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Post by bobdavis on Dec 4, 2014 21:46:35 GMT -8
The last segments of track to be installed are the yard leads between Shamrock Ave. and the 3-M plant. Shamrock is between the GLOC and the back of the Monrovia Home Depot. Photos taken 4 Dec 2014. 1) Mass Electric crew setting overhead-support pole; there are 7 to 10 still to be done. 2) Sub-ballast is ready for ties to be set in place. 3) Today the track crew was setting the frog for the switch where a shop track joins the west-side yard lead.
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Post by bobdavis on Dec 4, 2014 21:57:43 GMT -8
1) Rail saw used for cutting rail coming in from shop area. 2) The frog weighs about a ton--the big machine lifts it easily. 3) Frog is in place, now the crew will cut the rail from the yard lead to fit the end of the frog rail.
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Post by bobdavis on Dec 4, 2014 22:02:44 GMT -8
Mobile signs warn of train testing starting next week; this one is near City of Hope Medical Center.
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Post by bobdavis on Dec 9, 2014 18:49:23 GMT -8
Monday morning, Dec. 8, 2014. LA Metro Breda LRV 731 is ready to make history as the first electric railway car to reach Monrovia since the last Pacific Electric Red Car ran in Sept. 1951. It will have some help from a HiRailer tow truck, but it's expected to be running on electric power in about a week. 1) As seen from the Sierra Madre Villa parking structure. Traffic on the westbound side of the 210 is getting congested. 2) An assortment of Metro, Kiewit and media people getting ready to send the car on its way. 3) It went into the SMV "pocket track" so that plastic foam "wings" could be installed as clearance gauges (they'll be seen in tomorrow's photos).
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Post by bobdavis on Dec 9, 2014 19:07:16 GMT -8
1) Recording the event for posterity. Note the rail blocks in the foreground; they are hinged and can be moved out of the way by unlocking the padlock and swinging them to the side. In the background is one of the bumping posts that once marked "end of the line" but is no longer needed here. 2) A look inside the signal system cabin in Arcadia. A far cry from the simple "wig-wag" signals that once protected PE grade crossings. Electronic apparatus in this building controls grade crossing signals and interfaces with the traffic signals. The way the tracks cross the intersection on a diagonal makes for a very complex installation. A similar situation awaits the engineering team for Phase 2B when it's time to cross the Grand & Foothill intersection in Glendora (plus that one will have the BNSF freight track in the mix). 3) Arcadia added this station plaza to the parking structure area, complete with a working clock. I can foresee commuters waiting for family members to pick them up here.
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Post by bobdavis on Dec 9, 2014 19:23:52 GMT -8
1) Checking for clearances at the Duarte station on Tuesday morning. Mind the gap! 2) Highball Extra 731 West. This is across the street from City of Hope National Medical Center; if they can't cure what ails you, you've got BIG troubles. That HiRailer truck has some very noticeable horns. Note the "wings" on the side of the car; they are wedge shaped to account for the "dynamic envelope"--the space occupied by a car when it tilts during travel. 3) Crossing Buena Vista Ave. in Duarte. There were two LA County Sheriff's units protecting the grade crossings, because the signals are not in service yet. After getting these photos, I encountered Liz Reilly, the Mayor of Duarte--she was also out taking photos of this historic occasion.
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Post by masonite on Dec 9, 2014 23:13:48 GMT -8
View AttachmentView AttachmentView AttachmentMonday morning, Dec. 8, 2014. LA Metro Breda LRV 731 is ready to make history as the first electric railway car to reach Monrovia since the last Pacific Electric Red Car ran in Sept. 1951. It will have some help from a HiRailer tow truck, but it's expected to be running on electric power in about a week. 1) As seen from the Sierra Madre Villa parking structure. Traffic on the westbound side of the 210 is getting congested. 2) An assortment of Metro, Kiewit and media people getting ready to send the car on its way. 3) It went into the SMV "pocket track" so that plastic foam "wings" could be installed as clearance gauges (they'll be seen in tomorrow's photos). Very nice.
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Post by roadtrainer on Dec 10, 2014 13:08:07 GMT -8
Thank You Bob Davis, I'm going to call you "Bob on the Ball" appreciate your efforts!
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Post by Alexis Kasperavičius on Dec 11, 2014 23:40:12 GMT -8
Construction authority made a time lapse video from a Hi-Rail truck.
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Post by bobdavis on Dec 12, 2014 1:36:35 GMT -8
What's especially interesting about the "warp speed" video is that it shows some area that are hard to visit without a long hike along the right of way. It looks like there's a crossover I didn't know about west of Mayflower Ave.
Today's report: work continues on the GLOC lead tracks. It looks like there are four or five more switches awaiting installation, and about a dozen overhead support poles remain to be erected. The test train was sitting on the main line near the south end of Shamrock. Power testing will probably begin next week.
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Post by bobdavis on Dec 15, 2014 14:12:40 GMT -8
The test car was on the line today with its "pan" (current collector) up, but it's still being propelled by the HiRail truck. The pan has a temporary bar TyRapped to the collector bar, presumable to confirm clearances. (photos will be posted later)
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Post by bobdavis on Dec 16, 2014 17:22:20 GMT -8
For the first time in over 63 years, an electric railway car ran between Monrovia and Duarte, powered by DC from an overhead wire. My wife and I were in Monrovia this afternoon, and as we went east on Duarte Rd., she asked "Where's this light rail car you've been talking about?". I said "It should be on the other side of that wall.....there it is! And the pan [current collector] is up!" We were about to turn north onto Mountain Ave., when a group of LA County Sheriff's patrol cars blocked the grade crossing, and here came LA Metro 731, not at a poky tow-truck pace, but close to track speed, converting kilowatts to miles per hour. (sorry, no photos, didn't have camera because I figured the rain would interrupt the test program.)
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Post by bobdavis on Dec 22, 2014 18:38:34 GMT -8
Presumably Metro 731 is back on the active section of the Gold Line. One can imagine the other LRVs asking, "How was the new track?" and 731 replying, "Wide open! We'll have gate protected crossings and our operators will be able to 'put it on the brass' between stations."
Today's report: Mass Electric workers were installing trolley wire support arms west of Mayflower in Monrovia. The wire currently extends from east of Mayflower to just west of Irwindale Station, and installation should be complete by next April. Next weekend, I'll check up on the GLOC lead tracks construction.
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Post by bobdavis on Dec 28, 2014 23:38:54 GMT -8
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Post by bobdavis on Jan 6, 2015 1:08:01 GMT -8
First photos of 2015: 1) Looks like there's still some "fine tuning" needed in Arcadia between the First Ave. crossing and the Huntington Dr. bridge. 2) Looking at the Arcadia station, most of the overhead support arms have been installed. Now we're waiting for the messenger wire and then the trolley wire. 3) From the south end of Fifth Ave. (the dividing line between Monrovia and Arcadia) the overhead support poles are in place. Note that they have LED lights at the top--I wonder if these are installed in locations which would otherwise be dark and hazardous for walking in an emergency.
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Post by bobdavis on Jan 6, 2015 1:18:48 GMT -8
1) Looking west from Mayflower in Monrovia, messenger wire has been installed. Trolley wire is next--it will be supported by temporary hooks from the messenger, then these will be replaced by clips that hold the wire from the top. 2) The Mass Electric Construction men are wrapping it up for the day. After securing all the equipment on the tower, or stowing it in lockers, they will raise the "HiRailer" wheels and steer the truck onto the pavement at Mayflower. 3) Trolley wire is almost to Mayflower--we are looking toward Magnolia Ave. and the Monrovia Station.
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Post by bobdavis on Jan 6, 2015 1:31:39 GMT -8
Here's a look at "old school" trolley wire installation. Who would have imagined that we'd be seeing similar work happening in Monrovia some day. 1) It's 1977, and the Orange Empire Ry. Museum line crew is electrifying the north main line, using Pacific Electric home-made tower car 00157. This car was built in 1915 and still runs. 2) John Smatlak took this photo while I was running the car during a PE Weekend at OERM. The Museum north main line overhead was built using salvaged parts from abandoned PE lines to PE standards. 3) Here I am running one of my favorite cars at OERM. I saw 00157 in service on the Monrovia-Glendora line, and it's been a dream come true to run it both in construction and maintenance service and on special occasions. (photo by John Smatlak)
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Post by rubbertoe on Jan 6, 2015 7:45:19 GMT -8
3) From the south end of Fifth Ave. (the dividing line between Monrovia and Arcadia) the overhead support poles are in place. Note that they have LED lights at the top--I wonder if these are installed in locations which would otherwise be dark and hazardous for walking in an emergency. Bob, The 210 freeway median just East of the Sierra Madre station has these same LED lights for a while, then they stop. So it can;t be pedestrian related. RT
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Post by Gokhan on Jan 6, 2015 13:16:26 GMT -8
3) From the south end of Fifth Ave. (the dividing line between Monrovia and Arcadia) the overhead support poles are in place. Note that they have LED lights at the top--I wonder if these are installed in locations which would otherwise be dark and hazardous for walking in an emergency. Bob, The 210 freeway median just East of the Sierra Madre station has these same LED lights for a while, then they stop. So it can;t be pedestrian related. RT I think it's a manufacturer supply issue as I said before. Expo Line Phase 2 had a lot of them missing but I saw this morning that the missing ones have been installed.
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Post by bobdavis on Jan 12, 2015 23:12:24 GMT -8
Last week the messenger cables were up west of Mayflower in Monrovia, today the trolley wire is in place and some of the permanent hangers have been fastened. A quick look from the south end of Fifth Ave. (the dividing line between Monrovia and Arcadia) showed most of the overhead support poles up, but no wires yet. So we now have over five miles of trolley wire between Monrovia and Irwindale, and about two miles between the existing track and the IFS. There's also trolley wire up on the north portion of the GLOC yard. But in Arcadia, there's apparently some final work to be done on the track, as there's still some track machinery on site east of First Ave.
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Post by Alexis Kasperavičius on Jan 13, 2015 5:09:36 GMT -8
Nice video which shows the steps in constructing the Gold line extension.
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Post by Alexis Kasperavičius on Jan 13, 2015 14:01:20 GMT -8
Here's a video from about three weeks ago which shows live trains on the new segment:
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Post by bobdavis on Jan 22, 2015 23:16:34 GMT -8
Foothill Extension updates: Although the track is complete from end to end, there's still some adjustment to do. The track workers were busy in Arcadia, just east of First Ave. This appears to be a spot where the rails had to have a section cut out, hydraulic stretchers applied and the ends welded with Thermite. It may be that this is a tricky location because the track has ascending grades to bridges in both directions. 1 & 2) Special equipment for adjusting welded rail.
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Post by bobdavis on Jan 22, 2015 23:33:12 GMT -8
For some reason I get an "Attachment space limit" message when trying to post photo, even though I've reduced them to less than 500K. So until we get that figured out, we'll just go with text accounts:
Irwindale: Trolley wire still ends under the Irwindale Ave. bridge. Track signals are lit up next to the brewery. Passenger platforms are progressing nicely, rebar for the vertical columns in the parking structure (tucked in between the street bridge approach and the cut for the former Pacific Electric line to Azusa) is in place.
Duarte: Passenger platforms nearly done.
Operations Campus: Trolley wire is in place over all the yard tracks, poles are up and signals have been installed between the yard and the main line.
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Post by bobdavis on Jan 28, 2015 22:16:32 GMT -8
More trolley wire work at GLOC.
Arcadia: Track is being "stretched", with a few inches taken out of the rails at various places. Signal wiring work in progress.
Monrovia: Trolley wire extends west of Mayflower, except for one pole, overhead support poles are up all the way into Arcadia. Minor track work and electrical work in progress. If the city of Monrovia is going to have the old Santa Fe station ready for opening day, they'd better get busy.
Azusa: Trolley wire is up from Azusa-Citrus atation to Dalton Ave. Messenger cable is up as far west as Virginia.
This leaves gaps in the trolley wires of 2 miles in Azusa and about 2 miles in Arcadia-Monrovia. With the messenger wire up in Azusa, the contact wire should be in place by mid-February, if not sooner.
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Post by bobdavis on Jan 31, 2015 20:28:24 GMT -8
Trackwork appears to be finished in Arcadia. Messenger wire is up between Arcadia and Monrovia over one track. Crew working on overhead and signals near Baldwin Ave. in the I-210 median. Message board along Duarte road announces more train testing in February!
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Post by bobdavis on Feb 2, 2015 19:02:20 GMT -8
Metro LRV 722 was resting near California Ave. near the GLOC this afternoon, along with a Trackmobile-type switcher. Crews were working on the grade crossing signals at Mountain Ave. and Buena Vista Ave. Messenger wire appears to be in place between the IFS and the end of trolley wire near the Arcadia-Monrovia boundary. This is a gap in the trolley wire of about 1.6 miles. The gap in Azusa is about the same. Although the main line is substantially complete, track machines were observed at the west tail track on the south side of the GLOC and on the westbound main east of Highland in Duarte (location known as Butler siding in the Santa Fe days).
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Post by bobdavis on Feb 6, 2015 22:28:37 GMT -8
Metro 714 and 722 have been assigned to GLFE test service. On Wednesday Feb. 4, 714 was being propelled by the "Tracmobile" on the track west of California in Monrovia. Today on Trainorders.com one of my fellow subscribers posted a photo of a Breda unit heading eastward near the Miller brewery, powered by the overhead wire. And near the boundary between Monrovia and Arcadia, the trolley wire is up and awaiting final attachment to the supporting clips.
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Post by bobdavis on Feb 16, 2015 2:32:59 GMT -8
We now have trolley wire up west of the Santa Anita Ave. bridge, and messenger cable up, possibly all the way to the IFS. In Azusa, the trolley wire and messenger cable end at Virginia Ave., leaving a gap of about 1.4 miles in the overhead east of Irwindale. Still waiting for the lead tracks going into the Operations Campus to be wired.
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Post by bobdavis on Feb 18, 2015 20:43:31 GMT -8
The trolley wire is in place from Santa Anita all the way to the IFS. Still needs final tensioning (something my friends who play guitars would understand) and attachment of the permanent suspension clips. Next week, I go back out to Azusa and see how the Irwindale to Virginia Ave. overhead is progressing.
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