23-05-18 PHOTOS: Elkins Park

In May of 2023 I was invited to give my PRR Main Line signaling talk to the Philly Chapter NRHS which has their meetings in the SEPTA Elkins Park station building on the Reading side trunk line. In this set of photos I will feature my travel up via Amtrak and SEPTA followed by some unrelated NJT Atlantic City Line photos and a visit to the 30th St parking deck to check out the growing stash of Acela II's in the Penn Coach Yard. The full gallery can be found here ( mirror ).

I actually started my trip in Silver Spring after a dinner with friends. Here is my inbound 2k series Metro train with #2024 on the rear.

Approaching Union Station I passed K TOWER along with a rather dreary looking MARC GP40WH-2 #68 that is currently used in work, switching and rescue service.

I was catching an Acela up to Philly that day because Amtrak's price structure makes it pretty affordable. Here we see power cars #2019, #2015 and #2029 lined up on tracks 17, 18 and 19.

A first class upgrade took care of dinner and drinks. This was described as Italian stuffed chicken.

MARC MP36PH-3C #27 at Baltimore Penn Station.

SEPTA Silverliner IV #127 arriving 30th St and PATCo car #1017 at 8th and Market.

To be fair I spent a night in South Jersey before the presentation. Here is PATCO Car #1032 at Westmont as I head back to Center City to connect with SEPTA.

As I was heading out during the evening rush were were a lot of express trains in play like SEPTA Silverliner IV #155 leading an express to Norristown and Silverliner IV #165 another express to Doylestown.

The parade of 300 series Silverliners IV continues with #361, #313, #345 and #357 all leading various trains.

There were a few Silverliners V like #715 and #733 shown here.

Here a 4-car train of Silverliners IV departs the SEPTA Market East station northbound on track #1. The consist includes #361, #362, #457 and #458

After getting off at Elkins Park, Silverliner IV #338 departs northbound.

The Elkins Park station in daytime and night.

Cutting back to South Jersey, here is a northbound NJT Atlantic City Line train with GP40PH-2B #4208 and Comet V cab car #6039 at the Milepost 22 intermediate signal location.

 


Later that day a southbound ACL run with Comet V cab car #6029 and GP40PH-2B #4216.

Heading into 30th St station, my connecting SEPTA train found itself into a little bit of a conga line. Here is the view from a SEPTA Silverliner V heading into 30th St Station upper level track #6 on a restricting signal indication behind SEPTA Silverliner IV #402.

SEPTA Silverliner V #727 on 30th St station upper level track #6.



Here is the famous view from the 30th St station parking deck showing the 5 Acela II sets awaiting their acceptance and entry into service after having been delivered from Alstom. The set in the foreground was un-numbered and has some instrumentation wiring so it might be a prototype. Amtrak and Alstom are in a protracted spat over change orders, with Alstom passive aggressively delivering the sets as per the contract even if they are not how Amtrak ultimately wants them. Acela I builder Bombardier was much more compliant as the Acela production was backed up by sizable amount of Canadian government subsidy.

Amtrak's Race St engine terminal had an above average number of engines on hand that evening with GP38-3's #721, #724, #725 and #726, ACS-86's #607, #617, #631 and #658, P42DC #94 and Phase II heritage P42DC #130.

The 9-car Acela II sets have shorter power units and passenger cars than the Acela I's, however some of the length is recovered by use of shared truck articulation. Acela II cars are also numbered by type with the cafe and first class cars getting their own series different from the Business Class coaches. The quiet car is not explicitly labeled on the outside. WiFi antennas are located on the First Class car, Quiet Car and Cafe car.

While I was up on the deck an Amtrak Keystone service train arrived from Harrisburg.

I'll close out with this photo of ACS-86 #608 on the 30th St lower level.

That's it for now, I'll be back next time for the opening of the DC Metro's Potomac Yard station.