Last Days of the PaTrain

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  • เผยแพร่เมื่อ 7 ก.ย. 2016
  • Scenes of Pittsburgh's ill-fated PaTrain, Port Authority Transit's attempt to revitalize its ex-B&O Mon Valley commuter service. Unfortunately, by the time the rebuilt equipment came on line (EX SP/WAG F7's and C&O coaches) in 1981, the bottom had dropped out of the steel industry and took the fate of the Mon Valley with it. With ridership in free fall, the service only lasted until April 28, 1989 in much the form that you see here. These videos were take on two trips to Pittsburgh for Conrail training schools in March and April 1989.
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ความคิดเห็น • 81

  • @1990sRailfan
    @1990sRailfan 8 ปีที่แล้ว +26

    I never saw the Pa Train, I do remember reading in Trains Magazine when it was discontinued. I took note of it having F units...what a bummer. Thanks for documenting this.

    • @sheilasembly-crum8447
      @sheilasembly-crum8447 7 ปีที่แล้ว +3

      1990s Railfan
      I miss the F train diesel. I always thought they were classy with a special personality. Nothing exists like that today.

    • @ianhudson9398
      @ianhudson9398 5 ปีที่แล้ว +3

      Fortunate they survived for so long on Shore Line East in Connecticut

    • @PC10.8
      @PC10.8 4 ปีที่แล้ว +2

      They’re preserved as ATSF units now in Texas, I think they’re in operational condition too

  • @stevenmichael2845
    @stevenmichael2845 8 ปีที่แล้ว +16

    Look at all this classic Pittsburgh action! PATrain, Port Authority PCC cars, pre-superliner Capitol Limited! Awesome video!

  • @penguinsfan251
    @penguinsfan251 6 ปีที่แล้ว +8

    This train ended six years before I came back to Pittsburgh. I wish Pittsburgh still had commuter train service, if not from the Mon Valley, then from Greensburg and/or Washington (Littl' Worshington).

    • @bradklingensmith
      @bradklingensmith 6 ปีที่แล้ว +2

      You used to be able to take the trolley from the Mon Valley and Lil Washington all the way to Butler.

  • @marcdamico1987
    @marcdamico1987 6 ปีที่แล้ว +10

    I used to ride train's to Pittsburgh from McKeesport to watch concerts at the igloo. we would always get in the last car and it was party time. lots of pot and iron city beer. oh those were tje days my friend.I thought they'd never end.

  • @johnpennington7107
    @johnpennington7107 ปีที่แล้ว +3

    Enjoyed riding the Pat Train. Need to bring it back with a buses to make easier to get to the terminal.. The Mon Valley and surrounding area needs a system like the Metra in Chicago to move people faster and all times in the morning and evening.

  • @fmnut
    @fmnut  4 ปีที่แล้ว +3

    To the person who requested use of this video, feel free to download and edit as you wish. Sorry I didn't answer directly as I inadvertently deleted your request.

  • @Hail2Pitt412
    @Hail2Pitt412 7 ปีที่แล้ว +9

    Tremendous video. thank you for sharing this. growing up right in the heart of where these clips were shown its incredible to see what the landscape looked like then versus now. It's a shame they started the PAT train then and not now. an idea that really could've been successful in today's Pittsburgh. I still wonder how the city feels about tearing down the old B&O Grant Avenue station to put in the county jail too...

    • @cjones3710
      @cjones3710 2 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      Oh that's crumby.

  • @bendover9411
    @bendover9411 4 ปีที่แล้ว +5

    What a piece of history, awesome!

  • @judio2163
    @judio2163 6 ปีที่แล้ว +4

    I used to catch this train every day for college and the first couple years I worked in Pittsburgh. You could park in the lots for free, get a monthly student pass, and it was always on time!

  • @barondesena
    @barondesena ปีที่แล้ว +2

    What a great atmospheric video of a train I didn’t know existed. Watching it and the sounds were so relaxing and peaceful. Thanks for sharing it.

  • @pedoublenizzle
    @pedoublenizzle 7 ปีที่แล้ว +4

    Thank you for uploading this. I only remember stepping onto a PaTrain car once when I was very little. I think I remember the station too (now that I saw the video).

  • @rayinpau.s.a.6351
    @rayinpau.s.a.6351 2 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    I rode the PAT Train for the first time in the late 70's and loved it , I also rode the B&O BUDD Cars as well from Mckeesport to Pittsburgh , So I had to ride the PAT Train on its last journey and the local NEWS also was riding it as well and interviewed us , I modeled the trains in HO scale and hand painted and decaled the engines and passenger cars .

  • @BNSFandSP
    @BNSFandSP 3 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    I do believe the last car on the Capital was the original Beach Grove! Thanks for sharing!

  • @haroldalexis4200
    @haroldalexis4200 2 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    First time i am seeing this railroad. I thought that EMD FP 9. I was saying these cars look unfamiliar. What a nice commuter railroad. I definitely want to model these in scale models. A missed rail line but another modelers gain. Great video. 👍✅🎥👋👋👋👋👋👋

  • @jamesmccann1097
    @jamesmccann1097 10 หลายเดือนก่อน

    Some B&O employee's told us that when they bought the train set it was sent to Cleveland to be painted, it came back in Cleveland Browns colors.

  • @davidmitchell6873
    @davidmitchell6873 ปีที่แล้ว

    I can't believe I'm just seeing this now. I lived in Versailles and rode this train so many times. I loved just deciding on a moments notice to just jump on a train and walk around downtown for a few hours. I have missed it since the day it stopped.

  • @carlosturren2683
    @carlosturren2683 8 ปีที่แล้ว +3

    ¡ Estupendo video !.

  • @andrewtreece3708
    @andrewtreece3708 7 ปีที่แล้ว +4

    my Father did some work on there F units when GE still had a field office in Pittsburgh.

  • @joebob3719
    @joebob3719 7 ปีที่แล้ว +6

    Also, it really neat to see the towns and point of interest of Pittsburgh from 30 years ago. Although it pains to see a commuter line pass on to history, its pretty neat to be able to hop on your bike today and ride most of the right of way all the way from Downtown to Versailles and beyond.

    • @WesternOhioInterurbanHistory
      @WesternOhioInterurbanHistory 4 ปีที่แล้ว +2

      So this entire line in the video is a bike path?

    • @carsonplayz5975
      @carsonplayz5975 3 ปีที่แล้ว

      @@WesternOhioInterurbanHistory No most of it belongs to CSX or just abandoned

  • @AmericanRailfan-gb8oq
    @AmericanRailfan-gb8oq 7 ปีที่แล้ว +2

    I have never heard of this train, and that is a nice Seaboard Air Line paint scheme.

    • @fmnut
      @fmnut  7 ปีที่แล้ว +2

      Mitchell DeVillers the train has been gone for almost 30 years, so if you're a younger fan or not from the area it's not surprising that you never heard of it. And the Seaboard scheme was green not brown.

    • @AmericanRailfan-gb8oq
      @AmericanRailfan-gb8oq 7 ปีที่แล้ว

      fmnut That explains it, I am only 15, and I know most commuter train services, but I have never heard of this train. And the SAL citrus paint scheme looks very similar to this train.

  • @joeobrien6405
    @joeobrien6405 2 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    I used to skip school and ride the PaTrain. What was the other train that ran thur Wilkinsburg while the Parkway east was being rebilt?

  • @cjones3710
    @cjones3710 2 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    Amazimg..I love this train.

  • @CrazyBear65
    @CrazyBear65 6 ปีที่แล้ว +5

    I rode the PATrain once. The old B&O station, where the ACJ is at now... Sad.

  • @howardquinn5911
    @howardquinn5911 3 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    Is this the train that carried the stratadomer from DC to McKeesport and points NW? I remember riding when we were kids. What a thrill!

    • @fmnut
      @fmnut  3 ปีที่แล้ว

      At 04:00 is the Capitol Limited with the dome car. This is the train you are talking about. The PATrain only ran from Versailles to Pittsburgh.

  • @forgottentransit5211
    @forgottentransit5211 4 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    Hi! Could I get your permission to use some of your video for background footage for a youtube documentary I'm making on PaTrain? You'd be credited both in-video and in the description with a link to this video as well as your channel. Regardless, thank you so much for posting this content online. PATrain is an increasingly forgotten part of Pennsylvania railroading history, and this footage is absolutely amazing! (: take care

  • @kevinhoward9593
    @kevinhoward9593 2 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    The last train to use B&O Pittsburgh Station.

  • @sargentrowell81
    @sargentrowell81 4 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    3:46 - Is that the Capitol Limited? Did they really have the old single level fleet in use on that route for that long? I don't know of any other services that would have used a diner and sleepers through Pittsburgh, though I don't by any means know all of the services that Amtrak has ever run.

    • @blackbirdgaming8147
      @blackbirdgaming8147 3 ปีที่แล้ว

      Yeah the Capitol used single level equipment for quite some time, all the way up until the Superliner IIs were delivered.

  • @williamschultz2326
    @williamschultz2326 3 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    It would have been a great idea to expand the patrain all the to Beaver Falls

  • @geralddelgiorno4691
    @geralddelgiorno4691 ปีที่แล้ว

    I would've liked to see this train going at around top speed, which the Diesel FL-9's were about 89 MPH?

  • @AskWlat
    @AskWlat 3 ปีที่แล้ว +2

    Any idea what Amtrak route that was going through at 4 minutes ?

    • @fmnut
      @fmnut  3 ปีที่แล้ว

      Capitol Limited

    • @AskWlat
      @AskWlat 3 ปีที่แล้ว

      Interesting. Had no idea the Capital limited and, it appears Keystone Service, both went through the Port.

    • @fmnut
      @fmnut  3 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      @@AskWlat The train at 04:00 is indeed the Capitol Limited running on the B&O through McKeesport. The Capitol runs on the former B&O from McKeesport to DC. The train at 06:50 is the Pennsylvanian running on the former PRR passing the Edgar Thompson Works of US Steel taken from the Westinghouse (US 30) bridge at East Pittsburgh.

    • @AskWlat
      @AskWlat 3 ปีที่แล้ว

      @@fmnut my fault. Pennsylvanian is the Pittsburgh to New York route. I live in Harrisburg and had the Keystone on my mind. Thanks again for the info.

  • @PositionLight
    @PositionLight 3 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    Why was there Amtrak equipment at the B&O station?

    • @fmnut
      @fmnut  3 ปีที่แล้ว

      Privately owned cars, ex-Amtrak, still in Amtrak paint.

    • @PositionLight
      @PositionLight 3 ปีที่แล้ว

      @@fmnut Ah, how did the private cars get in and out of the station? Were they shooed out when the passenger service ended?

    • @fmnut
      @fmnut  3 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      @@PositionLight the PV cars were handled by CSX switch crews. And yes, once the PATrain ended the station area was sold off and the track leading to it torn up.

  • @thomasabramson100
    @thomasabramson100 3 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    @ 8:49 what station is that with the Baltimore & Ohio name on it ?????

    • @fmnut
      @fmnut  3 ปีที่แล้ว

      That was the B&O Pittsburgh station, it was a stub end station located at the foot of Grant St. downtown. It was a throwback to the 1950's inside and outside.

    • @thomasabramson100
      @thomasabramson100 3 ปีที่แล้ว

      @@fmnut There used to be a train that ran from Cleveland Oh to Washington DC and Baltimore MD Called the "Steel King" B&O and Erie Lackawanna. Did there used to be a through line or did it use a different route ???

    • @fmnut
      @fmnut  3 ปีที่แล้ว

      @@thomasabramson100 B&O through trains going west of Pittsburgh used the P&LE station across the river. Only trains terminating in Pittsburgh used the Grant St. facility. The Steel King was actually a P&LE train that had B&O cars from the Washingtonian coupled on the rear. It ran P&LE from Pittsburgh to Youngstown and then the Erie from Youngstown to Cleveland.

  • @KISSFanDan1995
    @KISSFanDan1995 6 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    Who operates this line now? Or is it abandoned?

    • @fmnut
      @fmnut  6 ปีที่แล้ว +2

      KISSFanDan1995 The passenger trains shown were discontinued a few weeks after the video was taken. The tracks are still used by CSX for freight.

    • @mikepilyih6524
      @mikepilyih6524 4 ปีที่แล้ว

      Most of this the CSX Pittsburgh Sub thru McKeesport and the Keystone sub to Versailles, PA. Still both busy. Some is the CSX P&W sub and the long since removed siding from Junction Hollow to the Pittsburgh B&O station. Amtrak atill runs the Capitol Limited over this line but has no stops on it

  • @brianfalzon6739
    @brianfalzon6739 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    What happened to them now?

    • @fmnut
      @fmnut  ปีที่แล้ว

      In the museum at Galveston Tx. Painted Santa Fe warbonnet.

  • @Maine_Railfan
    @Maine_Railfan 6 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    What became of the equipment?

    • @fmnut
      @fmnut  6 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      Maine Railfan© sold to ConnDot.

    • @wurlitzer1538
      @wurlitzer1538 6 ปีที่แล้ว

      fmnut Both are now painted in Santa Fe colors and reside at a museum in Texas

    • @fmnut
      @fmnut  6 ปีที่แล้ว

      Wurlitzer 153 yes, Galveston, I believe

    • @centredoorplugsthornton4112
      @centredoorplugsthornton4112 5 ปีที่แล้ว +4

      Both F units and 9 of 10 cars bought by Connecticut DOT when it began Shore Line East commuter service New Haven-Old Saybrook in 1990. ConnDOT later replaced the PATrain stock with newer cars and units. Six coaches were bought by Norfolk Southern for excursion use, then 5 were auctioned off last year.

    • @CTrail1711
      @CTrail1711 2 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      @@wurlitzer1538 That's so sad. They should have kept the Shore Line East paint.

  • @lemfarba4827
    @lemfarba4827 5 ปีที่แล้ว +4

    So was this a PAT owned train but operated by B&O crews?

    • @fmnut
      @fmnut  5 ปีที่แล้ว +4

      Yes.

  • @joebob3719
    @joebob3719 7 ปีที่แล้ว +2

    Somebody should forward this video to Rick Sebak.

    • @fmnut
      @fmnut  7 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      joebob3719 who is he?

    • @joebob3719
      @joebob3719 7 ปีที่แล้ว +2

      A Pittsburgh-Famous videographer who works for WQED/PBS. He is well known for shows about Pittsburgh and one show called "Things that aren't there anymore". He might get a kick out this footage.

  • @haj8579
    @haj8579 6 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    Did this get replaced by something else?

    • @fmnut
      @fmnut  6 ปีที่แล้ว +2

      ha J no, it was terminated several weeks after the video was shot.

    • @haj8579
      @haj8579 6 ปีที่แล้ว +2

      Well, it's sad that one transportation system has disappeared without any replacement then... even though the era of 80s was the dark age of public transit for the entire US. But I think modern day Pittsburgh has better transit than lots of other Midwestern cities though, good for the people there.

    • @trainrover
      @trainrover 6 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      Yeah, you'd think the services would've been resurrected some time ago already.

    • @mrstep2me
      @mrstep2me 5 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      Pittsburgh is in the Appalachians, not the Midwest. Also, it wasn't the Pa Train, it was the PATrain, pronounced Pat train.

  • @1990sRailfan
    @1990sRailfan 8 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    What is the story behind those cab cars?

    • @fmnut
      @fmnut  8 ปีที่แล้ว +5

      Ex C&O Pullman Standard coaches just like the rest of the train. They were rebuilt into Cab/HEP cars when the rest of the train was refurbished around 1980.

    • @1990sRailfan
      @1990sRailfan 8 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      I noticed the exhaust stacks on the roof, that would explain it...Thanks.

  • @warrengibson7898
    @warrengibson7898 7 ปีที่แล้ว +2

    Good video, but it would have been nice to start with some clue as to what we're looking at. At about 3:00 I figured it must be in the US and by 5:00 I knew it was Pittsburgh, but only because I'd heard of McKeesport.

    • @fmnut
      @fmnut  7 ปีที่แล้ว +2

      Warren Gibson. Google it.