Fascinating that two ‘Big Boys’ are getting all this attention in the same timeframe… Paul From: Joe Dale Morris [mailto:joedalemorris@sbcglobal.net]
Sent: Monday, August 19, 2013 7:27 AM
To: Joe Dale Morris (office)
Subject: FW: Fwd: more on where choo choo goes Mike McGinley is a retired Espee fellow that I’ve know for many years. He now works for MetroLink in California and is very knowledgeable on California matters. I thought those of you who are following the move of the ex-UP 4014 in Pomona might find this article interesting. ~Joe Dale Below is an article from Trains Magazine On Line weekly news UPDATE: How 'Big Boy' No. 4014 can roll from the fairgroundsPublished: August 2, 2013 LOS ANGELES — Moving the 598-ton, 133-foot long articulated Union Pacific “Big Boy” steam locomotive No. 4014 out of its long-time home at the Los Angeles County Fairgrounds in Pomona, Calif., will be a massive effort befitting this king-sized engine.
The locomotive has been on display at the fairgrounds since 1962, and its location today is a parking lot. But that’s about to change in ways that nobody ever imagined. The locomotive’s owner, the Southern California Chapter of the Railway & Locomotive Historical Society, and UP have agreed to put the engine back in UP’s hands for restoration to operation.
But how will it get out of the fairgrounds, which are landlocked? Huge multi-wheeled dollies? A giant cargo helicopter? Panel track? Some other innovative means?
Trains sought the advice of a licensed professional engineer and former Southern Pacific and Metrolink official, Mike McGinley, for his expert opinion. Here’s what he told us, based on his years of railroad experience in the area. The tracks outside the fairgrounds were SP and now belong to Metrolink.
"When (Southern Pacific 4-8-4) No. 4449 and the American Freedom Train came to the Los Angeles County Fairgrounds in 1976, we installed a turnout and the fair people laid panel track," McGinley says. “This was a simple spur track, oriented north-south. It was about at a right angle to the present fairground exhibit tracks. The 4014 is more than 4,000 feet away, or more than 100 panel lengths, probably much more to account for curves.”
At the end of No. 4449’s display, the railroad club used the temporary connection to move donated Southern Pacific 4-10-2 No. 5021, which was stored at Santa Fe's San Bernardino, Calif. roundhouse to the Pomona fairgrounds. Then the connection was removed.
In 2013, the challenge of moving this large steam locomotive across an active parking is going to be more than just putting in snap track and moving it.
Several organizations and agencies use the parking lot on a regular basis for antique car shows, a temporary drag strip on occasion, and the Los Angeles County Sheriff Academy’s high-speed driving school.
Plus, McGinley says, the Metrolink commuter line is a busy CTC-controlled line with welded rail, which means putting in a turnout would be a big deal.
"If it were up to me to do a track panel move, I'd look into moving the 4014 near to the main line using a relay of good quality track panel track, get a 12-hour window on Metrolink operations, and slide the existing track over to temporarily connect to the panels," he says. "This eliminates all the new signal circuit changes, a very expensive and time consuming ritual. The time to do this track shift is probably less than to put in a new panel turnout.
"An alternate idea would be to put the 4014 on dollies and move it to where it can be unloaded onto an existing spur away from the passenger mainline, such as the former Santa Fe siding at Pomona," McGinley says.
The exact date for the move has not been announced, but UP has said only that it will take place after this year’s Los Angeles County Fair, which concludes Sept. 29.
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