Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) Metro-North Railroad has rebranded a third locomotive with special colors and designs as a Heritage Series to highlight the railroad’s 40 years of service to the public. Skilled craft workers at Metro-North’s North White Plains Shop applied a vinyl wrap to Metro-North’s locomotive No. 211. The wrap pays tribute to New York Central, the predecessor railroad that operated on the Hudson and Harlem lines. The train will make its debut run on the Hudson Line, Tuesday, Nov. 14, departing Croton-Harmon station at 7:31 a.m., and arriving at Grand Central Terminal at 8:26 a.m.
“Every new wrapped locomotive seems to look better than the next, which just speaks to the talent of the Metro-North workforce,” said Metro-North Railroad President Catherine Rinaldi. “Rail enthusiasts around the region are excited about the launch of this latest Heritage locomotive, and the first run will be on one of New York Central’s original routes, making for an even more scenic morning ride down the Hudson.”
The second rebranded locomotive paid tribute to Conrail, the railroad which is Metro-North’s immediate predecessor. The train made its debut on the Hudson Line Monday, Aug. 14, departing the Croton-Harmon station at 7:31 a.m., and arriving at Grand Central Terminal at 8:26 a.m. The design of the wrap mimics the paint scheme applied to older FL9 locomotives that Conrail operated for the MTA over the Hudson, Harlem, and New Haven Lines from 1976 to 1982. Metro-North’s locomotive No. 201 is one of 31 P32ACDM models the railroad uses to provide service on the northern Hudson and Harlem Lines and the New Haven Line’s Danbury and Waterbury Branches.
The first rebrand in the series was locomotive No. 208, which made its debut in May, with a vinyl wrap of silver, blue, and red to pay homage to Metro-North’s original design. The design was created upon the railroad’s founding in 1983 for the railroad’s historic FL9 locomotives and worn by them until the last was retired in April 2007.
Additional locomotives will be wrapped in the heritage designs that were worn by predecessor railroads. The wrapped locomotives will remain in service for the foreseeable future. Metro-North was created in 1983 to take over the operation of commuter rail service out of Grand Central Terminal on the Hudson, Harlem, and New Haven Lines, and also a portion of the Port Jervis and Pascack Valley lines out of Hoboken Terminal.
—via Press Release