Peninsula Commute
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- See Caltrain for the commuter rail service presently operating on the San Francisco Peninsula.
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The original Peninsula railroad corridor between San Francisco and San Jose was constructed in 1863 by the San Francisco and San Jose Rail Road, which was purchased by Southern Pacific in 1870.
Under Southern Pacific's ownership, the line was double tracked in 1904 and had experienced record ridership during World War II. After the war, the ridership slowly declined with the rise of automobile use. In 1971 when Amtrak took over long distance passenger operations, Southern Pacific's extended commute train to Monterey, California, the "Del Monte", was discontinued, but Southern Pacific retained normal commute service. All of SP's passenger locomotives were then transferred to peninsula commute service except for those what were sold to Amtrak. In 1977, SP filed a petition with the state Public Utilities Commission to discontinue the commuter operation due to the ongoing operating losses.
To preserve the commuter service, Caltrans in 1980 contracted SP and began to subsidize the operation. During the Caltrans' administration, Caltrans purchased new locomotives and rolling stock which replaced the SP equipment in 1985, upgraded stations, introduced shuttle buses to nearby employers, and rebranded the operation to is present state as CalTrain.
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[edit] Locomotives Used on the Peninsula Commutes
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This article or section may contain an excessive amount of information with limited interest or intricate details. The article could be improved by integrating relevant items and removing inappropriate ones. (May 2008) |
[edit] Steam Locomotives
Note: SP began dieselization of all passenger train operations in the early 1950s and the peninsula commute became fully dieselized by 1958, after which all steam locomotives were retired and scrapped or donated to parks or museums.
| Class | Wheel arrangement (Whyte notation) |
Locomotive Numbers | Years of Service | Notes | Current Disposition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C Class | 2-8-0 | Various | Various-1957 | Nine survive; 2521, 2562, 2579, 2706, 2718, 2781, 2825, 2852, 3420 | |
| M Class | 2-8-2 | Various | Various-1957 | None survive | |
| P-8 | 4-6-2 | 2461-2475 | 1921-1957 | Two survive; 2467 & 2472 | |
| P-10 | 4-6-2 | 2478-2491 | 1923-1957 | One survives; 2479 | |
| P-11 | 4-6-2 | 3100-3109 | 1923-1957 | None survive | |
| MT-1 | 4-8-2 | 4300-4327 | 1923-1957 | This locomotive class was assigned to various other trains at the same time. | None survive |
| MT-2 | 4-8-2 | 4385-4390 | 1924-1957 | This locomotive class was assigned to various other trains at the same time. | None survive |
| MT-3 | 4-8-2 | 4328-4345 | 1925-1957 | This locomotive class was assigned to various other trains at the same time. | None survive |
| MT-4 | 4-8-2 | 4346-4366 | 1926-1957 | This locomotive class was assigned to various other trains at the same time. | None survive |
| MT-5 | 4-8-2 | 4367-4376 | 1927-1957 | This locomotive class was assigned to various other trains at the same time. | None survive |
| GS-1 | 4-8-4 | 4400-4409 | 1930-1956 | This locomotive class was assigned to various other trains at the same time. | None survive |
| GS-2 | 4-8-4 | 4410-4415 | 1937-1957 | This locomotive class was assigned to various other trains at the same time, starting in the mid-1940s. | None survive |
| GS-3 | 4-8-4 | 4416-4429 | 1938-1957 | This locomotive class was assigned to various other trains at the same time, starting in the mid-1940s. | None survive |
| GS-4 | 4-8-4 | 4430-4457 | 1941-1958 | This locomotive class was assigned to various other trains at the same time, starting in the early 1950s. | One survives; 4449 |
| GS-5 | 4-8-4 | 4458 & 4459 | 1942-1958 | This locomotive class was assigned to various other trains at the same time, starting in the early 1950s. | None survive |
| GS-6 | 4-8-4 | 4460-4469 | 1943-1958 | This locomotive class was assigned to various other trains at the same time, starting in the late 1940s. | One survives; 4460 |
[edit] Diesel Locomotives
Note: some diesel locomotives continued operating in freight service after the arrival of Caltrain equipment in 1985.
| Builder | Model | Locomotive Numbers | Years of Service | Notes | Current Disposition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Electro-Motive Division (EMD) | FP7 | 6446-6462 | 1950-1972; 6462 retired in 1972; others retired by Amtrak by the early 1980s | All but 6462 sold to Amtrak in 1971; then 6462 was assigned to the commutes before being retired the following year. | None survive |
| EMD | SD7 | Various | 1952-1975; retired by the mid-1990s | Removed from passenger service use after being rebuilt in the mid-1970s. | One survives*; 1518 |
| FM | FM H-24-66 "Train Master" | 4800-4815; renumbered 3020-3035 |
1953-1976 | None survive | |
| EMD | GP9 | 5600-5603, 5622-5625, 5893-5895; renumbered 3000-3010; renumbered 3186-3196 |
1954-1985; retired by the mid-1990s | Two survive*; 5623, 3194 | |
| EMD | SD9 | 4450 & 4451 | 1954-1985; retired by the late 1990s | No specific SD9s were assigned to the commutes until 4450 & 4451 were specifically assigned in the mid-1970s. | Four survive*; 4404, 4423, 4450, 5472 |
| GE | P30CH | 700-724 | 1978; retired by Amtrak by the early 1990s. | Leased from Amtrak. | None survive |
| EMD | SDP45 | 3200-3209 | 1967-1985; retired by the mid-1990s | None survive | |
| EMD | GP40P-2 | 3197-3199; renumbered 7600-7602 |
1974-1985; still in active service | The last passenger locomotives ordered by the Southern Pacific. | All three are currently active as Union Pacific 1373 & 1375; Indiana Harbor Belt 4010 |
- There are possibly other survivors that may still be active on shortlines or as industrial switchers.
[edit] Rolling Stock
Two types of passenger cars were used on the peninsula commutes. The first were the "Suburban" coaches, also known as "Subs" and "Cream Puffs", made by Pullman-Standard from 1923 to 1927. These cars are still operated by the Grand Canyon Railway. The second were bi-level coaches. The first order was made in 1955 and more were ordered in 1957. Like the "Subs", they were made by Pullman-Standard. More bi-level coaches were ordered in 1968 and were made by American Car & Foundry. All were used until Caltrain equipment arrived in 1985.
Many examples of the "Suburban" coaches still exist at several museums in California and are still in service on a few tourist railroads. The bi-levels were sold to Trancisco Tours, Colorado Railcar, and the Alaska Railroad. Trancisco Tours converted them into luxury lounges and diners, while Colorado Railcar converted them into luxury full-length dome cars for Princess Tours which are used on the Alaska Railroad. Trancisco Tours went bankrupt in the early 1990s, and the majority of the converted ex-SP bi-level coaches were sold to the Burlington Northern Railroad for use on their business trains, and a few others went to dinner and tourist railroads. Burlington Northern merged with the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railroad to become BNSF in the mid-1990s, and the converted ex-SP bi-level coaches still continue to serve as business cars. There are four that still remain in their original condition; one is in service on the Alaska Railroad and three are in storage at the Colorado Railcar facility.
