Railpictures.ca - John Pittman Photo: In 2001 GO Transit borrowed (leased) equipment from Miami area’s Florida Tri-Rail and Vancouver’s West Coast Express. A train of this leased equipment was photographed the week after “9-11″ heading north along the west bank of the lower Don River. Vantage point was Eastern Avenue bridge. It had departed Union Station eastward a few minutes earlier and would make station stops terminating at Richmond Hill. Florida Tri-Rail was equipped with bi-level coaches in the same colour scheme as GO Transit except for Tri-Rail emblems. Potentially this made it easier to sell the coaches (to GO) if South Florida commuter train service was not viable. However Tri-Rail’s 480 Volt HEP (matching Amtrak, VIA, WCE, etc) is incompatible with GO’s 575 Volt system. | Railpictures.ca – Canadian Railway Photography

In 2001 GO Transit borrowed (leased) equipment from Miami area's Florida Tri-Rail and Vancouver's West Coast Express.
A train of this leased equipment was photographed the week after "9-11" heading north along the west bank of the lower Don River. Vantage point was Eastern Avenue bridge. It had departed Union Station eastward a few minutes earlier and would make station stops terminating at Richmond Hill.
Florida Tri-Rail was equipped with bi-level coaches in the same colour scheme as GO Transit except for Tri-Rail emblems. Potentially this made it easier to sell the coaches (to GO) if South Florida commuter train service was not viable. However Tri-Rail's 480 Volt HEP (matching Amtrak, VIA, WCE, etc) is incompatible with GO's 575 Volt system.

Caption: In 2001 GO Transit borrowed (leased) equipment from Miami area's Florida Tri-Rail and Vancouver's West Coast Express.
A train of this leased equipment was photographed the week after "9-11" heading north along the west bank of the lower Don River. Vantage point was Eastern Avenue bridge. It had departed Union Station eastward a few minutes earlier and would make station stops terminating at Richmond Hill.

Florida Tri-Rail was equipped with bi-level coaches in the same colour scheme as GO Transit except for Tri-Rail emblems. Potentially this made it easier to sell the coaches (to GO) if South Florida commuter train service was not viable. However Tri-Rail's 480 Volt HEP (matching Amtrak, VIA, WCE, etc) is incompatible with GO's 575 Volt system.

Photographer:	John Pittman [288] (more) (contact)
Date:	2001-09-17 (search)
Railway:	GO Transit (search)
Reporting Marks:	TRCX 811 (search)
Train Symbol:	Not Provided
Subdivision/SNS:	Bala Sub ~ mp 2 (search)
City/Town:	Toronto (search)
Province:	Ontario (search)
Share Link:	http://www.railpictures.ca/?attachment_id=38152

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Photo ID: 36959

Map courtesy of Open Street Map

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3 Comments

Stuart Streit

July 11, 2019 at 10:00 pm

Why did GO need to borrow equipment?
jp4pix

July 11, 2019 at 11:18 pm

I asked Google – best match was a trainweb chart “GO significant dates” (edited excerpt):
July 2001 GO to lease from Florida Tri-Rail – will be with GO for 18 months.
Locomotive F40PH #811 ex-Amtrak
U.T.D.C. coaches 1008, 1009
U.T.D.C. cab car 504
This equipment now expected to remain with GO until March 2003 ………
While that doesn’t say WHY, my inference is that GO needed more coaches and a loco also to provide the right HEP voltage. I went to work by GO train in that era, and recall door problems on cold winter days – GO coaches were aging, some needed major attention. Situation probably relieved by acquisition of a new batch of coaches in 2002, and remanufacture of older bilevels.
Curtis Umbelina

July 12, 2019 at 10:35 am

wow i remember that stuff

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Stuart Streit

July 11, 2019 at 10:00 pm

Why did GO need to borrow equipment?

jp4pix

July 11, 2019 at 11:18 pm

I asked Google – best match was a trainweb chart “GO significant dates” (edited excerpt):
July 2001 GO to lease from Florida Tri-Rail – will be with GO for 18 months.
Locomotive F40PH #811 ex-Amtrak
U.T.D.C. coaches 1008, 1009
U.T.D.C. cab car 504
This equipment now expected to remain with GO until March 2003 ………
While that doesn’t say WHY, my inference is that GO needed more coaches and a loco also to provide the right HEP voltage. I went to work by GO train in that era, and recall door problems on cold winter days – GO coaches were aging, some needed major attention. Situation probably relieved by acquisition of a new batch of coaches in 2002, and remanufacture of older bilevels.

Curtis Umbelina

July 12, 2019 at 10:35 am

wow i remember that stuff