1946 in rail transport

Events

January events

* January 18 - “The Harvey Girls”, a movie starring Judy Garland and Ray Bolger and set in a Harvey House Hotel, makes its American debut. The movie will win an Oscar for Best Song for Johnny Mercer’s “On The Atchison Topeka and the Santa Fe”.
* January 21 - The Hull Electric Railway in Ottawa is fined $50 for violating a local law against moving freight on the city streets between midnight and 5:00 AM when it was delivering loads to oil companies along Laurier Avenue. [Colin Churcher's Railway Pages (December 3 2004), " [http://www.railways.incanada.net/candate/street.htm Significant dates in Ottawa/Hull street and light railway history] ". Retrieved January 20 2006.]

February events

* February 1 - Henry G. Ivatt is promoted to Chief Mechanical Engineer of the London, Midland and Scottish Railway, succeeding Charles Fairburn.
* February 20 - Pullman Standard delivers the first passenger car built after World War II.

March events

* March 29 - The north end of Ottawa's Interprovincial Bridge is destroyed by fire, severing Château Laurier from Hull Electric Railway passenger service. [cite web| url=http://www.railways.incanada.net/candate/ottawa.htm| work=Colin Churcher's Railway Pages| title=Significant dates in Ottawa railway history| accessmonthday=28 March | accessyear=2006 ]

April events

* April 26 - Naperville, Illinois, United States: Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad's "Advance Flyer", stopped in the station, is rammed by the railroad's "Exposition Flyer". 45 killed, more than 100 injured.

May events

* May 17 - President Harry Truman seizes control of the railroads to prevent a nationwide strike.
* May 30 - After a short strike earlier in the month, Hudson and Manhattan Railroad trainmen go on strike again when the Pennsylvania Railroad (which owned the H&M at this time) management decides that the recent PRR pay increase does not apply to H&M employees.

June events

* June 20 - First use of a Public Address system on a passenger train for station announcements. The system was installed in a New York City subway car.

July events

* July - General Motors Electro-Motive Division introduces the EMD F2.

August events

* August 10 - The Pere Marquette Railroad inaugurates the "Pere Marquette" passenger train between Detroit and Grand Rapids, Michigan.
* August 24 - The Boston and Maine Railroad replaces electric locomotive operation through the Hoosac Tunnel with diesel locomotives.
* August 27 - The last T1 class steam locomotive built by Baldwin Locomotive Works for Pennsylvania Railroad enters service.cite web| author=Rivanna Chapter, National Railway Historical Society| url=http://avenue.org/nrhs/histaug.htm| title=This Month in Railroad History: August| date=2005| accessdate=2006-08-25 ]

eptember events

* September 29 - The Illinois Central Railroad fully dieselizes all passenger trains that it is operating between Chicago, Illinois, and St. Louis, Missouri.

December events

* December 7 - The power car from the M-10002 streamliner trainset is sold to Northrup-Hendy for gas turbine train testing.
* December 8 - General Motors Electro-Motive Division introduces the EMD NW5.
* December 23 - 8,872,244 ride the New York City subway system, the current one-day record.

Unknown date events

* General Electric builds the electric locomotive model that will soon become known as the Little Joe
* John W. Barriger III becomes president of the Monon Railroad.
* The Atlanta, Birmingham and Coast Railroad is merged into the Atlantic Coast Line.
* The Chesapeake and Ohio Railroad, under the direction of Robert R. Young, places the largest single passenger car order with Pullman-Standard for nearly 300 cars. These cars entered service beginning in 1950. [Wayner - Car names, numbers, consists p. 69.]

Births

Deaths

March deaths

* March 21 - Oliver Robert Hawke Bury, Chief mechanical engineer and manager of Great Western Railway of Brazil 1892–1894, general manager of the Great Northern Railway in England 1902–1912, Director of the London and North Eastern Railway 1912–1945 (b. 1861).

November deaths

* November 10 - Patrick H. Joyce, president of Chicago Great Western Railway 1931-1946, dies (b. 1879).

References

* (January 16 2005), " [http://www.steamindex.com/people/managers.htm Biographies of chairmen, managers & other senior officers] ". Retrieved February 10 2005.
* Monon Railroad Historical and Technical Society (2004), " [http://www.monon.org/history.html History of the Monon] ". Retrieved February 9 2005.
* Rivanna Chapter National Railway Historical Society (2005), " [http://avenue.org/nrhs/histaug.htm This month in railroad history - August] ". Retrieved August 23 2005.