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1974 in rail transport
Events
January
January 2 âÂÂ
SEMTA
begins subsidizing the
Grand Trunk Western Railroad
's
commuter rail service
between
Detroit
and
Pontiac, Michigan
.
January 19âÂÂ20 âÂÂ
New Zealand Railways
K class (1877)
steam locomotive is recovered from the
Branxholme locomotive dump
in the
à Âreti River
.
March
March 6 âÂÂ
Amtrak
begins passenger service in the
Central Valley of California
with the first run of the
San Joaquins
between
Oakland
and
Bakersfield
.
March 17 â A freight train on
Canadian Pacific Railway
is derailed when it hits a rock slide near
Spences Bridge
,
British Columbia
; the accident leads to the installation of
ditch light
s on all
Canadian
diesel locomotive
s, a practice later copied by American railroads.
May
May 6 â Inauguration of full electric service on
British Rail
West Coast Main Line
through to
Glasgow
.
May 8âÂÂ27 âÂÂ
Railway strike in India
. The
strike
by 17 million workers of
Indian Railways
is the largest known.
May 9 â A first section of
Prague Metro Line C
, from
Florenc
to Kacerov in
Czechoslovakia
, officially opens.
May 17 âÂÂ
State-of-the-Art Car
enters revenue service, on the
New York City Subway
.
May 19
At the insistence of the
Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe Railway
Amtrak
renames the
Super Chief
the
Southwest Limited
.
Amtrak
renames the
Texas Chief
service it inherited from
Santa Fe Railway
to become the
Lone Star
due to objections from Santa Fe over Amtrak's quality of service.
Amtrak
introduces the
Expo '74
passenger train
between
Spokane
and
Seattle
,
Washington
.
June
June 16 â The
Milwaukee Road
ends operation of its
electric locomotive
s in
Montana
and
Idaho
. Trains over the
Rocky Mountains
are now solely powered by diesels.
July
July 23 âÂÂ
Shin-Koshigaya Station
on what is now the
Tobu Skytree Line
in
Koshigaya, Saitama
,
Japan
, is opened.
August
August 4 âÂÂ
Italicus Express bombing
was a terrorist bombing in Italy which killed 12 people.
August 5 âÂÂ
Amtrak
introduces the
Adirondack
passenger train
between
New York City
and
Montreal
,
Quebec
.
August 10 â A
Philippine National Railways
express train
from
San Fernando, La Union
to
Manila
collided with a
Baliwag Transit
bus at a railroad crossing in
Calumpit
,
Bulacan
, killing 18 people and injuring another 53.
August 15 âÂÂ
Line 1
of the
Seoul Metro
opens a section between
Seoul
and
Cheongnwangnyi
.
August 30 â In the
Zagreb train disaster
an express traveling from
Belgrade
to
Dortmund
derailed before entering
Zagreb Main Station
, killing 153 people.
September
September 14
Commercial operation begins on
São Paulo Metro
,
Brazil
.
Amtrak discontinues its
Expo '74
service.
September 15 âÂÂ
Amtrak
introduces the
Blue Water Limited
passenger train
between
Chicago
and
Port Huron, Michigan
.
September 16 â Passenger traffic begins through the
Bay Area Rapid Transit
(BART)
Transbay Tube
between
Oakland
and
San Francisco
beneath
San Francisco Bay
, the world's longest and deepest
immersed tube
tunnel.
October
October 14 â The Tono Railway Dachi Line, connecting
Tokishi
and Higashi-dachi in
Gifu Prefecture
,
Japan
, is permanently closed.
October 30 â In
Tokyo
,
Japan
, the
Yurakucho Line
is opened between
Ikebukuro
and
Ginza-itchome
.
Unknown date
The original Norfolk Southern Railway is merged into the
Southern Railway (US)
.
John W. Barriger III
steps down from the presidency of the
Boston and Maine Railroad
.
The
Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway
operates the last train ever on its subsidiary
Grand Canyon Railway
; it is a
maintenance of way
train.
Accidents
References
Rivanna Chapter, National Railway Historical Society (2005),
This Month in Railroad History â June
. Retrieved June 13, 2005.