Philadelphia was more than the location of Conrail's corporate headquarters. It also featured lots of blue action.
Conrail's lines in the Philadelphia area were a combination of ex-Penn Central and ex-Reading lines, and varied from big time railroading along the Northeast Corridor to lightly tracked branches like the Venice Industrial.
You can also view this gallery on an interactive map.
More than 3 years after the formation of Conrail, sister-units CR 9617 and 9618 are seen working their home turf at Abrams Yard. The pair is pausing for a crew change on October 27, 1979.
A pair of Conrail freights travel on the old PRR High Line, the freight bypass allowing trains to avoid 30th St Station in Philadelphia, PA in 1982.
A SEPTA Chestnut Hill West local with ex-Reading Silverliner IV 9022 on the point passes the crowded Conrail Midvale Yard, filled with cars for Budd's Hunting Park Plant.
CR GP15-1's 1638 and 1633 (in Operation Lifesaver paint) are seen shifting at Abrams Yard in September 1998.
WPAB-10, the Lansdale to Abrams job, departing. Power today was GP15-1 1642 (with the labor-management decal on the nose) leading SW-1001 9405 and SW-1500 9595.
Conrail GP15-1 1644, SW1500 9595 and GP38-2 7874 relaxing by the shores of Lake Lansdale (aka the SEPTA parking lot).
CR B23-7 1933 leads a 3-car track geometry train through CP-Belmont near Philadelphia, PA in September 1995.
Conrail GP30 2230 (ex-PC 2230) is seen rounding the curve in front of Amtrak's ZOO tower in Philadelphia, PA circa 1983.
Conrail GP30 2235 is sitting with RS-3M 9909 at Greenwich Yard in South Philly on 4/12/1980
Conrail class N10 caboose 24031 is seen just north of ZOO tower in Philadelphia, PA in 1983.
Conrail E8A 4021 is seen leading an OCS-101 west at Rosemont, PA on 6/16/1992
Conrail E8A 4021 is seen powering a short westbound OCS move at Swedeland, PA on 8/30/1990
Conrail SD80MAC 4110 is seen leading a UDP50 coal train at CP-Belmont in Philadelphia, PA on 4/29/99
Conrail E44 4416 is seen leading a southbound freight on the Northeast Corridor at Sharon Hill, PA on 5/11/1979
Conrail E33 4603 is seen at Greenwich yard in South Philly, PA on 4/12/1980
Conrail B36-7 5047 is seen leading OICA onto the Delair Bridge in Philadelphia, PA in Sept 1996. The train is just moments away from its terminus at Pavonia Yard in Camden, NJ.
A Conrail electronic air braking system (EABS) test train rolls northbound through Wanamaker Yard. The consist is CR 5521, 5522, 5525, analyzer car 18, 0x80 for 2,480 tons. EABS applies the brakes to every car of a train simultaneously via an electronic brake signal, allowing a train to stop smoothly in 30-70% less distance than traditional brake-equipped trains. Info compiled from The Conrail Cyclopedia. Click here for more info on Conrail's use of EABS.
Conrail SD60M 5550 is seen waiting on a K201 at Locust St in Philadelphia while a Z409 heads south on 4/27/1996
Conrail SD60I 5603 is seen leading a rare daylight PIED south on the Northeast Corridor on 3/4/1996
Photo taken with permission. In this conductor's view from the High Line we see a portion of Amtrak's Penn Coach Yard in Philadelphia. Today's EDPI consists of CR 5606, 6029, 6771 (offline), 6179 (offline), and 9 loads by 34 empties for a 1,982 tons.
Photo taken with permission. Road power for todays EDPI sits in Edgemoor, waiting for a crew. The consist today will be CR 5606, 6029, 6771 (offline), 6179 (offline), 9x34 for 1,982 tons.
Photo taken with permission. This PIED-4X, the last Conway - Edgemoor train, rolls southbound on the Chester Secondary through Wanamaker Yard at 2:14PM. Conrail would soon reroute traffic and run the SCAL/ALSC combo between Allentown and Stoney Creek. The Edgemoor traffic would then be moved via local out the Linwood Branch to AMTRAK at Hook interlocking. This move was short lived as by February 1994 Conrail had reinstated the EDPI/PIED. The train was 21 x 24 for 3,388 tons. Trailing engine is CR C40-8W 6194.
This PIED-4X, the last Conway - Edgemoor train, rolls southbound on the Chester Secondary through Wanamaker Yard at 2:14PM. Conrail would soon reroute traffic and run the SCAL/ALSC combo between Allentown and Stoney Creek. The Edgemoor traffic would then be moved via local out the Linwood Branch to AMTRAK at Hook interlocking. This move was short lived as by February 1994 Conrail had reinstated the EDPI/PIED. The train was 21 x 24 for 3,388 tons. Trailing engine is CR C40-8W 6194.
At 2:56 on this Saturday afternoon, Conrail Dash-8s 6059 and 6090, along with GP38-2 8277, haul 123 cars (39x84 for 7,568 tons) southbound under wire towards Edgemoor, DE. The train came east on Conrail's Harrisburg Line to CP-River, hung the right at the wye, went up over the High Line in Philadelphia, and entered Amtrak at Phil interlocking. He will leave Amtrak at Bell interlocking, just north of Edgemoor.
Conrail SD45 6071 (ex-EL 3606) is seen laying over at Chessie's Eastside Yard in Philadelphia, PA on 12/16/1979
At 12:45PM this pair of GE products lug 134 cars of freight southbound for Edgemoor, DE. Trailing unit is CR 6035.
Photo taken with permission. At 1:40PM CR 6090, along with CR SD60M 5526, move 75 empty bathtubs northbound through Wanamaker Yard, destined for West Brownsville, PA. The train will enter SEPTA trackage at CP-90th Street North where it will stay until it heads for CSX at Eastwick on their Philadelphia Subdivision. It will then continue eastbound to Park Junction and home rails. At CP-River on Conrail's Harrisburg Line XCG-66W will turn left and head west to Reading, Harrisburg, and the coal mines of western Pennsylvania.
At 1:25 on this Thursday afternoon this Harrington, DE-based local heads northbound on Amtrak's Northeast Corridor with 54 empty hoppers for Dyers Quarry. Trailing engine is CR SD40-2 6510. The train weighed in at 1,728 tons.
This day's edition of PIED rolls southbound past the Philadelphia Electric Company's power plant at 1:22PM. Trailing units are CR SD50 6825 and CR C40-8W 6262 with 96 cars in tow.
At 7:33 on this Sunday morning this GE C40-8W duo (CR 6139 and CR 6144) roll through Hook interlocking on Amtrak's Northeast Corridor. Today's edition of PIED is 32x48 for 5,188 tons. At this point in their trip they are only a few miles from their final destination of Edgemoor, DE.
