'Gawk at a little screen instead of reading a real book? You're joking right?'

a tonic for wives with automobile nerves

 You wonder what was in it.

poster for the centenary of Norwegian railways in 1954

Hupmobile advertisement from 1927

Italian 4-6-2 steam loco painting

By J. Craig Thorpe. "This painting was originally published on the Republic of the Marshall Islands First Day Cover for the 55c Italian 4-6-2 stamp issued 23 August 1996. From 1928 to 1933, the Italian State Railway or Ferrovie dello Stato (FS) constructed the Group 691s, the largest Italian passenger locomotives ever built Group 691s were also among the last Italian steam engines constructed, since none were built for domestic use after the 1930s. Group 691 boilers were interchangeable with those of Group 746 freight engines and the sandbox was located around the steam dome -- a common feature of Italian locomotives. Though powerful, a 19 ton axle-load limited the 691's range to a few main lines including Venice to Rome and Venice to Udine. Although Italy was among the first countries to use diesel and electric locomotives due in part to abundant hydro power and Italy's proximity to oil supplies -- steam locomotives continued to play an important role in that country well into the 1970s. Only 33 Group 691s were built and their longevity is a testimony to the simple and efficient design."

1933 Praga Piccolo

As the name suggests, out of Prague, Czechoslovakia. 

South Australian Railways double decker Garford Model CB bus with 57 seats, 1926

trains at Poyazska Bystrica, Slovakia

1953 Jaguar XK120 M Fixed Head Coupe

1967 Hillman Imp

'come and read my real book with me'

1966 Pontiac Tempest GTO

Arrow commuter service launched in California

from Railway Gazette International

San Bernardino County Transportation Authority’s Arrow passenger service has launched, providing an hourly link between San Bernardino-Downtown station on the Los Angeles region’s Metrolink commuter network and the University of Redlands.

Revenue services on the 14·5 km [8.8 mile] line began on October 24 following a ribbon cutting on October 21. Celebrations on October 29 will include balloons, face painting, a taco truck and giveaways.

The line has five stations, at San Bernardino-Downtown, San Bernardino-Tippecanoe, Redlands-ESRI, Redlands-Downtown and the terminus at the University of Redlands.

‘By extending passenger rail service to Redlands with new, modern and eco-friendly trains, the agencies are fulfilling commitments to not only provide southern California residents with greater regional rail connectivity, but also meet California’s aggressive climate-improvement goals’, said Metrolink Board Vice-Chair and SBCTA board member Larry McCallon.

There will initially be 42 weekday trains running every 30 min during peak hours and every 60 min off peak between 05.30 and 21.00, plus services at weekends.

There are connections to Metrolink’s San Bernardino Line and Inland Empire-Orange County Line at San Bernardino-Downtown, and one Metrolink Express round trip each weekday between Redlands-Downtown and LA Union station, operated using loco hauled stock. The line can also accommodate freight trains.

Infrastructure

Developed by the San Bernardino County Transportation Authority to support population and employment growth in the area 100 km east of central Los Angeles, the Arrow service uses a former AT&SF freight line owned by San Bernardino Associated Governments.

The $359·7m cost of the project was funded with $86m from the federal government, $164·6m from the state of California and $109·1m from local sources.

In 2011 HDR was award an 18-month contract to provide preliminary engineering services. Utility relocation began in 2018, and the following year Flatiron Construction Corp was awarded the $154m main works contract which covered an extensive rebuild of the freight line including five bridges and 24 level crossings. The line is largely single-track with a 3 km [1.8 mile] double-track dynamic passing loop in the middle of the route.

Rolling stock

Built at the company’s Salt Lake City factory, the DMUs meet EPA Tier 4 emissions standards. They are fitted with PTC and meet the Federal Railroad Administration’s Alternative Vehicle Technology regulations, allowing mixed operation with freight trains.

The 48·5 m long trains have two passenger cars and a central power module, with 116 seats and standing room for 118 passengers. Arrow services operate at up to 70 km/h [42 mph], although the design is capable of 160 km/h [100 mph].

Read the rest

German DR railcar 'flyers' cigarette card, 1930s

 

These went under names like the 'Fliegende Hamburger'. See earlier posts.

North American 50-ton rail hopper car

English railway battery powered shunter (switcher) from 1917

Battery-electric locomotive, North Staffordshire Railway (NSR), Bo, now in the National Railway Museum collection was built 1917 for T. Bolton & Sons and withdrawn from service 1963. No. 1 is one of only two battery electric locomotives to be employed by a main-line railway company. The other was built by Midland Railway in Derby in 1913 for shunting at Poplar docks.

The engine was designed to be able to contend with the narrow internal railway of Thomas Bolton & Sons Ltd. Copper Works; the locomotive worked at Bolton’s Oakamoor Works for all of its working life, from 1917 to 1963.

When No. 1 started work in 1917 it replaced three horses, although two horses were still used and stabled at Bolton’s Copper Works until about 1941. On one charge, No. 1 could run for up to six hours and haul a load of more than four times its weight at 11 mph [18 km/h].

Read more

San Francisco traffic in the 1950s

 

Great Eastern Railway, England, 2-4-0 from 1894

It is now part of the Science Museum Group collection -- info

2018 Holden Commodore VF2 SV6 3.6P/6AT

With NZ Police deciding to change from their traditional vehicle supplier -- Holden -- to Skoda, the last 5 Holdens in its fleet were donated to museums in the country.  This one, retired in May 2022, is at the large Southward Car Museum in Otaihanga between Paraparaumu and Waikanae on the Kapiti Coast.

Santa Fe 4-8-4 in California

One of the 30 of Santa Fe's 2900 class 4-8-4, 2928, in passenger train helper service over Cajon Pass. Photo taken at Summit on 19 October 1952 by an unknown photographer.  The class was built by Baldwin in 1944.  More info

'in a minute, honey -- this is a good real book'

1977 Cadillac Seville

traffic on L.A. freeways, 1950s

 

1959 Pontiac Bonneville on Unter den Linden, East Berlin, 1966

With the typical white on red banners with communist slogans visible.  The car must have belonged to a visiting Westerner.

cars outside the Arcade Theatre circa 1938

An artwork entitled "Saturday Night At The Movies" by Lanis Brent Whitsel, webpage

underwater Stingray

German military transport in Mariupol, Ukraine, 1942

There aren't enough features of the bus visible to identify it.  Across the road is an ambulance.

1973 Chrysler Valiant Regal

Ukraine freight car stamps 2013

Ukraine train passenger cars stamps, 2012

freight train on the Wellington region coast south of Paekakariki

1971 Chevrolet Monte Carlo

 

1934 Rolls Royce

'a cake, a cup of coffee, and good real books -- what can be more enjoyable?'

1934 Mercedes 500K roadster

first run of the 'Inlander' train set in Queensland, Australia, February 1953

What looks like a colorized photo of the first Air-Conditioned passenger car set in Queensland service on a trial run to Toowoomba carrying invited guests on Sunday 1 February 1953. Here it crosses Swansons Bridge in the Toowoomba Range.

The set is hauled by an 1150 class 1100 hp diesel-electric of Co-Co axle arrangement. QR's first mainline diesels, ten units were supplied by USA's General Electric over 1952-1953.  More info

Dutch rail safety poster

'Tempered speed guards against accidents.'  No date.

Grand Trunk (Canadian National) 4-6-2

A class J-3a member, data on this webpage.  The pic was taken in September 1949 at Granby, Ontario.

Can-Am poster featuring Porsche success, 1972

The Canadian-American Challenge Cup, or Can-Am, lasted from 1966 to 1987.  More info

1938 Hendrickson truck and trailer

"The Hendrickson story began in 1913 with the founding of The Hendrickson Motor Truck Company by inventor and businessman Magnus Hendrickson. This small Chicago-based manufacturing company built trucks often equipped with cranes, which were used to haul stone and other building materials.

"In 1926, Hendrickson introduced the first tandem truck suspension, which mounted the axles on each end of an equalizing beam. This unique 'walking beam' design distributed the truck's load evenly between the two rear axles, which improved traction and greatly reduced the effects of bumps and potholes in the road. The walking beam soon gained widespread acceptance among the industry's new 6x4 'six wheeler' trucks, which allowed more payload.

"In 1978, The Boler Company, whose holdings included manufacturers of leaf springs and metal bumpers, purchased Hendrickson. In the years that followed, Hendrickson would expand into or acquire additional businesses in related areas—trailer suspension systems, auxiliary axle systems, springs, metal bumpers, and other heavy-duty components."

More info and pics on the company's official website

experimental bush tramway tractor, Karapoti Gorge, NZ, circa 1920

The tractor was built by Nattrass motor engineers of Wellington using a Cadillac motor engine adapted for hauling timber on the track at Campbell's Sawmill. The trial proved unsatisfactory and the machine was not purchased. (H.R. Maybury pic in the Upper Hutt Library)

1961 Renault Caravelle Floride

1912 Marmon Tourer

'I like being surrounded by real books, they're so enticing'

1975 Triumph 25PI

English railway atmosphere painting

Late 19th century on the south coast?  By Alan Fearnley (1942-)

Website with many more

Helsinki horse tram of 1890

Tram tracks involving steel wheels on steel rails have much less friction than wood or rubber wheels on paved or unpaved roads; but there are nevertheless limits on the loads that horses can haul up gradients: electric motors had to take over and they did within a few years.