Green Bay & track, running from East ness or low-volume lines for Western, Ahnapee & Western Winona, Wis. (on the Mississip­ which there is no hope. "We're z and Fox River Valley Railroad. pi River), eastward to Green long-term players," Burkhardt z Terms of the agreement are Bay. A&W is a subsidiary of said, "and we have never subject to approval by the In­ GB&W serving the port of Al­ found any route to success in terstate Commerce Commis­ goma, Wis. Fox River Valley this industry other than by sion. The railroad expects an Railroad lines consist of 208 serving and ensuring the com­ ICC decision in about six miles of trackage, running from petitiveness of our customers." months, with the final transac­ Green Bay south to Milwaukee. tion taking place in late 1992. Speaking at a Jan. 15 meet­ STRONG EARNINGS POSTED: The sale was conducted ing of the Midwest Shippers Union Pacific, Santa Fe and through a wholly owned sub­ Advisory Board in Milwaukee, Kansas City Southern posted sidiary of WC called the Fox WC President Edward solid fourth-quarter earnings Valley & Western Ltd. WC will Burkhardt said the purchase despite a struggling national pay $8.4 million in cash for would mean "major service im­ economy. UP earnings ad­ GB&W and A&W, subject to ad­ provements for FRVR and vanced 5 percent to $184 mil­ justments, and $52.8 million, al­ GB&W shippers." He also said lion, compared with earnings of so subject to adjustment, for the that WC has struggled to oper­ $176 million this time last year. operating assets of the FRVR, of ate a low-traffic-density system Santa Fe recorded net in­ which $30 million may take the in an area dominated by truck­ come of $32.8 million for the form of WC common stock. ing competition, and noted that quarter ending Dec. 31, a sig­ Prior to the sale, WC oper­ times have been much more dif­ nificant improvement over the ated 2,029 miles of track in ficult for GB&W and FRVR. fourth quarter of 1990, when Wisconsin, the Upper Penin­ Burkhardt said that operating the railway had a $31.2 loss on sula of Michigan, eastern cash flow on the FRVR has been continuing operations. Railway LLI Minnesota and northeastern insufficient to service debt and operating income was $65.1 4 • MARCH 1992 million-nearly triple the $22.4 million reported one year earli­ er. The operating ratio for the fourth quarter of 1991 was 88.3 percent, compared to 95.8 per­ cent 12 months earlier. Rev­ enues increased 5 percent to $556.8 million as carloadings increased 8 percent due to con­ tinued strength in intermodal shipments and a fourth quarter surge in grain exports. Kansas City Southern marked a $9.9 million increase, a 9 percent gain, in fourth quarter net income. In the last quarter of 1990, KCS earned $9.4 million. SMALLER CREWS FOR ATSF: Santa Fe announced Jan. 22 that it has reached an agree­ ment with the United Trans­ portation Union to operate long-distance trains in its San Joaquin Va lley Railroad is up and running. One of the Kyle property's first trains is shown westbound western section with two-per­ on SP's former Visalia Branch, approaching the Goshen Junction interchange with SP, on Jan. 2, 1992. son crews. The railroad also Power is provided by Arizona Eastern 1754. Joseph T. Bispo said it has won union approval to assign over-the-road crews to some jobs previously re­ SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY UP holds title to more than 200 pied by Visalia Electric Railroad. served for yard crews. AND RUNNING: On Jan. 2, 1992, miles of ex-Southern Pacific Motive power for the new carri­ The change in crew size San Joaquin Valley Railroad branch lines between Fresno er currently consists of five effects about 1,200 employ­ Company, the new Kyle opera­ and Bakersfield. The SJVR office Geeps obtained from other Kyle ees, but the railroad is not tion in California's Central Val­ and diesel shop are located in operations: Kyle 101 and 104 planning layoffs. ley, started operations. SJVR Exeter, in facilities once occu- and Arizona Eastern 1751, 1754 and 1755. Currently, not all of the branch lines acquired by the new short line are actually be­ ing serviced. SJVR is reviewing its options as to which of the branches will become a perma­ nent part of the operation. Re­ portedly, lines not desired by the new Kyle operation will be abandoned. TEXAS TGV?: On Jan. 22, the Texas High-Speed Rail Author­ ity voted to grant a 50-year franchise to the Texas High­ Speed Rail Corporation, which allows that group to proceed with planning a $6.8 billion high speed rail project. The AmericanlFrench corporation, formerly known as Texas TGV, had to raise $10 million in funding by Jan. 29 to meet the agreement. In about a year, the company has to gather about $170 million in financial back­ ing or face losing the franchise. By 1994, the agreement calls for Texas High-Speed Rail to have raised $5 billion. If the company meets all of the dead­ lines, it will then have until mid-1997 to start construction. The proprosed high speed net­ work will join the largest cities in the state-DallaslFort The changing of the guard on Metra's Aurora line as F40PHM-2 189 joins E9 99 16 on Jan. 11, 1992. Num­ Worth, Houston, San Antonio ber 189 is one of six of the new locomotives now working the BN line.