PRR GG1 and Caboose to Relocate From Harrisburg Station

Alexander D. Mitchell IV · **Posted:** Thu Mar 27, 2014 6:06 pm

Press release received today, dated yesterday:

Quote:

PennDOT Keystone Corridor Work Requires Temporary Move of Historic GG1 Locomotive
Move Scheduled for Saturday Morning, April 5

Harrisburg – PennDOT announced today that as part of ongoing improvements on the Keystone Corridor, the historic GG1 Pennsylvania railroad locomotive No. 4859 will be temporarily moved from its spot at the Harrisburg Transportation Center to a siding 1,000 feet west of the station.

Amtrak is managing the move, which will take place on Saturday April 5 beginning at 7 a.m.

The move of both the historic GGI locomotive and caboose is necessary so a $36 million project to improve power, signals, track and switches into the Harrisburg Transportation Center can be completed. The upgrades will further improve the train times from Harrisburg to Philadelphia and New York City. Work started in late 2013 and will conclude by 2017.

An Amtrak locomotive will push the GGI and caboose to a siding near the 7th Street garage about 1/4 mile away. The locomotive later will be “shrink-wrapped” to protect it from the elements until it can be moved back to its current location.

Because of safety concerns during the move, spectators will only be able to view the move from an overlook area at the transportation center or from other designated, public areas away from the station. Parking is available at nearby parking garages or metered spots on nearby city streets.

The GG1, one of the world’s most distinctive locomotives and a mainstay of the Pennsylvania Railroad, served the Harrisburg station on service to Philadelphia and New York City between 1938 and 1981. No. 4859 pulled the first electrically powered train into the Harrisburg station on Jan. 15, 1938. It was located at the station as a memorial to that service in 1986, designated as the official state locomotive and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The Harrisburg Chapter of the National Railway Historical Society maintains both No. 4859 and the caboose.

Mgoldman · **Posted:** Fri Apr 04, 2014 6:02 pm

Bump - plus, out of curiosity, within a quarter mile - is there any location other then the roadway overpass by the station to view?

Actually - looking at Google Maps, the full length of the move seems to cover from under the platform canopy to the bridge itself (past the bridge is a 1/3 of a mile).

There may be a good view from the garage seen to the right of this "view".

https://www.google.com/maps/@40.265171, ... !2e0?hl=en

Looking forward to pics!

/Mitch

Mgoldman · **Posted:** Tue Apr 08, 2014 12:21 am

From the Harrisburg NRHS chapter newsletter:

For the long term, PennDOT has agreed to fund the
construction of a plastic wrapper over each piece to protect
them from weather, vandals and other concerns. The wrap
will not contact the painted surfaces directly, as a form will be
built around them first. The covers will be black, with logos
of the involved organizations applied to them. Also, several
solar-powered fans with battery backups will be installed to
provide air circulation. PennDOT has agreed to arrange for
periodic inspection of the equipment to check that fans are
working and the wrapper stays intact. This set-up will remain
to the end of the project, which could run to 2017.

I stopped by on Sunday to take a peek - looks like one nice
vantage point would've been the Harris Tower now open
to the public. I hear it was standing room only.

The caboose /cabin car was moved first and then the GG1.
Pulled South, shoved North.

Howard P. · **Posted:** Wed Apr 09, 2014 8:37 pm

Color me cynical (many have), but these will be protected by "wrap"??? It's only a matter of time (short) before the cabin car and locomotive are damaged/gutted/tagged by vandals. No better solution here? Move 4859 to Strasburg temporarily? Yes, the cabin car has those terribly dangerous plain bearings and cannot move on own wheels, but it could be trucked to a better, secure site.

Is the "wrap" made of titanium?

To do this in an urban environment..... good grief.

Howard P.
Razor Wire, NY

Alexander D. Mitchell IV · **Posted:** Wed Apr 09, 2014 9:02 pm

I know something about this specific area, even though I haven't been there in a while.

Harrisburg isn't Philly. Believe me, it has its bad parts, but not around there.

Disregard what appear to be new fences going up around this siding, which will presumably be topped by barbed/razor wire. The fact is, this is NOT an easily accessible area, like the B&O Museum's "First Mile" is. It a mere 2-3 blocks from the State Capitol Complex and adjacent to a major, quite busy NS/Amtrak interlocking. If I'm not mistaken, NS even has security cameras at that interlocking, and one can easily be installed on the nearby parking garage as well.

You know how intelligent, "knowledgeable" railfans can sometimes "get away" with "trespassing" at a spot like this for something as "big" as, say, NKP 765 operating through? No, one, and I mean NO ONE that I could see, even tried it around that area. I saw plenty of very frustrated "out-of-towners" trying in vain to access the tracks further to the north, however, when 765 visited in 2012.