Trains - USA: books - railways in the West region (1/2)

Die Eisenbahn im Wilden Westen - Der Siegeszug des eisernen Pferds

Die Eisenbahn im sogenannten Wilden Westen zählt zu den grossen Faszinationsthemen der Geschichte des weltweiten Schienenverkehrs. Das überrascht nicht, denn bei der Besiedelung des Westens der USA spielte die Eisenbahn eine wichtige Rolle.
Ohne die eisernen Schienenwege wären die Siedler wahrscheinlich nicht so schnell in dem riesigen Gebiet vorgedrungen.

Das neue Buch von Kristiane Müller-Urban und Eberhard Urban beschreibt die Geschichte der Eisenbahn und ihre Bedeutung für die Entwicklung Amerikas auf anschauliche Weise und blickt dabei auch über die Grenzen in Nord und Süd nach Kanada und Mexiko.

Locomotives of the Western United States

The first transcontinental railroad in the USA was completed in 1869. In the following years, until the turn of the twentieth century, many more railroads were built by different companies.
Passenger trains declined from the 1950s and today there is only a minimal long-distance passenger service operated by Amtrak, leaving the railroads to concentrate on moving freight.

From the 1970s until the 1990s many railroads merged to give the two main railroads there are in the west today: Burlington Northern Santa Fe and Union Pacific. As well as the two mega railroads, there are many regional and shortline railroads to add diversity.

Locomotives in the USA today are mainly built by General Electric and Electro Motive Diesel. Modern diesels for long-distance mainline freight trains are up to 4,400 hp with six axles. These long-distance trains can weigh up to 20,000 tonnes and often have multiple locomotives that can be at the front, middle and rear. There are also many older diesels for local work, some dating from the 1950s.

This book features a selection of photos of mainline and branch-line trains with a wide selection of different locomotives and paint schemes across the western states.

Pacific Coast Commuter Railroads: from San Diego to Anchorage

Pacific Coast Commuter Railroads is about the newest form of rail passenger services to be created in North America. From San Diego to Vancouver, British Columbia, and all the way to Anchorage, Alaska, these new systems offer a solution to pollution, congestion, and high gasoline prices.

Take a ride on the Coaster in San Diego, the MetroLink in Los Angeles, Amtrak's Surfliner Rail to Rail in Southern California, San Francisco's Caltrain, the Altamont Commuter Express between San Jose and Stockton, Amtrak's Capitol Corridor between San Jose and Sacramento, the Sounder in Seattle and the West Coast Express in Vancouver. Also read about the new Tri-Met service in Portland that started in September, 2008; and the anticipated service for Anchorage Alaska.

Includes maps, timetables, and passenger statistics, where available. Rail fans, modelers, transportation planners, and folks living in the new rail service areas will find this book useful for travel, transit planning, modeling, and new levels of knowledge about passenger rail service.

Desert Railroading

Picture vast areas of burning sand and hot rock - uninhabited terrain teeming with cactus. Now picture today's fast, colorful trains traveling through this beautiful but harsh landscape.

This book is a dramatic winner in every respect!

In this deluxe 172-page coffee table volume, author/photographer Steve Schmollinger has assembled a large variety of spectacular modern-day images of railroading in the desert. He has included a range of states, of railroads both large and small, and trains hauling everything from general merchandise, to unit coal trains, to container and inter-modal trains.

With detailed historical commentary to help understand present-day railroading in the West, "Desert Railroading" is a colorful tribute to past, present and future railroads that serve this region.

Southern California Railways

"Southern California Railways" looks at the operations of some of the many railroads that serve the southern half of the Golden State. These include the passenger operations of Amtrak, Metrolink and San Diego Coaster and the freight operations of the Union Pacific and BNSF Railway as well as some short-line operators. The book shows some of the huge variety of trains and locomotives that ply their trade in the area.

Author Richard Billingsley focuses on the area south of San Luis Obispo and Bakersfield, including Los Angeles and San Diego, as well as the Mojave Desert and Salton Sea and includes 180 stunning images documenting the railway scene.

The California Zephyr - An Entertaining History of America’s Most Celebrated Train Route

America's most talked-about train, the California Zephyr was inaugurated March 20, 1949, book-ended by the world-class skylines of Chicago and San Francisco. Operated in partnership over three railroads - Chicago, Burlington & Quincy, Denver & Rio Grande, and Western Pacific - the train was designed in Art Deco style and built of shotwelded stainless-steel by the Budd Co.
The California Zephyr incorporated the best of the Zephyr fleet including Vista-Dome coaches and Vista-Dome observation cars. Powered by General Motors diesel locomotives, the western-themed "land-cruise" train traveled 2,532 miles on its journey from Chicago, traversing the spectacular Colorado Rockies via the 6.2-mile Moffat Tunnel and California's magnificent Feather River Canyon - by daylight in both directions.

Vintage equipment diagrams include California Zephyr baggage car, Vista-Dome coach, Vista-Dome buffet-dormitory car, dining car, bedroom-cabin car and Vista-Dome bedroom-buffet-lounge-observation car. Other highlights feature original trip reports by"Zephyrett" hostesses, travel brochures, timetables, dining car menus and full-color photo gallery of the stunning California Zephyr.

California's Lumber Shortline Railroads

California's sawmill and railroad industries grew up together, each at least partially depending upon the other for survival. However, not all of the Golden State's sawmills lay upon the routes of mainline railroads, resulting in the development of a number of shortline railroads connecting remote sawmills with the nation's rail network.

In addition to serving the lumber industry, these shortlines often became economic lifelines to other industries in rural parts of the state.
Many of these railroads also carried passengers, either as part of their common carrier service in the early years and/or as tourists in recent decades.

This book seeks to tell the stories of and relate the important historical roles these small carriers played, long lasting companies such as the Almanor, Amador Central, Arcata & Mad River, California Western, Camino Placerville & Lake Tahoe, McCloud River, Quincy, Sierra, and Yreka Western, along with younger start-ups such as the Eureka Southern, North Coast, Great Western, Modoc Northern, Lake County, Lake Railway, and others.

Railroads of Colorado

At one time, it seemed as though every canyon and pass leading into Colorado's high country was a path laid with 3-foot gauge narrow gauge railroad. Dreams of tapping the riches of mining discoveries in mountain locations made this almost true. But mining can be a fleeting adventure, and as the state matured, so too did the railroads that crisscrossed it.

Many railways succumbed to disappearing tonnage, becoming trackless trails among the mountainsides. But on many routes, the railroads of Colorado have flourished and provide necessary transportation avenues for a modern economy. In addition, tucked away in several corners of the state are remnants of Colorado's narrow gauge past, still steam-powered and now lively to the tune of tourist dollars.
Popular state slogan 'Colorful Colorado' describes this incredible place well, and is assuredly most appropriate while viewing the wonders of railroading in the spectacular Rocky Mountains of the West.