08-12-29 PHOTOS: SEPTA Mid-Winter Trip VIII

Ha! I managed to slide it in before the boom lowered. Yes here is the extensive set of photos from last year's SEPTA Mid-Winter trip. Last year the photos were a bit more extensive than years prior due to the extraordinarily good weather. When it's gray and rainy I tend not to care too much about taking pictures of the local scene, but in 2008 there was nary a cloud in the sky for the entire trip allowing for close to ideal photographic conditions.

The itinerary last year consisted of a Southwestern double triangle trip. We started out with a trip on the R2 to Wilmington and Back. Then a walking transfer to the Rt 102 at Sharon Hill, which we rode to 69th St for lunch and then caught a Rt 100 to Norristown for another connection with the R6, which took us to North Broad for a connection to the BSS, up and around the Fern Rock loop and back down to the Rt 15 which was taken to the Westmoreland loop.

So any of you who have thought about attending one of these trips, bur never pulled the trigger CHECK OUT THESE PHOTOS and see what you are missing.

On our trip to Wilmington our R2 local train was stopped at HOLLY interlocking so that we could be overtaken by an ACELA express, just before being passed by one coming in the opposite direction.

Following the ACELA we got a Medium Approach signal pulled up. As we proceeded through the interlocking I noticed that flank protection was applied when trains were routed from the local onto the main. This means that the switch to the freight track was set to divert any train violating the Stop signal out of the way of a colision.



At Wilmington station most of the trip participants confined themselves to the new high level wooden platform which was installed because NS no longer runs freight trains through the station. I got this well lit shot of BRANDY interlocking at the south end of the platform.

On the north end was WINE interlocking, here displaying the signal pulled up for our departing R2 train.

The trip disembarked from SEPTA S-IV #444 at Sharon Hill before making the trek to the Sharon Hill Rt 102 station.

The routes 101 and 102 are currently undergoing a rebuilt, but that project had not yet started in December of 2008. Here are Trolley, #105, ducks under the CSX Philly Sub bridge before arriving at the Sharon Hill station.

We had time to take some pictures of #105 before boarding.

I took a lot of pictures out the back of the trolley, but there wasn't too much exciting except the end of the single track segment at Noth St.

And the trip over the Darby Creek Viaduct.



Finally we joined with the Rt 101 at Drexel Hill Jct. Note that the switch points for inbound trains are not powered.

We sis pass an outbound 101 trolley at Fairfield Ave, just before 69th St.

Wary of being bitched at again by the trolley supervisor at 69th St I decided to get lunch before returning to the terminal to take pictures. Bypassing the trolleys I focused on the Rt 100 terminal where we were scheduled to catch a Limited to Norristown.

Here we have #152 waiting at the terminal, just after #130 behind it arrived from Norristown.

Later #146 departs for Norristown.

As MFL car ##1186 heads around the loop.

At Norristown we find #140 and #145 laying over with the R6 station in the background.

Eventually our R6 train arrives headed up by S-IV #408.

At the North Broad Station the action was heating up as we moved into the peak travel period. Here participants click away as #402 departs from its station stop.

A 4-car train lead by #446 on an R8 blasts past on the express track with the 29 signal gantry in the background.

Outbound is not to be denied with #383 leading a two car R8 with a Roberts Yard bound deadhead lead by #439 close behind.

Finally we get a train of S-II's and an S-III, lead by ex-Reading car #9013.

And trailed by S-III #233.

Having grown tired of North Broad and its poor sinage our group departed allowing me a shot of the Reading style #29 signal gantry installed in the 1980's during the Railworks project.

From there it was only a short BSS trip to the Fern Rock terminal where I caught some BSS trains making the loop into the station.





Where they would wait until their next departure time.

From there I held off on more photos until I got to the Westmoreland Loop, the terminus of the Rt 15 trolley and its PCC II's in the Port Richmond section of the city. Here #2323 hangs out with some buses that some Busfans will be surely able to identify.

Here is #2322 head on with the nasty buses mostly cropped out.

By this stage in the trip the sun was sort of becoming a negative factor.

And with 2323's departure I gave up on still photos.

But I just had to get a video of the trolley pole action as our PCC passed back under the long Port Richmond railway overpass. Built by the Reading RR as part of their sprawling Port Richmond coal and grain export terminal, only a track or two uses it today. For the next few years this portion of the Rt 15 will be closed for a complete rebuild including the removal of the railroad overpass, making scenes like this one a thing of the past.



Well that was SEPTA Mid-Winter Trip VIII. I would like to thank everyone who attended Mid-Winter Trip IX. We had a great turnout and wonderful weather. Let's see if I can shift into overtime and reduce my photo backlog a little.