[PRCo] Re: MTA promises to stop violating civil liberties — again

[Fred Schneider]

I knew a Pennsy engineman who always carried one in the cab.   More than once he used it to document problem issues, vandalism, illegal activities against the railroad.   He also had a picture of me standing beside the cab.

Mercifully the one thing he never did document was the night coming home from work when I was standing next to him in the front vestibule of a Silverliner and he grabbed my right hand and slapped onto the controller and stepped back before I could react.   That gave me one choice ... dump the air and make him look like a fool or play the game.   I asked him if he was trying to lose his job and he said, "If you can run steam engines, you should be able to run a Silverliner.   I want to see if someone on this train can spell me if I get sick some night."  He took over 35 miles and three station stops later and I got off at Lancaster.   Would I tell you who he is?   Wouldn't matter.   After RRB and Social Security merged and they wiped out the higher retirement pensions if you stayed past 65, he quit.     

It was fun and that was back in the pre Ricky Gates era.   Am I saying something I shouldn't out of school?   Well, I have since gotten to know the Vice President of Operations of the railroad from that era who it turns out was a railfan who developed his hobby riding Connecticut Company streetcars.   His answer was he would have forgiven the engineer.   It was a different era then.   We got runners because they let their kids or friends into the cab secretly.   Today you don't dare do it. 



On Jun 2, 2011, at 9:21 PM, Herb Brannon wrote:

> I may have mentioned this a couple years ago. I always carried a camera with
> me when operating the rail (buses also) at Cleveland RTA. One time at the
> Muni Parking Lot station I had some layover time. I got out and took some
> photos of the Breda car and the station. It came time to leave, so I left.
> When I got to the Flats East Bank station a call came over the communication
> system for operators on the Waterfront Line to watch for someone taking
> photos at Muni Lot station and report back to the traffic controller. They
> also said Transit Police were checking the area. I just kept on going.
> Some transit agencies (and museums) think they are doing rocket science and
> everything must be kept a secret. The people who want to do damage don't
> need a camera or a photo. They just walk in and blow the station, or train,
> to pieces.
> 
> 
> 
> On Thu, Jun 2, 2011 at 20:15, <allmanr at verizon.net> wrote:
> 
>> This story was sent to you by: rich allman
>> 
>> Tony-this is good-will send companion piece as well-go  tell it on the
>> mountain! RICH
>> 
>> --------------------
>> MTA promises to stop violating civil liberties &#8212; again
>> --------------------
>> 
>> Our view: The state's public transportation agency head says he will make
>> clear that photography of trains and buses is legal, but we've heard that
>> before
>> 
>> 
>> June 2 2011, 11:32 AM EDT
>> 
>> For nearly as long as there has been motorized travel, there have been
>> shutterbugs taking pictures of trains, planes, automobiles and the like. And
>> surely no form of transportation is more romanticized &mdash; or attracts a
>> more dedicated fan base &mdash; than rail travel.
>> 
>> The complete article can be viewed at:
>> 
>> http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/opinion/editorial/bs-ed-mta-photography-20110602,0,6046710.story
>> 
>> Visit baltimoresun.com at http://www.baltimoresun.com
>> 
>> 
> 
> 
> -- 
> Herb Brannon
> In Cuyahoga Valley National Park
> 
> 
>