Fillmore and Western Railway
| Overview | |
|---|---|
| Headquarters | Fillmore, California |
| Reporting mark | FWRY |
| Locale | California |
- See Fillmore Western Railway for the line in Nebraska.
The Fillmore and Western Railway (reporting mark FWRY) is a dinner train and speciality line operating out of Fillmore, California. Murder mysteries are a favorite. The F&W is known as the "Home of the Hollywood Movie Trains" because the majority of its rolling stock was acquired from three major studios: 20th Century Fox, Paramount, and MGM. It is also frequently used for the filming of television series, motion pictures and commercials and as a locale for private and commercial still photography, and visitors can often see such activity as well as sets and support equipment at the rail yard.
Operating year-round as a tourist train, the F&W offers numerous special events including the Railroad Days Festival, the Pumpkinliner, Christmas Tree Trains, the North Pole Express, the Day Out with ThomasTM, and the Little Engine that Could. The normal schedule involves weekend excursions, dinner trains, murder mystery trains, barbecue trains, and shopping excursions to nearby Santa Paula.
History
The F&W is a standard gauge railroad running roughly parallel to California Highway 126 in Ventura County, California, on a section of track formally owned by Southern Pacific Railroad and now owned by the Union Pacific Railroad. This line was originally part of the Southern Pacific's main line between San Francisco and Los Angeles before the Montalvo Cutoff was built through the Santa Susana Mountains in 1924. The track was used extensively by Southern Pacific as late as the 1950s to haul citrus from packing houses located in the Santa Clara River Valley. This section is now a branch line, connecting at its west end to the Union Pacific at Montalvo, between the cities of Oxnard and Ventura. Prior to storm damage in 1979, the eastern end of the line connected to Southern Pacific tracks in Santa Clarita. The eastern end of the line now terminates in Santa Paula.
Current equipment
The roster of the F&W includes a GP35, GP30 and two F7s from General Motors Electromotive Division and an S6 and RS32 from ALCO. The railroad also owns numerous coaches, freight cars, cabooses and excursion cars. The F&W also included an Ex-Canadian Pacific Baldwin 2-8-0 Consolidation steam locomotive, since returned to its native home. Also in operation is an 0-4-0 Porter tank engine, the Sespe.
The rail yard is located adjacent to the restored City Hall in downtown Fillmore and is part of the revitalized section of the city rebuilt after the extensive damage caused by the 1994 Northridge earthquake that brought down the facades of many nearby businesses. A vintage 1906 80 ton turntable bridge originally installed in Capreol, Ontario was purchased from the Canadian National Railroad and was installed in a newly constructed pit on February 7, 2007. When completed later in 2007, the turntable will allow not only turning of locomotives and cars but also access to planned facilities on tracks in the narrow yard area. This area is planned to be the center of a proposed railway heritage park complex.
Future plans
Transportation planners in the Southern California region have been studying the feasibility of restoring the eastern end of the line between Santa Paula and Santa Clarita in order to establish Metrolink service. This would require bringing existing track up to passenger standards, adding passing sidings and acquisition of new right of way for track between the current eastern terminus of the line just east of Interstate 5 (I-5) and Metrolink's Antelope Valley line. The new line would also require construction of a bridge over the South Fork of the Santa Clara River and an at grade crossing or a flying junction at San Fernando Road. This line would have the potential to relieve some of the current commuter load on I-5 corridor between California State Route 126 and California State Route 14 as well as providing future commute options for housing development that is currently on the drawing boards for northern Los Angeles County and eastern Ventura County.
See also
External links
- Railway's website
- Santa Clara River Valley Historical Society's website
- 7/26/06 Comments from Paul J. Dyson, President of Rail Passenger Association of California President on expanding Metrolink Service on the Santa Paula line
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References
- Tourist Trains 2005. Kalmbach Publishing Company. p. 26. 1546-2730.
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