This is the second installment of photos taken over the last 40 years by Kenneth Gear. You can see the first batch here. There will be additional installments, so watch this space.
In addition, we have more classic photos from the collections of William Shapotkin. We thank both Ken and Bill for sharing these with our readers.
Enjoy!
-David Sadowski
A Traction Photo Album, Part 2
By Kenneth Gear
New Jersey Transit Arrow MUs

Photo 2. NJT Arrow III MU #1304 at Dover, NJ. High level station platforms now obstruct the view of trains at this Ex-Lackawanna station.

Photo 4. Arrow III #1314 at SUMMIT Tower in Summit, NJ October 15, 1989. SUMMIT Tower was unique in that it was built into the retaining wall below street level.

Photo 8. NJT Arrow III #1319 was assigned to the “Dinky” train on the Princeton Breach this day. The train is at the Ex-PRR station (built in 1918) at Princeton, NJ. When this photo was taken in 1992 this was the terminus of the branch. Trackage has since been cut back 460 feet to make way for a new Princeton University Arts Center. At just 2.7 miles, the five minute trip from the Northeast Corridor connection at Princeton Junction to the end of the line is the shortest commuter rail service in the US.

Photo 9. NJ Transit Arrow III #1285 is inside the Meadows Maintenance Complex at Kearny, NJ in 1988.

Photo 14. On the same rainy day as in photo 13, NJT Arrow III MUs are trying to stay dry under the train shed at Hoboken Terminal.

Photo 15. One more from that cold rainy March day in 2000. NJT Arrow III #1512 will soon be departing the Hoboken Terminal and head out into the damp evening.

Photo 18. NJT Arrow III MU #1488 leads a long Trenton bound train seen from the Harrison PATH station platform.

Photo 19. PRR K-4 steam locomotives once quenched their thirsts here at the South Amboy engine terminal. In 1987 it was NJT MUs and E-60s that got the attention. Arrow III #1399 is seen behind the steam-era water column.

Photo 20. NJT Arrow III #1361 is the last car of an eastbound train along the Passaic River at Kearny, NJ on August 15, 1997. I couldn’t resist including a photo of an MU numbered 1361 after mentioning PRR K-4 steam locomotives in the previous caption.

Photo 22. A train of NJT Arrow MUs reflect a winter sunset at it passes LINCOLN Tower at Metuchen NJ on January 12, 1997.
New Jersey Transit E-60s

Photo 2. Still in her Amtrak paint, NJ Transit E-60 #959 waits at South Amboy for her next North Jersey Coastline train assignment.

Photo 6. NJT E-60 #973 at South Amboy engine terminal. In 1987 some steam era relics remain, the water column seen in photo 19, and the water tank and coaling tower seen here,
New Jersey Transit ALP-44s

Photo 1. NJT ALP-44M #4422 at Harrison, NJ on January 12, 2002. NJT’s ALP-44s were built by Asea Brown Boveri, a Swedish company starting in 1990. The last one was built in 1996 and by 2012 all were off the active roster and in long term storage.

Photo 2. NJT ALP-44 #4411 at the Secaucus transfer station September 6, 2003, the station’s opening day.

Photo 3. ALP-44 #4411 & Arrow III #1413 at the Secaucus transfer station, Secaucus Junction, NJ, on September 6, 2003.

Photo 4. NJT ALP-44 #4419 crossing the Raritan River on RIVER drawbridge at Perth Amboy, NJ on July 11, 2008.

Photo 5. ALP-44 #4407 powers a northbound train for New York crossing the Raritan River into Perth Amboy. NJ on July 11, 2008.

Photo 8 & 9. NJT ALP-44 #4402 & ALP-44M (for Microprocessor) #4420 crossing the Raritan River on RIVER drawbridge at Perth Amboy. The locomotives are in “push” mode on the rear of a southbound train from New York on July 11, 2008.

Photo 10. NJT ALP-44M #4426 at the locomotive shop, Meadows Maintenance complex. This locomotive will be in long term storage soon. 4-14-12.

Photo 12. NJT ALP-44M #4422 being prepared for long term storage at the MMC in Kearny, NJ. 4-14-12.
From the Wikipedia: “During 2012, the ALP-44’s were prepared for storage in groups of five at a time. This work includes the removal of pantographs and having the cab windows covered with steel plating. These units were then moved to Port Morris Yard and the Lackawanna Cut-Off stub track for storage in Stanhope, NJ where they are now stored.”
New Jersey Transit ALP=46s (and ALP-45s)

Photo 1. NJT ALP-46 #4620 at the Secaucus transfer station in 2003. The ALP-46s were built in Germany by Bombardier starting in 2001.

Photo 2. ALP-46 #4612 is crossing the Delaware River on the Northeast Corridor at Morrisville, PA 1-10-10.

Photo 4. This is the cab interior of brand new NJT ALP-46 #4610 on September 29, 2002. The locomotive has not yet been set-up for revenue service, notice the plastic covering is still on the engineer’s seat.
NJ Transit Light Rail Vehicles

Photo 4. Motorman’s View of the Newport flyover at Jersey City, NJ from NJT Hudson-Bergen LRV #2010A.
From the collections of William Shapotkin:

CTA St. Louis-built PCC 7123 at 69th and Western on January 28, 1954, apparently a pull-in from Route 49.

CSL 745 (a 1909 product of the Pressed Steel Company) at 4600 West 26th Street, the border between Chicago and Cicero which was the end of the line for the Blue Island route.

CTA red Pullman 271. Andre Kristopans adds, “Pullman 271 at North just west of Narragansett. C&WT (Chicago & West Towns) bus just barely visible in rear would have been on 11-Oak Park route.”

Rock Island 650 on train #12 to Joliet on March 28, 1976. (Joseph Piersen Photo) M. E. writes: “If this is indeed CRI&P train 12, the caption is wrong. I plugged “CRI&P train 12” into Google and up came the Peoria Rocket. The passenger cars shown were never commuter cars; they were on trains that went farther than Joliet. Perhaps this caption should say, ‘The Rock Island’s train 12, the Peoria Rocket, arrives in Joliet.’ By the way, the Rock Island never turned over its passenger service to Amtrak. After Amtrak formed, the CRI&P ran its own passenger trains from Chicago LaSalle St. station to Peoria (“Peoria Rocket”) and from Chicago to Rock Island (“Rock Island Rocket”). They were never very busy, so they had only one or two cars.”

A Metra push-pull train at the Berkeley station near Proviso Yard, February 18, 1990. (Joseph Piersen Photo)

Loco 137 on an Orland Park local, September 2, 1976. (Joseph Piersen Photo) Bill Shapotkin adds: “Should be captioned as “the” (not “an”), as at the time of the photo there was but one train each way, Mon-Fri. Additionally, at the time the pic was taken, the train was operating out of the N&W’s own Chicago station — located adjacent (to the west) of the vacant Dearborn Station.”

Michigan City, Indiana : A westbound South Shore Line train (made up of RTA-owned equipment, and powered by loco #1097, is westbound in 11th Street, arriving at the Michigan City passenger station. The view looks east across Franklin Street, February 1982. (William Shapotkin Photo)

Michigan City, Indiana: a westbound South Shore Line passenger train (made up of RTA-owned equipment) is westbound in 11th Street, arriving at the Michigan City passenger station. The view looks east across Franklin Street, February 1982. (William Shapotkin Photo)

Michigan City, Indiana: loco #109 powers a westbound CSS&SB train (made up of RTA-owned equipment) as it heads westbound in 11th (having just made its Michigan City passenger stop). View looks west from Franklin Street, February 1982. (William Shapotkin Photo)

Michigan City, Indiana: a westbound CSS&SB train (made up of RTA-owned equipment) has departed the Michigan City passenger station on 11th at Franklin Street and heads westbound in 11th. View looks west, February 1982. (William Shapotkin Photo)
Chicago Trolleys

On the Cover: Car 1747 was built between 1885 and 1893 by the Chicago City Railway, which operated lines on the South Side starting in April 1859. This is a single-truck (one set of wheels) open electric car; most likely a cable car, retrofitted with a trolley and traction motor. The man at right is conductor William Stevely Atchison (1861-1921), and this image came from his granddaughter. (Courtesy of Debbie Becker.)
Check out our new book Chicago Trolleys. Signed copies are available through our Online Store.
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Thank you for another great set of photos. Regarding the North Shore Line Electroliner 804-803 in Libertyville on February 17, 1957: usually the Electroliners ran between Chicago and Milwaukee. Why would it be on the Lake Bluff-to-Mundelein branch?
Thanks,
John
They went there a few times on fantrips.
Pullman 271 at North just west of Narragansett. C&WT bus just barely visible in rear would have been on 11-Oak Park route.
Thanks!
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