[PRCo] Re: Returning Home

[Edward H. Lybarger]

It was in Pier 32. 

-----Original Message-----
From: pittsburgh-railways-bounce at lists.dementia.org
[mailto:pittsburgh-railways-bounce at lists.dementia.org] On Behalf Of Herb
Brannon
Sent: Friday, May 08, 2009 9:01 AM
To: pittsburgh-railways at dementia.org
Subject: [PRCo] Re: Returning Home

Once RTA's current CEO finds a new transit authority to ruin, that plan will
probably be valid again. The RTA "Transit 2012" plan indicates three
alternatives for heritage trolley service. Two routes are along the
lakefront and one includes the Detroit-Superior Bridge lower level streetcar
tracks. The plan does not indicate what heritage cars would operate on it,
however.

Where was that car stored? I don't recall it being under the Terminal Tower
with many (mostly C.A. & E.) of the Trolleyville cars. There are
8 or 9 C.A.&E. cars under there along with a couple PCCs and some old
Cleveland cars plus RTA's old equipment.

On Fri, May 8, 2009 at 8:42 AM, Edward H. Lybarger <trams2 at comcast.net>
wrote:
> Wednesday and Thursday were busy days for PTM volunteers, as they 
> worked to bring Pittsburgh Railways 4145 to the museum from its most 
> recent home at the Lake Shore Electric facility in Cleveland.
>
> For the unfamiliar, 4145 is a 1911 high-floor car built in McKees 
> Rocks.  It remained in service into the late 1930s and was then 
> converted for snow scraper service.  Acquired by Magee Transportation 
> Museum in Bloomsburg in 1968, 4145 was extensively rebuilt by the late 
> Ed Blossom and ran on that museum's line until it was destroyed by 
> Hurricane Agnes in 1972.  The following year, the car was purchased by 
> Trolleyville USA just south of Cleveland, and following the sale of 
> that property was stored, along with the bulk of their collection in 
> hopes of establishing a new historic trolley operation in the city.  
> As that now appears to be unfeasible, the car was made available to 
> PTM.  Costs were covered by a small number of generous individuals who
made possible the acquisition and move.
>
> As good as the car is, it falls short of current restoration standards 
> (not a big deal), and a number of items were never completed.  They 
> will need to be dealt with, along with the re-re-gauging, which will 
> require new wheels and axles (perhaps in stock) and replacement 
> (definitely in stock) or major repair of one traction motor, along 
> with less invasive work on the other three.  It would be nice to have 
> 4145 running by its 100th birthday, but there are no guarantees, since 
> the costs are yet undetermined and staff time is limited.  Adequate
funding means that much of the work can be outsourced.
> Stay tuned.
>
> The move was covered in Wednesday's Tribune-Review, yesterday's and 
> today's Post-Gazette, and today's Observer-Reporter, if anyone would 
> like to view the articles and photos.
>
> Ed
>
>
>



--
Herb Brannon
On America's North Coast