Big Boy brewing big excitement
Altoona prepares for behemoth steam locomotive visit
ALTOONA — Excitement is brewing in this railroad city as the date draws near for the arrival of Union Pacific’s Big Boy steam locomotive and the estimated 100,000 visitors expected to be on hand to view the behemoth between July 8-11.
But, with that excitement comes a lot of caution, as evidenced by a news conference held last week to bring awareness about the expected crowds and the safety protocols put in place.
“The Big Boy is a lot bigger than the (locomotives) we’re used to,” said Gary Watters, executive director of AMED, Altoona and Blair County’s largest emergency medical services organization.
Local leaders in emergency management and law enforcement held the news conference at the Railroaders Memorial Museum to share information gleaned from recent Big Boy stops.
Videos taken in places like New York state illustrate why there’s so much concern about the sojourn of the Big Boy.
In a drone shot taken near Buffalo, crowds are standing within perhaps five feet of the locomotive as it passes through a grade crossing, with individuals about to be blasted by steam and hot water released from the brake cylinder cocks located just above track level.
“People are getting way too close,” Watters said, reiterating a Union Pacific warning to stay at least 25 feet back from the tracks when the Big Boy goes by.
It’s necessary to stay back because Big Boy is much more powerful than a diesel locomotive or regular steam engine and it overhangs the tracks, organizers said.
Between 1866 and 1946, the Pennsylvania Railroad built 6,645 steam locomotives at two shops in Altoona, home of the PRR’s primary maintenance and manufacturing complex and at one time the largest such complex in the world.
None of those locomotives were as big as the Union Pacific Big Boy, the world’s largest operating steam locomotive at 133 feet long and 1.2 million pounds.
In a length comparison, the Big Boy is slightly more than half the length of a Boeing 747. As for a weight comparison, a standard Norfolk Southern mainline freight locomotive weighs about 430,000 pounds, less than half of the Big Boy’s impressive weight.
That’s why emergency management officials have been in talks for weeks, weighing viewing opportunities with public safety.
Altoona stop
The Big Boy stop in Altoona is part of a cross-country trip celebrating the 250th Anniversary of the Declaration of Independence — with the journey’s highlight the July 4 celebrations in Philadelphia.
The Big Boy’s journey also puts a focus on “the coast-to-coast connectivity” that a proposed merger between Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern represents, said NS spokeswoman Heather Garcia.
Joe DeFrancesco, executive director of the Railroaders Memorial Museum, said as he understands it, the Big Boy’s visit to town was planned before the merger announcement.
He attributes the extended stay to Altoona’s “rich history” of railroading.
In either case, local residents and visitors alike are expected to turn out to see Big Boy No. 4014, which began its East Coast tour on May 25 from Cheyenne, Wyoming.
After the July 4 celebrations in Philadelphia, Big Boy will continue its tour and will leave the Enola station at 9 a.m. Wednesday, July 8.
It’s expected to arrive at the Lewistown Station about 12:45 p.m. After a brief stop, Big Boy will steam toward Altoona, passing through Huntingdon and Tyrone, arriving at 5:15 p.m. at the Railroaders Memorial Museum.
The locomotive will depart the museum at 5:45 p.m. for a private Norfolk Southern employee event.
On July 9-10, Big Boy will be on display, with free admission, from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. There will be shuttles to the display area from the parking lots at Peoples Natural Gas Field and the Logan Valley Mall near the former Macy’s. No parking will be available at the display site and visitors will need to use the shuttles to ensure entrance to the site, according to local officials.
No parking will be permitted in the nearby neighborhood and nearby roads will be closed.
Big Boy will depart Altoona at 9 a.m. Saturday, July 11, and arrive at the Horseshoe Curve National Historic Site about 9:30 a.m., departing at 10 a.m. and heading toward the Cresson Railroad Park. The Horseshoe Curve experience is sold out and the road will be closed to traffic during Big Boy’s stop there.
The locomotive is expected to arrive in Cresson at 10:45 a.m. and depart at 11:15 a.m. for Leetsdale, Pa., where it is expected to arrive at 5:45 p.m. and depart at 6:15 p.m. for its next stop in Conway, Ohio, as it heads back across the United States.
Downtown passage
There are several areas to see the locomotive as it pulls out of Altoona on Saturday, July 11, even though for most people, the iconic view of the Big Boy on the Horseshoe Curve will not be possible.
The Big Boy will pass through downtown about 8:45 a.m. on its way to the Horseshoe Curve.
The locomotive can be viewed at that time from several bridges over the tracks, both pedestrian-only and those that also accommodate vehicles, between Rose Yard and the Horseshoe Curve.
At the Horseshoe Curve, it will stop for viewing for half an hour, starting at 9:30 a.m.
Because the Curve stop is a ticketed event, and it’s sold out, officials will close off the highway to the Horseshoe Curve at that time.
And forget any ideas about hiking through the woods to get close to the tracks as starting July 8 until after the train is gone, there will be no access to the Altoona Water Authority’s wooded watershed ground around the Curve, starting near the headwaters of the lowest of three reservoirs, Lake Altoona, according to Salavadore Zaffuto, game warden.
There will be red signs designating the off-limit areas, Zaffuto said.
The restrictions are being put in place due to steep terrain, cliffs and other hazards, said Mike Bianconi, the authority’s director of water operations.
Additional viewing
The Big Boy will leave the Horseshoe Curve about 10:15 a.m. and head west through Allegheny Township.
Three unpaved roads in the township will provide viewing access, although all will be for pedestrians only.
The first is MG Tower Road, which intersects Sugar Run Road from the right about two miles past Broad Avenue.
There is parking for perhaps 40 cars in the dirt lot at the base of MG Tower Road.
The walk up MG Tower Road to the area near the tracks is about 1.75 miles.
The second is an unnamed gravel road that intersects with Sugar Run Road on the right, about a quarter-mile short of Sugar Run Road’s intersection with Tunnelhill Street at the top of the mountain.
There is no parking at the mouth of this unnamed gravel road.
The walk to the tracks from Sugar Run is about half a mile.
The third is Bird Eye Road, which intersects Tunnelhill Street in Tunnelhill on the right, for a motorist heading north.
Just off Tunnelhill Street, there is a lot that can hold up to 20 cars.
The walk down to the tracks is a little more than a mile.
After passing by those lookout points, the locomotive will pass through the New Portage Tunnel at Gallitzin, then arrive at 10:45 a.m. in Cresson Railroad Park, for a half-hour viewing.
Officials there are planning for a festival to welcome the Big Boy, which 10,000 people are expected to turn out for. There will be shuttle services running from Mount Aloysius College to the site.