1970 in rail transport
Encyclopedia
January Events
- January 5 and 6– The Erie Lackawanna's trains Nos. 5 and 6, The Lake Cities, from HobokenHobokenHoboken may refer to:*Hoboken, New Jersey, United States*Hoboken, Antwerp, a district of Antwerp, Belgium*Hoboken, Georgia, United States*Hoboken, Alabama, United States*"Hoboken", a song on Operation Ivy's 1988 album Hectic-See also:...
to ChicagoChicagoChicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, discontinued ending all of the Lackawanna's long distance passenger service .
February events
- February 1 – The Kennedy rapid transit extension of the West-Northwest routeBlue Line (Chicago Transit Authority)The Blue Line consists of a long trunk line in the Chicago Transit Authority's rapid transit system which extends through Chicago's Loop from O'Hare International Airport at the far northwest end of the city, through downtown via the Milwaukee-Dearborn subway, and across the West Side to its...
(5.2 miles/8.4 km) in Chicago, Illinois is put into operation between Logan SquareLogan Square (CTA)Logan Square is a subway station in USA on the Chicago Transit Authority's 'L' system, serving the Blue Line. It was the terminus of the Blue Line until it was extended along the Kennedy Expressway to the Jefferson Park stop in 1970 and to O'Hare Airport in 1984. From Logan Square, trains run at...
and Jefferson ParkJefferson Park (Metra-CTA)The Jefferson Park Transit Center is an intermodal passenger transport center, in the Jefferson Park neighborhood of Chicago, Illinois. It functions as a station for rail as well as rapid transit and also as a bus terminal. Jefferson Park Transit Center's railroad station is on Metra's Union...
via a subway connection and the median of the Kennedy ExpresswayKennedy ExpresswayThe John F. Kennedy Expressway is a long highway that travels northwest from the Chicago Loop to O'Hare International Airport. The expressway is named for the 35th U.S. President, John F. Kennedy. The Interstate 90 portion of the Kennedy is a part of the much longer I-90...
. - February 1 – The Benavidez rail disasterBenavidez rail disasterThe Benavidez rail disaster, which occurred on February 1, 1970 is the worst ever rail disaster in Argentina; it left at least 142 dead and 368 injured....
, the worst rail accident in Argentina's history kills 168 people. - February 13 – The United StatesUnited StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Interstate Commerce CommissionInterstate Commerce CommissionThe Interstate Commerce Commission was a regulatory body in the United States created by the Interstate Commerce Act of 1887. The agency's original purpose was to regulate railroads to ensure fair rates, to eliminate rate discrimination, and to regulate other aspects of common carriers, including...
approves the discontinuation of the California ZephyrCalifornia ZephyrThe California Zephyr is a long passenger train route operated by Amtrak in the midwestern and western United States.It runs from Chicago, Illinois, in the east to Emeryville, California, in the west, passing through the states of Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska, Colorado, Utah, Nevada, and California...
passenger train.
March events
- March 2 – The Great Northern Railway, Northern Pacific RailwayNorthern Pacific RailwayThe Northern Pacific Railway was a railway that operated in the west along the Canadian border of the United States. Construction began in 1870 and the main line opened all the way from the Great Lakes to the Pacific when former president Ulysses S. Grant drove in the final "golden spike" in...
, 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,...
and the Spokane, Portland and Seattle RailwaySpokane, Portland and Seattle RailwayThe Spokane, Portland and Seattle Railway was a United States-based railroad incorporated in 1905. It was a joint venture by the Great Northern Railway and the Northern Pacific Railway to build a railroad along the north bank of the Columbia River....
merge to form Burlington Northern RailroadBurlington Northern RailroadThe Burlington Northern Railroad was a United States-based railroad company formed from a merger of four major U.S. railroads. Burlington Northern operated between 1970 and 1996....
. - March 22 – The Western Pacific RailroadWestern Pacific RailroadThe Western Pacific Railroad was a Class I railroad in the United States. It was formed in 1903 as an attempt to break the near-monopoly the Southern Pacific Railroad had on rail service into northern California...
portion of the California ZephyrCalifornia ZephyrThe California Zephyr is a long passenger train route operated by Amtrak in the midwestern and western United States.It runs from Chicago, Illinois, in the east to Emeryville, California, in the west, passing through the states of Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska, Colorado, Utah, Nevada, and California...
makes its last run.
April events
- April 12 – 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,...
discontinues its Black HawkBlack Hawk (passenger train)The Black Hawk was a named passenger train operated by the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad between Chicago, Illinois, and Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minnesota. The train operated on an overnight schedule, being the nighttime counterpart to the Twin Zephyrs...
passenger train service between Chicago and MinneapolisMinneapolis, MinnesotaMinneapolis , nicknamed "City of Lakes" and the "Mill City," is the county seat of Hennepin County, the largest city in the U.S. state of Minnesota, and the 48th largest in the United States...
/St. PaulSaint Paul, MinnesotaSaint Paul is the capital and second-most populous city of the U.S. state of Minnesota. The city lies mostly on the east bank of the Mississippi River in the area surrounding its point of confluence with the Minnesota River, and adjoins Minneapolis, the state's largest city...
, MinnesotaMinnesotaMinnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
. - April 27 – The first double-deck passenger cars to operate in regular service on CanadianCanadaCanada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
passenger trains enter service in MontrealMontrealMontreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
. - April 30 – 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...
operates its first unit trainUnit trainA unit train, also called a block train, is a railway train in which all the cars making it up are shipped from the same origin to the same destination, without being split up or stored en route...
of coalCoalCoal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...
destined for JapanJapanJapan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese markets from Sparwood, British ColumbiaSparwood, British Columbia-Newspapers:* Fernie Free Press - Weekly Paper* Elk Valley Herald - Weekly Paper* Kootenay News Advertiser - Weekly Paper* The Valley - Weekly Paper* Fernie Fix - Monthly Glossy Magazine* Black Rock News - Semimonthly-Radio stations:...
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May events
- May 20 – The Southern Pacific RailroadSouthern Pacific RailroadThe Southern Pacific Transportation Company , earlier Southern Pacific Railroad and Southern Pacific Company, and usually simply called the Southern Pacific or Espee, was an American railroad....
(SP) relinquishes its interest in 44-mile (72 km) Tijuana and Tecate Railway Company to MexicoMexicoThe United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
's national railway, Ferrocarril Sonora Baja California, S.A. de C.V. - May 20 – The Audenshaw Junction rail accidentAudenshaw Junction rail accidentThe Audenshaw Junction rail accident occurred on the evening of 20 May 1970 near Guide Bridge railway station, Greater Manchester, England. A Class 506 electric multiple unit train from Manchester Piccadilly to Hadfield had started away from a signal when a set of points moved underneath the train,...
near Guide Bridge railway stationGuide Bridge railway stationGuide Bridge railway station serves Guide Bridge, a part of Audenshaw, Tameside in Greater Manchester, England and is operated by Northern Rail. The station is 4¾ miles east of Manchester Piccadilly on the Glossop Line.-History:...
, Greater ManchesterGreater ManchesterGreater Manchester is a metropolitan county in North West England, with a population of 2.6 million. It encompasses one of the largest metropolitan areas in the United Kingdom and comprises ten metropolitan boroughs: Bolton, Bury, Oldham, Rochdale, Stockport, Tameside, Trafford, Wigan, and the...
, England and killed two passengers.
June events
- June 21 – Penn Central declares Section 77 bankruptcyBankruptcyBankruptcy is a legal status of an insolvent person or an organisation, that is, one that cannot repay the debts owed to creditors. In most jurisdictions bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debtor....
in the largest corporate bankruptcy in United StatesUnited StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
history thus far. The trains continue to run. - June 25 – Greater London CouncilGreater London CouncilThe Greater London Council was the top-tier local government administrative body for Greater London from 1965 to 1986. It replaced the earlier London County Council which had covered a much smaller area...
's Policy and Resources committee endorses enlargement of the London UndergroundLondon UndergroundThe London Underground is a rapid transit system serving a large part of Greater London and some parts of Buckinghamshire, Hertfordshire and Essex in England...
network by construction of a new "Fleet LineJubilee LineThe Jubilee line is a line on the London Underground , in the United Kingdom. It was built in two major sections—initially to Charing Cross, in central London, and later extended, in 1999, to Stratford, in east London. The later stations are larger and have special safety features, both aspects...
" and extension of the Piccadilly LinePiccadilly LineThe Piccadilly line is a line of the London Underground, coloured dark blue on the Tube map. It is the fifth busiest line on the Underground network judged by the number of passengers transported per year. It is mainly a deep-level line, running from the north to the west of London via Zone 1, with...
to Heathrow Airport. - June 28 – The Chicago Urban Transportation DistrictChicago Central Area Transit PlanThe Chicago Central Area Transit Plan, or generally referred to as the Chicago Central Area Transit Project in the 1970s, was an extensive study of the rapid transit system in downtown Chicago; the study had begun in 1965....
is created by local referendum in downtown Chicago to finance and build the 19681968 in rail transport-January events:* January 6 - The Hixon rail crash occurs when a low-loader road transporter is struck by an express train on an automatic half-barrier level crossing at Hixon, Staffordshire, England. 11 people are killed...
Loop and Distributor Subway project as recommended by the Chicago Central Area Transit Planning Study.
July events
- July 1 – China Railway opens ChengduChengduChengdu , formerly transliterated Chengtu, is the capital of Sichuan province in Southwest China. It holds sub-provincial administrative status...
–KunmingKunming' is the capital and largest city of Yunnan Province in Southwest China. It was known as Yunnan-Fou until the 1920s. A prefecture-level city, it is the political, economic, communications and cultural centre of Yunnan, and is the seat of the provincial government...
railway, 1085 km (674.2 mi) in length with 427 tunnels and 653 bridges. - July 6 – Chicago South Shore and South Bend Railroad moves its South Bend, IndianaSouth Bend, IndianaThe city of South Bend is the county seat of St. Joseph County, Indiana, United States, on the St. Joseph River near its southernmost bend, from which it derives its name. As of the 2010 Census, the city had a total of 101,168 residents; its Metropolitan Statistical Area had a population of 316,663...
, passenger stop from downtown South Bend to another facility near the Bendix plant after the last train leaves the downtown terminal.
August events
- August 22 – 38013801 (NSW steam locomotive)3801 is Australia's best known and most widely travelled steam locomotive. The streamlined locomotive was designed to haul express trains such as the Newcastle Flyer and Melbourne Limited for the New South Wales Government Railways . 3801 is the only steam locomotive to visit every mainland state...
went around AustraliaAustraliaAustralia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
from the east coast to the west coast with the train called The Western Endeavour - August 25 – Mobile and Gulf Railroad operates the last regularly scheduled steam locomotiveSteam locomotiveA steam locomotive is a railway locomotive that produces its power through a steam engine. These locomotives are fueled by burning some combustible material, usually coal, wood or oil, to produce steam in a boiler, which drives the steam engine...
-powered train on a common carrierCommon carrierA common carrier in common-law countries is a person or company that transports goods or people for any person or company and that is responsible for any possible loss of the goods during transport...
railroad in North AmericaNorth AmericaNorth America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
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October events
- October 30 – United StatesUnited StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
PresidentPresident of the United StatesThe President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
Richard NixonRichard NixonRichard Milhous Nixon was the 37th President of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. The only president to resign the office, Nixon had previously served as a US representative and senator from California and as the 36th Vice President of the United States from 1953 to 1961 under...
signs into law the Rail Passenger Service Act, a bill that creates AmtrakAmtrakThe National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak , is a government-owned corporation that was organized on May 1, 1971, to provide intercity passenger train service in the United States. "Amtrak" is a portmanteau of the words "America" and "track". It is headquartered at Union...
to take over the burden of passenger train operations in America.
November events
- November – Norwegian State RailwaysNorwegian State Railways (1883–1996)The Norwegian State Railways was a state-owned railway company that operated most of the railway network in Norway. The government agency was created in 1883 to oversee the construction and operation of all state-owned railways in Norway...
completes electrification of Dovre Line and withdraws its last steam locomotiveSteam locomotiveA steam locomotive is a railway locomotive that produces its power through a steam engine. These locomotives are fueled by burning some combustible material, usually coal, wood or oil, to produce steam in a boiler, which drives the steam engine...
s.
Unknown date events
- The Boston and Maine Corporation, operators of the Boston & Maine Railroad, declares bankruptcy.
- The diesel engineDiesel engineA diesel engine is an internal combustion engine that uses the heat of compression to initiate ignition to burn the fuel, which is injected into the combustion chamber...
manufacturing business of the former American Locomotive CompanyAmerican Locomotive CompanyThe American Locomotive Company, often shortened to ALCO or Alco , was a builder of railroad locomotives in the United States.-Early history:...
is sold to White Motor Corporation. - Reginald N. Whitman succeeds John W. Barriger IIIJohn W. Barriger IIIJohn Walker Barriger III was an American railroad executive; he successively led the Monon Railroad, Pittsburgh and Lake Erie Railroad, Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad and the Boston and Maine Railroad...
as president of the Missouri-Kansas-Texas RailroadMissouri-Kansas-Texas RailroadThe Missouri–Kansas–Texas Railroad was incorporated May 23, 1870. In its earliest days the MKT was commonly referred to as "the K-T", which was its stock exchange symbol; this common designation soon evolved into "the Katy"....
. - Shipment of gasolineGasolineGasoline , or petrol , is a toxic, translucent, petroleum-derived liquid that is primarily used as a fuel in internal combustion engines. It consists mostly of organic compounds obtained by the fractional distillation of petroleum, enhanced with a variety of additives. Some gasolines also contain...
from Casper, WyomingCasper, WyomingCasper is the county seat of Natrona County, Wyoming, United States.. Casper is the second-largest city in Wyoming , according to the 2010 census, with a population of 55,316...
, the city that shipped the greatest amount in the world of gasoline by rail earlier in the 20th century20th centuryMany people define the 20th century as running from January 1, 1901 to December 31, 2000, others would rather define it as beginning on January 1, 1900....
, is shifted from railroad tank carTank carA tank car is a type of railroad rolling stock designed to transport liquid and gaseous commodities.-Timeline:...
s to a new pipeline. - Denver and Rio Grande Western RailroadDenver and Rio Grande Western RailroadThe Denver & Rio Grande Western Railroad , often shortened to Rio Grande or D&RGW, formerly the Denver & Rio Grande Railroad, is a defunct U.S. railroad company. The railroad started as a narrow gauge line running south from Denver, Colorado in 1870; however, served mainly as a transcontinental...
San Juan Extension between Antonito and Alamosa, ColoradoAlamosa, ColoradoThe city of Alamosa is a Home Rule Municipality that is the county seat and the most populous city of Alamosa County, Colorado, United States. The United States Census Bureau estimates that the city population was 8,682 in 2005...
, is converted from dual gaugeDual gaugeA dual-gauge or mixed-gauge railway has railway track that allows trains of different gauges to use the same track. Generally, a dual-gauge railway consists of three rails, rather than the standard two rails. The two outer rails give the wider gauge, while one of the outer rails and the inner rail...
to standard gaugeStandard gaugeThe standard gauge is a widely-used track gauge . Approximately 60% of the world's existing railway lines are built to this gauge...
by lifting the 3 ft (914 mm) gauge rails. - Construction begins on the Joetsu ShinkansenJoetsu ShinkansenThe is a high-speed railway line connecting Tokyo and Niigata, Japan, via the Tōhoku Shinkansen, operated by the East Japan Railway Company .-History:The program was initiated in 1971 by Niigata-born prime minister Tanaka Kakuei...
line from TokyoTokyo, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
to NiigataNiigata, Niigatais the capital and the most populous city of Niigata Prefecture, Japan. It lies on the northwest coast of Honshu, the largest island of Japan, and faces the Sea of Japan and Sado Island....
, JapanJapanJapan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
. - The New York City Transit Authority begins removing its R1-R9 Units from service.
- Historic American Engineering Record surveys the original main line of the Baltimore and Ohio RailroadBaltimore and Ohio RailroadThe Baltimore and Ohio Railroad was one of the oldest railroads in the United States and the first common carrier railroad. It came into being mostly because the city of Baltimore wanted to compete with the newly constructed Erie Canal and another canal being proposed by Pennsylvania, which...
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April deaths
- April 25 – Oliver BulleidOliver BulleidOliver Vaughan Snell Bulleid was a British railway and mechanical engineer best known as the Chief Mechanical Engineer of the Southern Railway between 1937 and the 1948 nationalisation, developing many well-known locomotives.- Early life and Great Northern Railway :He was born in Invercargill,...
, chief mechanical engineerChief Mechanical EngineerChief Mechanical Engineer and Locomotive Superintendent are titles applied by British, Australian, and New Zealand railway companies to the person ultimately responsible to the board of the company for the building and maintaining of the locomotives and rolling stock...
of Southern RailwaySouthern Railway (Great Britain)The Southern Railway was a British railway company established in the 1923 Grouping. It linked London with the Channel ports, South West England, South coast resorts and Kent...
in Great BritainGreat BritainGreat Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
1937-1948 (b. 1882).
July deaths
- July 4 – Harold Stirling VanderbiltHarold Stirling VanderbiltHarold Stirling Vanderbilt was an American railroad executive, a champion yachtsman, a champion bridge player and a member of the Vanderbilt family.-Background:...
, heir to Cornelius VanderbiltCornelius VanderbiltCornelius Vanderbilt , also known by the sobriquet Commodore, was an American entrepreneur who built his wealth in shipping and railroads. He was also the patriarch of the Vanderbilt family and one of the richest Americans in history...
and president of the New York Central railroad system (b. 1884).