1966 in rail transport
Encyclopedia
January events
- January - GM introduces the EMD SD40EMD SD40The EMD SD40 is a 6-axle diesel locomotive built by General Motors Electro-Motive Division between January 1966 and August 1972.-Design:Like its predecessor in EMD's catalog, the SD35, the SD40 is a high-horsepower, six-motor freight locomotive....
. - January - GEGE Transportation SystemsGE Transportation, formerly known as GE Rail, is a division of General Electric. The organization manufactures equipment for the railroad, marine, mining, drilling and energy generation industries. It is based in Erie, Pennsylvania. Locomotives are assembled at the Erie plant, while engine...
introduces the GE U28BGE U28BThe GE U28B diesel locomotive model replaced the U25B in early 1966, featuring a slightly uprated prime mover . Early units had the same carbody styling as the U25B, while later units had design features more in common with later models...
. - January 3 - British RailBritish RailBritish Railways , which from 1965 traded as British Rail, was the operator of most of the rail transport in Great Britain between 1948 and 1997. It was formed from the nationalisation of the "Big Four" British railway companies and lasted until the gradual privatisation of British Rail, in stages...
begins full electric passenger services over the West Coast Main LineWest Coast Main LineThe West Coast Main Line is the busiest mixed-traffic railway route in Britain, being the country's most important rail backbone in terms of population served. Fast, long-distance inter-city passenger services are provided between London, the West Midlands, the North West, North Wales and the...
from EustonEuston railway stationEuston railway station, also known as London Euston, is a central London railway terminus in the London Borough of Camden. It is the sixth busiest rail terminal in London . It is one of 18 railway stations managed by Network Rail, and is the southern terminus of the West Coast Main Line...
to ManchesterManchester Piccadilly stationManchester Piccadilly is the principal railway station in Manchester, England. It serves intercity routes to London Euston, Birmingham New Street, South Wales, the south coast of England, Edinburgh and Glasgow Central, and routes throughout northern England...
and LiverpoolLiverpool Lime Street railway stationLiverpool Lime Street is a railway station serving the city centre of Liverpool, England. The station lies on a branch of the West Coast Main Line from London Euston, and on the Wirral Line of the Merseyrail network...
with 100 mph (160 km/h) operation from LondonLondonLondon is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
to RugbyRugby railway stationRugby railway station serves the town of Rugby in Warwickshire, England. It opened during the Victorian era, in 1885, replacing earlier stations situated a little further west...
. Services officially inaugurated 18 April.
March events
- March 7 - The Western Region of British RailwaysWestern Region of British RailwaysThe Western Region was a region of British Railways from 1948. The region ceased to be an operating unit in its own right in the 1980s and was wound up at the end of 1992...
closes the former Somerset and Dorset Joint RailwaySomerset and Dorset Joint RailwayThe Somerset & Dorset Joint Railway – almost always referred to as "the S&D" – was an English railway line connecting Bath in north east Somerset and Bournemouth now in south east Dorset but then in Hampshire...
to virtually all traffic.
April events
- April 20 - The second segment, between PredealPredealPredeal is a town in Braşov County, Romania. It is the highest town and one of the most important mountain resorts in Romania, being located on the Prahova Valley at over...
and CâmpinaCâmpinaCâmpina is a city in Prahova county, Romania, north of the county seat Ploieşti, located on the main route between Wallachia and Transylvania. In 2003, the city celebrated 500 years since its founding.-History:...
, of Căile Ferate RomâneCaile Ferate RomâneCăile Ferate Române is the official designation of the state railway carrier of Romania. Romania has a railway network of of which are electrified and the total track length is . The network is significantly interconnected with other European railway networks, providing pan-European passenger...
's (in RomaniaRomaniaRomania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
) electrification is completed.
July events
- July 17 - The first passenger operations begin at the Illinois Railway MuseumIllinois Railway MuseumThe Illinois Railway Museum is the largest railroad museum in the United States and is located in Union, Illinois, northwest of Chicago...
using car number 415.
September events
- September 3 - The London Midland Region of British RailwaysLondon Midland Region of British RailwaysThe London Midland Region was one of the six regions created on the formation of the nationalised British Railways and consisted of ex-London, Midland and Scottish Railway lines in England and Wales. The region was managed first from buildings adjacent to Euston Station and later from Stanier...
closes the former Great Central RailwayGreat Central RailwayThe Great Central Railway was a railway company in England which came into being when the Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway changed its name in 1897 in anticipation of the opening in 1899 of its London Extension . On 1 January 1923, it was grouped into the London and North Eastern...
London Extension to passenger traffic between AylesburyAylesbury railway stationAylesbury railway station is a railway station in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire, England and is a major stop on the London to Aylesbury Line from Marylebone station via Amersham. It is 37.75 miles from Aylesbury Station to Marylebone Station...
and Rugby CentralRugby Central Railway StationRugby Central was a railway station serving Rugby in Warwickshire on the former Great Central Main Line which opened in 1899 and closed in 1969....
, bringing an end to its career as "the last main lineMain line (railway)The Mainline or Main line of a railway is a track that is used for through trains or is the principal artery of the system from which branch lines, yards, sidings and spurs are connected....
".
Unknown date events
- ALCOAmerican Locomotive CompanyThe American Locomotive Company, often shortened to ALCO or Alco , was a builder of railroad locomotives in the United States.-Early history:...
introduces the ALCO Century 415ALCO Century 415The ALCO Century 415 was a diesel locomotive of B-B wheel arrangement produced by the American Locomotive Company as part of their Century Series of locomotives....
. - The Chicago, Burlington and Quincy RailroadChicago, Burlington and Quincy RailroadThe Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad was a railroad that operated in the Midwestern United States. Commonly referred to as the Burlington or as the Q, the Burlington Route served a large area, including extensive trackage in the states of Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, Kentucky, Missouri,...
removes from service and donates the General Pershing ZephyrGeneral Pershing ZephyrThe General Pershing Zephyr was the ninth of the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad's Zephyr streamliners, and the last built as an integrated streamliner rather than a train hauled by an EMD E-unit diesel locomotive...
power car to the National Museum of Transport in St. Louis, MissouriSt. Louis, MissouriSt. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...
. - Beyer, Peacock and CompanyBeyer, Peacock and CompanyBeyer, Peacock and Company was an English railway Locomotive manufacturer with a factory in Gorton, Manchester. Founded by Charles Beyer and Richard Peacock, it traded from 1854 until 1966...
of ManchesterManchesterManchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
, EnglandEnglandEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, turns out its last locomotives, British Rail Class 25/3 dieselDiesel locomotiveA diesel locomotive is a type of railroad locomotive in which the prime mover is a diesel engine, a reciprocating engine operating on the Diesel cycle as invented by Dr. Rudolf Diesel...
s. - Norris Roy Crump returns to the presidency of Canadian Pacific RailwayCanadian Pacific RailwayThe Canadian Pacific Railway , formerly also known as CP Rail between 1968 and 1996, is a historic Canadian Class I railway founded in 1881 and now operated by Canadian Pacific Railway Limited, which began operations as legal owner in a corporate restructuring in 2001...
for a short period, succeeding Robert A. "Bob" Emerson. Crump, in turn, is succeeded by Ian David SinclairIan David SinclairIan David Sinclair, OC, QC was a Canadian lawyer, businessman, and Senator.Born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, he received a Bachelor of Arts degree in economics in 1937 from the University of Manitoba and a Bachelor of Law degree from the Manitoba Law School in 1941. He was called to Bar of Manitoba in...
.
Unknown date deaths
- Martin W. ClementMartin W. ClementMartin W. Clement was the 11th president of the Pennsylvania Railroad .He attended Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut, ....
, president of the Pennsylvania RailroadPennsylvania RailroadThe Pennsylvania Railroad was an American Class I railroad, founded in 1846. Commonly referred to as the "Pennsy", the PRR was headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania....
1935–1948 (b. 1881).