UAC TurboTrain
UAC TurboTrain | |
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Contact shoe | |
UIC classification | 7 car: B′1′1′1′1′1′1′B′ |
Track gauge | 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) |
The UAC TurboTrain was an early
Description
Chesapeake & Ohio design study
A series of design studies carried out by Chesapeake and Ohio Railway in the 1950s used the second-generation Talgo design for their car suspensions. The suspension arms for each neighboring pair of cars were attached to a common bogie ("truck") between them, as opposed to having a pair of separate bogies for each car. The bogies rode the common curve between the two cars, centered by traction springs that centered the axle between adjoining car bodies.[2] TurboTrain cars are 2.5 feet (76 cm) lower than conventional cars, to lower the
Like the earlier articulated trains, this meant that train lengths would be difficult to change. Their solution to this problem was to modify the power cars (engines) to allow the trains to be coupled end-to-end. Since articulated trains required "special" cars at either end anyway (to fill in the otherwise missing bogie), the C&O was double-ended, with a power car at each end. The power cars were organized with their two diesel engines on either side of the train, and the operators' cabin in a "pod" on top. This left enough room for a passageway to run between the engines and under the pod to the nose of the car, where a coupling and doors were hidden behind a pair of movable clamshell covers.[3] That way the train could be attached front-to-end with another, providing some of the flexibility in train lengths that coupled cars offered, while still being as lightweight as a normal articulated design.[citation needed]
TurboTrain
C&O's early work went undeveloped until the 1960s. At that time two major forces began operating that would re-invent the concept as the TurboTrain; one was the
The turbine engines were smaller and lighter (300 pounds or 136 kilograms with accessories) than the diesels they replaced, so the original power cars ended up being much larger than needed. Instead of a major redesign, UAC re-arranged the interior of the existing layout. The control room "pod" on top was lengthened to produce a viewing area with seating, and additional seating was added along the main level as well. This produced the Power Dome Cars (PDC) that were 73 feet 3 inches (22.33 m) long (tip of nose to trailing articulated axle,[6] while the Intermediate Cars (IC) were 56 feet 10 inches (17.32 m) long (axle to axle),[6] considerably shorter than the 85 feet (25.91 m)-long conventional passenger cars of this period.[citation needed]
The ability to connect trains together remained largely unchanged, although the routing of the internal passage changed slightly to rise up into the observation area of the pod, then back down under the control room and from there to the nose.
The Turbotrains were evaluated by multiple journalists in the Canadian press as having "rail noise that substantially exceeds that of standard equipment" and having poor riding characteristics, especially on curves, with one journalist stating that "the single-axle articulation in practice negotiates curves in a series of short jerks rather than the smooth flowing motion promised in press releases".[7]
The single-axle bogies on the Turbotrain were very mechanically complex and the suspension arms were "telescopic arms which were in essence ball-bearing screw actuators; the suspension of the inside-bearing powered bogies was "especially complex" and attached to the turbines via "an intricate web of mechanical couplings and shafts".[8]
Production and use
U.S. service
Two Turbotrains (DOT1 and DOT2) were built at the
After its construction at the Pullman yards in Chicago, the Turbotrain was sent eastward on August 1, 1967, at regular speed and without passengers, to Providence, Rhode Island, in order for UAC Aircraft Systems engineers to tear it down, study it for further development, and then eventual high-speed testing on the PRR's specially-rebuilt track between Trenton and New Brunswick, New Jersey. [10] [11]
In a competition with a GE powered
On January 1, 1968, the TurboTrain program was transferred from CSC to Sikorsky Aircraft Division (SA) of UAC. The
After railroad bankruptcies and amid threats of more, the National Railroad Passenger Corporation (Amtrak) took over passenger service for most U.S. railroads, including the Penn Central, on May 1, 1971. Amtrak continued Turbotrain service between Boston and New York, switching to
In September 1976, Amtrak ceased revenue runs of Turbotrain trainsets and moved them to the Field's Point Maintenance Yard in Providence, Rhode Island, pending any possible sales to CN.[14] An additional attempt was made to sell the units to the Illinois Central, but the poor mechanical condition of the trainsets caused the deal to fall through.[9] Amtrak finally disposed of the trains in 1980.
Canadian service
In May 1966,
CN and their ad agency wanted to promote the new service as an entirely new form of transit, so they dropped the "train" from the name. In CN's marketing literature the train was referred to simply as the "Turbo", although it retained the full TurboTrain name in CN's own documentation and communication with UAC. A goal of CN's marketing campaign was to get the train into service for Expo 67, and the Turbo was rushed through its trials. It was late for Expo, a disappointment to all involved, but the hectic pace did not let up and it was cleared for service after only one year of testing – most trains go through six to seven years of testing before entering service.[16]
The Turbo's first demonstration run in December 1968, included a large press contingent. An hour into its debut run, the Turbo collided with a truck at a highway crossing near Kingston. Despite the concerns that lightweight trains like the Turbo would be dangerous in collisions, the train remained upright and largely undamaged. Large beams just behind the nose, designed for this purpose, absorbed the impact of the collision and limited the damage to the fiberglass clamshell doors and underlying metal. The train was returned from repairs within a week. No one was killed, though this event has been cited as a main deterrent to Canada's efforts to develop modern passenger rail.[17]
Initial commercial service started soon after. On its first westbound run the Turbo attained 104 mph (167 km/h) 10 minutes outside of Dorval. During speed runs on April 22, 1976, it achieved 140.55 mph (226 km/h) near
Technical problems, including brake systems freezing in winter, required a suspension of service in early January 1969. Service resumed in May 1970; however, technical problems again caused the Canadian National to withdraw all Turbotrains from service again in February 1971.
During the "downtime" CN changed their plans, and in 1971 a rebuild program began, converting the five seven-car sets to three nine-car sets. Several minor changes were added. The engine exhaust fouled the roof windows of the power car, so these were plated over, and a grill was added to the front of the engines just behind the clamshell doors. The remaining power and passenger cars were sold to Amtrak as two four-car sets. One of those sets sideswiped a freight train on a test run in July 1973 and three of the cars were written off.[19] The sale of the surviving Power Dome Coach car was cancelled, and it stood spare until a sister unit caught fire and burned in September 1975.[19]
The three rebuilt 9-car sets entered service for CN in late 1973. CN ran the Turbos from Toronto-Montreal-Toronto with stops at
By 1974, after substantial modifications of the gearbox device and pendular suspension, and reinforcement of the sound insulation, the Turbotrains finally took up untroubled service.[20] CN operated the Turbos until 1978, when their passenger operations were taken over by Via Rail, who continued the service.[21]
One of the three remaining trains developed an oil leak and caught fire on the afternoon run from Montréal to Toronto on May 29, 1979.[21] It was stopped west of Morrisburg. It took some time for the fire engines to arrive as they were forced to drive on the trackbed. The power car and two coaches were totally destroyed. There were no injuries, although rapid disembarkation was needed. The train was eventually towed back to the Turcot yard in Montréal and remained there for several years, covered by tarpaulins.[citation needed]
The Turbo's final run was on October 31, 1982, when they were replaced by the all-Canadian
The withdrawal of the Turbotrains was also precipitated by the rise in oil prices during the 1973 oil embargo and the following years, which destroyed "one of gas turbine traction's prime advantages, fuel cost economy".[clarification needed][20]
None of the UAC TurboTrains were preserved.
High Speed Rail Canada has the largest free videos and audio archive of the Turbotrain on their website.
See also
- Gas turbine-electric locomotive
- JetTrain
Footnotes
- ^ Sikorsky Archives. "Sikorsky Product History - Turbo Train". www.sikorskyarchives.com.
- ^ US patent 3424105, Alan R. Cripe, "Articulated Car Single Axle Truck", issued 1969-01-28
- ^ US patent 2859705, Alan R. Cripe, "Motor Train Power Unit, Passageway, and Cab Structure", issued 1958-11-11
- United Aircraft of Canada. April 1969.
- ^ Lewis (1983), p. 32–33.
- ^ a b Merrilees (1995), facing p.28.
- ^ a b c d Allen (1992), p. 142.
- ^ Allen (1992), p. 140.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-9783611-0-5.
- ^ "Fast Train Project Chugs at Half Speed", by Louis Dombrowski, Chicago Tribune, July 27, 1967, p2-18
- ^ "Turbotrain Due in State Today", Bridgeport (CT) Post, August 3, 1967, p2
- ^ "Dedication of plaque commemorating high speed rail in America" on the National Capital Land Transportation Committee's website
- ^ "Turbo train's first birthday" (PDF). Penn Central Post. May 1970. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-10-06.
- Eugene Register-Guard. April 10, 1977.
The trains were taken from service last September and now are idle at the Field's Point Maintenance Yard near Providence, RI
- ^ Allen (1992), p. 141-142.
- ^ a b c Jerry Langton, "Model-train manufacturer on the right track", 8 December 2008
- ^ Paulsen, Monte (12 June 2009). "Off the Rails". Archived from the original on 8 Aug 2020. Retrieved 10 February 2010.
- ^ Allen (1992), p. 142-143.
- ^ a b Merrilees (1995), p. 28.
- ^ a b c Allen (1992), p. 143.
- ^ a b Bateman, Chris (9 December 2015). "Remembering the ill-fated CN Turbo train". Spacing Magazine. Retrieved 21 February 2017.
References
- Allen, Geoffrey Freeman (1992). The Worlds' Fastest Trains: From the Age of Steam to the TGV. Sparkford, Nr Yeovil, Somerset (United Kingdom): Patrick Stephens Limited. ISBN 978-1852603809.
- Canadian National system time table October 27, 1968, to April 26, 1969.
- Lewis, Donald C. (1983). Rail Canada, volume 4: Paint diagrams and outline drawings for Via Rail's locomotive and passenger car fleet. Vancouver, British Columbia: Lunch Pad Distributors, Inc. ISBN 0-920264-08-5.
- Merrilees, Andrew (1995). Lepkey, Gary; West, Brian (eds.). Canadian National Railways Passenger Equipment 1867–1992. Ottawa, Ontario: Bytown Railway Society, Inc. ISBN 0-921871-01-5.
- Shron, Jason (2008). TurboTrain: A Journey. Rapido Trains Inc. ISBN 978-0-9783611-0-5.
External links
- Video | The Jet Train Is Here (29:56) - National Educational Television and Radio Center
- 1967 TurboTrain press conference - complete audio of the joint CN/UAC/MLW press conference announcing the TurboTrain.
- Sikorsky Archives - A brochure by Sikorsky Aircraft announcing the TurboTrain before it entered service. (archive.org)
- HO Scale models of the United Aircraft Turbo
- High Speed Rail Canada CN Turbo Train Public Archives