Turboliners - more than just a train

 Born in 1956, I came of age just when passenger trains were dying.  The railroads invested heavily in new passenger trains just after WWII, just in time to watch automobiles and airplanes steal nearly all the passengers away.  By the late 1960s, few trains were left and many of those were getting shabby.  Railroads lost money running them and couldn't wait to get rid of the last of them.  

In 1971, Amtrak was created to lift the burden of passenger trains from the railroads.  Despite some new paint and upholstery, the passenger cars and locomotives were still old and largely unreliable.  

Early Amtrak paint job.  Empire Builder.  Havre Montana

Carman makes up connections of two old NYC coaches in Albany - Rensselaer

Typical Hudson Line train in mid 1970s

I went to college at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy NY.  One "benefit" was that I could travel home on Amtrak.  A two legged trip.  Albany (Rensselaer, across the river, actually) to New York, Grand Central Terminal, then two subway trains to New York Penn Station and a train to Philadelphia.  

The Albany to New York portion of the trip was a worn-out shadow of it's glory years.  What once was a well used, multi-track mainline with lots of freight and passenger service was now a worn out, weedy line with five passenger trains and a pair of freight trains each day.  South of Poughkeepsie, the railroad belonged to the state of  New York to run commuter service.  Although there were more trains, the right of way wasn't much better.  A typical train was a worn out E8 ex-NYC E8 locomotive or three, and two or more coaches that were remnants of the New York Central's "Great Steel Fleet".  On bouncy, "clickety clack", jointed rail, the 79 mph maximum, 142 mile trip took 2:40, if you were lucky.   Sometimes too hot, sometimes too cold, sometimes a bit decrepit, the coaches had the "disappearing railroad blues".  

Trying for 79 mph.  Staats Island Road.  South of Rensselaer NY

However, New York State had plans for this route.  The success of the Metroliners from Washington DC to New York led them to believe the "Empire Corridor" could be successful, too.  They ordered some sleek, French designed - US adapted, 110 mph, turbo-hydraulic passenger train sets nicknamed "Turboliners" and set to work fixing up the track and signaling on the route.  About the same time, Amtrak ordered a fleet of new passenger cars and locomotives to complement the Metroliners on the New York to Washington "Northeast Corridor" route. 

Maybe things were looking up for passenger trains?  Yes!

They are here! 
 Turboliners not yet in service sit in Rensselaer as Lake Shore Limited makes it's station stop.

The Turboliners arrived!   The were sleek and modern and comfortable and smooth and quiet and FAST!  I rode them many times, both during my college days and later for business and pleasure.

The Turboliners were my personal icon for hope for passenger travel when all seemed lost.  I can't look at pictures of them without recalling feeling "things ARE getting better!"  

So, after much haranguing in the model railroad community - much of it in jest (hopefully!), Rapido Model Trains https://rapidotrains.com/ho-scale/complete-train/rtl-turboliner.html decides to manufacture Turboliners in HO scale.  

Perfect for my model railroad!  

Actually, NOT perfect.  My model railroad is the right era for the Turboliners, but they never got within 100 mile of  Atlantic City.  Rats.

My model RR takes an alternate history view of South Jersey.
Yellow lines are area modeled.

Yeah, but I really want one... So, here's how.

Amtrak ran trains from Philadelphia to Atlantic City from 1989 to 1995.  Some of the trains continued beyond Philadelphia to NYC/Springfield MA, Washington DC/Richmond.  On my model railroad, one of the trains has through cars from Chicago.  So....why not have one train extend to Albany?  And, why not have it be a Turboliner!  

Plausible?  Can Turboliners get from Penn Station to NJ through the North River Tunnels?  Yes!  Turboliners were built to run on under-running third rail in order to get into Grand Central Terminal.  They were later converted to run on over-running third rail when the connection from the Hudson Line to Penn Station was completed in 1991.  The tunnels under the Hudson river have overhead catenary, but were originally built with over-running third rail as far as Exchange Place - where they used to switch from electric locomotives to steam.  As recently as 1960, the third rail was still in place, at least through the tunnels, and was used to test FL9 locomotives for possible use service to the North Jersey Coast.  

So, you could get a Turboliner from Penn Station to NJ.  My train service would operate from Albany to Penn Station where the train would change ends and then continue into NJ.  It would travel on the Northeast Corridor to Frankfort Junction, in northeast Philadelphia, change ends again and continue across the Delair Bridge and on to Atlantic City.

My reservation is in with Rapido (actually Tony's Trains...).  I'm ready.  Are you?