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New news (11/99)
The Big Engine Visits the P&W
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On November 15, the Pennsylvania & Western was honored to welcome a special visiting locomotive: the fabulous 6-4-4-6 S1. PRR management supplied the engine for a publicity photo (view picture) and to enhance the image of P&W passenger service. Alas, the run to the photo location revealed the well-known failings of the mighty S1: it is too large for the mountain curves, nearly too tall for the tunnels, and is much too long for the turntable in the P&W yards. After this brief visit, the Big Engine returned to its normal stomping ground: the Chicago to Crestline, Ohio racetrack.
Tragic Accident Claims Photographer
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On November 15, the Pennsylvania & Western sadly lost one of its own. Company photographer Sam Shutterbug had completed his assigned publicity photos of the S1 locomotive when he decided to get one more picture. In his typical quest for the unusual, he enthusiatically prepared for an action shot of the mighty S1 at speed. Noone is sure exactly what happened, but poor Sam and his camera were smashed. All that was left was this image, recently developed from the camera (Sam's last photo).
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Old News (3/99)
Track Plan Published, Publicity Photos Taken
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In a shameless attempt to attract business, the Pennsylvania & Western Railroad published their track plan and an extensive series of publicity photos on March 12, 1999. The track plan may be seen in the Layout Design area of this site, and the photos are in the (duh!) Photos area. Public reaction has been mixed. The investment community is very excited about progress to date on the railroad, given that it only "broke ground" in October, 1996. OSHA is less than enthused about several potential safety violations, especially the bentless trestle and the hanging bridges. Railroad management promises to address these concerns "eventually".
Pennsylvania & Western Mainline Completed
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On Wednesday, March 3, 1999 the mainline route of the Pennsylvania & Western Railroad was completed, and an inspection train made the run from East Staging to West Staging and return. Since then, traffic has been light, and a few mishaps have occurred. Management is satisfied with the track conditions and has given the go-ahead to proceed with construction of the towns at Annville and Lebanon, and with the electrification of Summit and West Staging. A formal "golden spike" ceremony is planned for the Spring when the weather has improved in order to make it more comfortable for visiting dignitaries.
Passengers Lodge Grievances
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On Thursday, March 4, 1999 a letter of complaint was sent on behalf of all P&WRR passengers to railroad management. Spokesman Ira Bigbutt said that the passengers on the first trains to traverse the mainline were disappointed to find that the trains just made one long, continuous run and wound up returning to their starting point without stopping! There was a passenger track at Annville (no platform or station yet), however the train did not stop there. One passenger was said to notice that the turnouts to the passenger track had been spiked for the mainline route! The situation at Lebanon was reported to be even worse. All tracks except the mainline looked like loose sections just lying on the ground. Mr. Bigbutt said this was not the kind of service one expects on a first-class railroad like the P&W, and that unless something was done, ridership surely would suffer.
