iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Morgan 🚂 @spacemanfrompluto.bsky.social · 23/04/2026

Big Business with the Big Boy at Shafter, Nevada

A photograph, taken 2026-04-04, featuring a steam locomotive and train sitting on a railroad track in the northern Great Basin, Nevada. The locomotive, a compound 4-8-8-4 numbered 4014 built by the American Locomotive Company (ALCo), is Union Pacific’s flagship “Big Boy” locomotive. The engine pauses its excursion West for a maintenance stop in Shafter, Nevada — Shafter is a ghost town, and was formerly the junction between the Nevada Northern Railway and the Western Pacific; today, the NNRy interchanges here with Union Pacific. 4014 bears a black livery with a graphite smokebox and white lining picked out on the running board and wheel rims. A bronze statue of an American Bald Eagle is mounted atop the locomotive’s headlight, commemorating the American Semiquincentennial. Two flags mark the locomotive’s pilot — an American Flag, and the Nevada State Flag. Behind the locomotive is a train of Union Pacific armor yellow auxiliary tenders, two Union Pacific heritage locomotives, and several vintage Union Pacific passenger cars. Employees of the Union Pacific and Nevada Northern Railway alike swarm around the locomotive, inspecting and analyzing the motion and valves. The weather is bright and sunny, with a blue, cloudless sky above. In the far distance are a range of arid mountains.

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Morgan 🚂 @spacemanfrompluto.bsky.social · 21/09/2025

I caught this one just in time today, right as the air lines were coming apart!

A photograph, taken 2025-09-20, featuring a locomotive and train sitting in a railroad yard in the Nevada High Desert. The locomotive, an SD-9R numbered 250, belongs to the Nevada Northern Railway Museum of Ely, Nevada. 250 wears a special red-white-and-blue livery, to commemorate the upcoming American Semiquincentennial; hence her number, “250”. Behind the locomotive are three brick-red ballast hopper cars, and an orange-yellow caboose. Further in the background are the coal and water towers of the East Ely yard complex, followed behind by a sagebrush-covered mountainside rising up from the valley floor.

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Morgan 🚂 @spacemanfrompluto.bsky.social · 10/09/2025

🎶 I can see a new horizon underneath the blazin' sky, I'll be where the eagle's flying higher and higher. Gonna be your man in motion, all I need's this pair of wheels, Take me where my future's lyin', St. Elmo's fire! 🎶

A photograph taken 2025-09-09, of an orange sunset over an orange caboose in a desert rail yard. The caboose, labeled “KENNECOTT”, sits at the end of a short train of rust-colored mineral hoppers, on a siding in the East Ely rail yard owned by the Nevada Northern Railway Museum. In the foreground before the caboose is an empty main line track, and in the background are the railway’s defunct water and coaling towers. The sunset paints the clouds with shades of blue, orange, yellow, and gray.

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Morgan 🚂 @spacemanfrompluto.bsky.social · 05/09/2025

He ❤️looooves❤️ me (he hates me but he let me take his picture)

A photograph of an orange tabby cat sitting “loafed” on top of the wood platform deck of a depot in East Ely, Nevada; behind the cat is a maroon box car owned by the Nevada Northern Railway Museum, with lettering stenciled in white reading, “N.N. 1024” and below, “capy. 8000”, “ld. lmt. 99500”, “lt. wt. 36500”, and “Boxes Repacked E.E.N.N.”

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Morgan 🚂 @spacemanfrompluto.bsky.social · 04/07/2025

I love that they’ve really committed to the idea that, in 1830, the GWR designed a locomotive a hundred years more advanced than contemporary designs, builds it at their rival’s factory in Crewe, and only builds one. Said train is stolen, and nobody thinks to build more for a hundred years.

A screenshot from the Harry Potter Wikia page on Fandom, with the following text highlighted — “In 1830, the Ministry of Magic conducted a large-scale operation involving one hundred and sixty-seven Memory Charms, as well as the biggest Concealment Charm ever performed in Britain”

A screenshot of the Wikipedia article for the Great Western Railway’s “4900 Hall Class” locomotive, with the factory and build dates highlighted separately within red circles

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Morgan 🚂 @spacemanfrompluto.bsky.social · 22/05/2025

Me at six years old, casually reppin’ my favorite movie of all time (a/o 2003)

A photograph, taken 2003-11-02, at the Fresno-Yosemite International Airport in Fresno, California. The photo depicts a family of six posed in front of an airplane belonging to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CALFIRE), a North American Rockwell OV-10A Bronco twin-turboprop light observation aircraft. To the left of the group is a young boy, myself, wearing a T-shirt bearing the image of characters from the 2000 childrens’ film, “Thomas and the Magic Railroad”.

A close-up shot of the same photograph. Fine detail is at this distance, but the two characters on the boy’s shirt are distinctly early-‘00s era promotional artwork of Thomas and Lady

Promotional artwork of Lady, from “Thomas and the Magic Railroad”, as seen on the boy’s shirt

Promotional artwork of Thomas, from “Thomas and Friends”, as seen on the boy’s shirt

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Morgan 🚂 @spacemanfrompluto.bsky.social · 20/05/2025

If this city was a woman, I’d kiss her!

A photograph taken on 2025-05-11 in San Francisco, California, of a San Francisco Municipal Railway (SF MUNI) Powell & Mason cable car. The car, MUNI number 10, descends the hill on Powell toward Market Street, directly in front of the Westin Hotel. No. 10 runs mostly empty, with only a few seated passengers and yet fewer standees on the sides. The car is painted in a burgundy and light blue paint scheme, with white accents and varnished wood throughout. A sign atop the car reads “Powell & Market Sts.”, and below atop the frames is the marker of the SF MUNI.

A photograph taken on 2025-05-11 in San Francisco, California, of a San Francisco Municipal Railway (SF MUNI) F-Market & Wharves PCC streetcar. The car, MUNI number 1058, travels down the center of the palm-lined bayside Embarcadero street, with roll signs indicating this car is bound for 12th and Noe streets, the end-of-line stop in San Francisco’s Castro district. No. 1058 is painted in a heritage scheme honoring the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA), replicating the agency’s “Green Hornet” livery of Mercury Green, Croydon Cream, and Swampholly Orange” — a livery the CTA adopted in the era immediately following World War II.

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Morgan 🚂 @spacemanfrompluto.bsky.social · 09/05/2025

In the final reproduced episode for S1, the ground doesn’t collapse until Thomas is already on top of the mine. The mine caves in because it can’t stand Thomas’s weight, unlike in the pilot where Thomas seems to affect the mine’s integrity from some distance away.

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Morgan 🚂 @spacemanfrompluto.bsky.social · 09/05/2025

In the Pilot, the ground under the track caves in before Thomas has reached the mine. Though it’s *super* convincing, very well done — and reminds me a lot of the mine collapse from “Put-Upon Percy” in S5 — it’s not really Thomas who causes the cave in, at least directly. It sort of just… *happens*

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Morgan 🚂 @spacemanfrompluto.bsky.social · 07/05/2025

Whenever this happens to me, my joyous relief is always undercut by my self-conscious anxiety

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Morgan 🚂 @spacemanfrompluto.bsky.social · 06/05/2025

This one was my favorite shot of the night — I wanted to re-create the angle from the scene in the film, where it really *hits* Marty that he’s stuck in 1955. A good friend of mine framed it just right, and grabbed the shot for me!

A screenshot from the 1985 film, “Back to the Future”, depicting the film’s main character, Marty McFly, standing in front of the famous clock tower.

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Morgan 🚂 @spacemanfrompluto.bsky.social · 06/05/2025

“It’s called ‘dabbing’, Doc — I guess you’re not ready for that, yet… but your kids are gonna love it!”

A photograph taken on the evening of 2025-05-04 in the Universal Studios Hollywood theme park, depicting a young man “dabbing” beside an old man in front of a large clock face. The young man, myself, is dressed in cosplay as Marty McFly, while the old man is dressed in performance as Doctor “Doc” Emmett L. Brown — the characters are from the 1985 film, “Back to the Future”. In the photo, we stand in front of a replica of the face clock tower as seen in the film. I am dressed in Marty’s “life preserver” outfit, while Doc is dressed in the character’s “Institute of Future Technology” outfit as seen in the defunct Back to the Future Ride, previously found at Universal parks in Hollywood, Orlando, and Tokyo.

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Morgan 🚂 @spacemanfrompluto.bsky.social · 06/05/2025

Universal put on an environmental recreation of the film’s climax — it was *heavy*!

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Morgan 🚂 @spacemanfrompluto.bsky.social · 06/05/2025

The poster pose! I wanted to be crucified on the clock face, à la the Church of the Rock’s 2015 Easter play — thanks, Jenny Nicholson! — but when Doc showed up, I couldn’t bring myself to do it 🙃

A photograph taken on the evening of 2025-05-04 in the Universal Studios Hollywood theme park, depicting a young man standing beside an old man in front of a large clock face. The young man, myself, is dressed in cosplay as Marty McFly, while the old man is dressed in performance as Doctor “Doc” Emmett L. Brown — the characters are from the 1985 film, “Back to the Future”. In the photo, we stand in front of a replica of the face clock tower as seen in the film. I am dressed in Marty’s “life preserver” outfit, while Doc is dressed in the character’s “Institute of Future Technology” outfit as seen in the defunct Back to the Future Ride, previously found at Universal parks in Hollywood, Orlando, and Tokyo.

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Morgan 🚂 @spacemanfrompluto.bsky.social · 06/05/2025

Me before meeting Lorraine: “yeah she’s cute I guess, but I wouldn’t get all Oedipal for her” Me after meeting Lorraine: “Marty McFly is a stronger man than I”

A photograph taken on the evening of 2025-05-04 in the Universal Studios Hollywood backlot, depicting a young man and woman standing beside each other. The man, myself, is dressed in cosplay as Marty McFly, and the woman is dressed in performance as Lorraine Baines — both characters are from the 1985 film, “Back to the Future”. In the photo, I wear Marty McFly’s ‘80s-era “life preserver” down vest outfit, while Lorraine wears her ‘50s-era “Enchantment Under the Sea Dance” dress.

You’re my mom— sorry, mommy— sorry, mommy, sorry—

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Morgan 🚂 @spacemanfrompluto.bsky.social · 06/05/2025

It’s the clock tower — but not *the* Clock Tower. Universal’s backlot is still an active filming location for television and film, and the studio wants Courthouse Square to resemble Anytown, USA. Hard to maintain suspension of disbelief if Agent Carter steps into 1985 Hill Valley!

A photograph taken on the evening of 2025-05-04 in the Universal Studios Hollywood backlot, depicting a young man, myself, dressed in cosplay as Marty McFly from the 1985 film, “Back to the Future”. In the photo, I stand in the Courthouse Square set, beneath the clock tower standing above me. The clock tower’s appearance has been modified since the production of “Back to the Future”, and now only bears a passing resemblance to the one seen in the film.

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Morgan 🚂 @spacemanfrompluto.bsky.social · 06/05/2025

I’ve a feeling I’m not in 1985 anymore…

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Morgan 🚂 @spacemanfrompluto.bsky.social · 06/05/2025

Idk how Marty walked two miles in this shit bc I could barely keep it together after a couple minutes

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Morgan 🚂 @spacemanfrompluto.bsky.social · 06/05/2025

SAVE the Clock Tower! The flyer is my digital HD recreation of the prop from the movie — I replaced the standard “lorem ipsum” text with my own fictionalization of the events of November 12, 1955. It’s all legible text!

A photograph taken on 2025-05-04 at the Universal Studios Hollywood theme park, depicting a young man, myself, and an old woman, standing at the base of a pair of escalators. I am dressed in cosplay as Marty McFly, while the woman is dressed in performance as the “Clock Tower Lady” — both characters are from the 1985 film, “Back to the Future”.

A digital HD replica of the “Save the Clock Tower” flyer from the 1985 film, “Back to the Future”. The flyer depicts a photocopy of the front page of a fictional newspaper, the “Hill Valley Telegraph”, dated Monday, November 14, 1955. The headline article reads, “Clock Tower Struck By Lightning”, and the subtitle below reads, “Clock Stopped at 10:04”. To the left of the article is a photo of the damaged face of the courthouse clock. Below the headline article is an unrelated article, titled “Plans to Launch Tests of New Toll System Here”. At the bottom of the flyer is an emphatic plea, “Please Make Donations To The Hill Valley Preservation Society”.

The article text, which exceeds the BlueSky alt-text character limit, is a fictionalized account of events of the film’s climax, from a neutral journalist’s perspective. Easter eggs include:

• A photography credit to “D. Cundey”, referencing the film’s director of photography, Dean Cundey
• A journalism credit on the headline article to “Sid Sheinberg”, president of Universal Studios during the film’s production
• A National Weather Service representative named Kathleen Kennedy, an executive producer of the film
• A meteorologist named “Frank Marshall”, an executive producer of the film
• A journalism credit on the secondary article to “Robert Gale”, a reference to the film’s writer
• A secondary article accounting the events of the “Steamed Hams” luncheon from Season 7, Episode 21 of the animated television show, “The Simpsons”

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Morgan 🚂 @spacemanfrompluto.bsky.social · 06/05/2025

Remember when these were scheduled for a 2023 release? Something-something, Pepperidge Farm, something-something.

A screenshot of a product listing on the Athearn model railroad storefront website. The product is a four-pack of HO scale Amtrak California cars. The release date, “Releasing September 2025”, has been highlighted by a red circle.

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Morgan 🚂 @spacemanfrompluto.bsky.social · 06/05/2025

I love the Pacific Electric-era whistle on the A650 cars — I hope Metro helps those find their way onto the new HR4000 and HR5000 cars!

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Morgan 🚂 @spacemanfrompluto.bsky.social · 06/05/2025

Ya boy is NOTHIN’ if not a FIEND for public transit!! All hail the LA Metro B Line, for its direct connection to the park!

A selfie taken on 2025-05-04 at the LA Metro Universal City B Line subway station, depicting a man, myself, riding the escalator up from the platform level after disembarking a B Line train.

A photograph taken on 2025-05-04 at the Los Angeles Metro Universal City B Line subway station, depicting a subway train parked at the platform. The train is made up of six Breda A650 electric multiple-unit (EMU) rapid-transit cars, built for LA Metro between 1995 and 1997 to supplement the agency’s existing fleet. Unlike the original 30 A650s, which were built between 1988 and 1993 with DC traction motors, the post-1995 A650s were built with lighter, more efficient AC traction motors. All A650s are expected to be retired from regular service by the end of the decade.

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Morgan 🚂 @spacemanfrompluto.bsky.social · 06/05/2025

Had a good time at the Universal Studios FanFest thing this past weekend; I hope it comes back… in the Future!

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Morgan 🚂 @spacemanfrompluto.bsky.social · 29/04/2025

I saw a discussion a few months ago on the Market Street Railway FB group — unofficially, the Landor livery is next in line if the MSR gets another PCC gets restored. If anyone’s interested, I’m sourcing cowboys for a trolley robbery job.

A screenshot of a social media post to the “Market Street Railway-San Francisco” Facebook group. The poster, John Smith, asks, “Will they ever do a PCC in the Muni Landor scheme? It was my favorite growing up in San Francisco”.

The Market Street Railway is the non-profit responsible for sourcing and restoring the historic MUNI rolling stock fleet used on the F-Market and Wharves line, and the defunct E-Embarcadero line.

A screenshot of a comment responding to the previous post. The comment, posted by group admin Rick Laubscher, reads, “The Landor scheme is Market Street Railway’s preference for the next PCC to be restored, if that ever happens.”

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Morgan 🚂 @spacemanfrompluto.bsky.social · 25/04/2025

I’m having so much fun with these toys; it’s like I walked into a K-Mart 25 years ago

A photograph of an ERTL die-cast toy of the Thomas and Friends character, Peter Sam, presented as if it were the cover image of a classic Thomas and Friends VHS cassette tape. The chosen title for the imaginary tape is “Peter Sam and the Bad Case of Jaundice & other Thomas stories”, a play on the title pattern followed by all Thomas home video releases, and the sun-worn face on the die-cast toy of Peter Sam, making him appear yellowed.

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Morgan 🚂 @spacemanfrompluto.bsky.social · 25/04/2025

I got Edward and Mavis and Duck and Oliver and Donald (but not Douglas) and Rheneas and Peter Sam and Duncan and Sir Topham Hatt and […]

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Morgan 🚂 @spacemanfrompluto.bsky.social · 24/04/2025

Waiter! This isn’t what I had in mind when I ordered the ‘Blue Tank Engine’

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Morgan 🚂 @spacemanfrompluto.bsky.social · 16/04/2025

Ya boy got top billing! …top billing on an @sfmta.bsky.social Insta post, sure, but still!

A photograph taken on 2025-04-05, on Washington Street in San Francisco, California, between Taylor and Mason streets. The photo depicts a San Francisco Municipal Railway (MUNI) Powell and Hyde Street cable car, No. 2, navigating the tracks which descend the hill down Washington, towards Mason. In the photo, No. 2 carries several passengers, some standing on a step and holding handrails outside of the car. Stopped beside No. 2 on both sides of the street are rows of parked cars, and in the background is an ascending row of colorful tracts of housing.

No. 2 is a single-ended “Powell” car, which can only be operated by a “grip man” from one, forward-facing end of the car — this requires the use of turntables located at Powell & Market, Taylor & Bay, and Hyde & Beach streets. Both the Powell-Hyde and Powell-Mason cable car lines are operated in this fashion, using a shared pool of rolling stock; the California line uses double-ended cars which can be operated in both directions, and do not require a turntable.

Powell Car No. 2 was built in 1893 as Car 502 and originally painted in green and white, as part of an order of cars to extend service on the privately-owned Sacramento-Clay line to reach Golden Gate Park. During the earthquake of 1906, No. 502 was stored on outer Sacramento street, and was spared from the fires, which burned the Powell fleet stored deeper within San Francisco. In 1944, the Powell lines were assumed by MUNI, and No. 502 was repainted in MUNI’s green and cream. In 1973, the Powell Street fleet was renumbered, dropping the “500” prefix, and No. 502 became No. 2. In the mid-1980s, during MUNI’s overhaul of the cable car network, No. 2 received a simplified version the 1888-era Powell Street Railway Co. livery — maroon, white, & light blue, which can be seen in the photo.

A screenshot of a cropped copy of the same photo as before, featured in an Instagram “carousel” post, by the official San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SF MUNI) Instagram account — as part of their weekly “Tagged This Week” post, featuring posts by other users who tagged MUNI.

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Morgan 🚂 @spacemanfrompluto.bsky.social · 15/04/2025

*chanting* Ko-da-chrome! Ko-da-chrome! Ko-da-chrome!

A photograph taken of a railroad locomotive at a museum in Portola, California, shot on 2016-09-03. The engine is a Southern Pacific EMD GP9 diesel-electric locomotive, numbered SP 2873, originally built in 1956 as Texas and New Orleans 443 — an SP subsidiary — to serve the railroad’s freight interests. In the mid-1980s, the Southern Pacific and their rival railroad, the Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe (ATSF), began pursuing a merger of their two companies. In 1983, the railroads were reorganized under a new holding company, “Santa Fe Southern Pacific Corporation”, and in 1984, both railroads began re-painting their locomotives and rolling stock into a livery inspired by the secondary colors of each railroads’ paint schemes — yellow, from the ATSF’s “Freight Bonnet”, and red, from the SP’s “Bloody Nose”. Painted on the broad side of every locomotive was either “SP” or “SF”, with space left for the remaining initials — “SPSF” — for when the merger was legally completed. SP 2873 was one of these locomotives to receive this paint livery, nicknamed “Kodachrome” due to its resemblance to packages of Kodak film. However, in 1986, the US Interstate Commerce Comission would reject the merger outright, citing anti-competitive interests which outweighed public benefit, and the two railroads once again became legally distinct entities. As the SP and ATSF began re-painting their “Kodachrome” units back into their former liveries, the “SPSF” paint scheme became known as the “Shouldn’t Paint So Fast” livery. Through a stroke of random chance, SP 2873 spent the rest of its working career wearing the “Kodachrome” livery, and by 1992 was set to be scrapped in Richmond, California, before being rescued by the Portola Railroad Museum — currently, the Western Pacific Railroad Museum — where it remains in operation to this day.

A photograph taken of a railroad locomotive at a museum in Portola, California, shot on 2019-10-06. The engine is a Southern Pacific EMD GP9 diesel-electric locomotive, numbered SP 2873, originally built in 1956 as Texas and New Orleans 443 — an SP subsidiary — to serve the railroad’s freight interests. In the mid-1980s, the Southern Pacific and their rival railroad, the Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe (ATSF), began pursuing a merger of their two companies. In 1983, the railroads were reorganized under a new holding company, “Santa Fe Southern Pacific Corporation”, and in 1984, both railroads began re-painting their locomotives and rolling stock into a livery inspired by the secondary colors of each railroads’ paint schemes — yellow, from the ATSF’s “Freight Bonnet”, and red, from the SP’s “Bloody Nose”. Painted on the broad side of every locomotive was either “SP” or “SF”, with space left for the remaining initials — “SPSF” — for when the merger was legally completed. SP 2873 was one of these locomotives to receive this paint livery, nicknamed “Kodachrome” due to its resemblance to packages of Kodak film. However, in 1986, the US Interstate Commerce Comission would reject the merger outright, citing anti-competitive interests which outweighed public benefit, and the two railroads once again became legally distinct entities. As the SP and ATSF began re-painting their “Kodachrome” units back into their former liveries, the “SPSF” paint scheme became known as the “Shouldn’t Paint So Fast” livery. Through a stroke of random chance, SP 2873 spent the rest of its working career wearing the “Kodachrome” livery, and by 1992 was set to be scrapped in Richmond, California, before being rescued by the Portola Railroad Museum — currently, the Western Pacific Railroad Museum — where it remains in operation to this day.

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Morgan 🚂 @spacemanfrompluto.bsky.social · 14/04/2025

Gonna be a gentleman & let my GF take the aisle seat, next time we take the train thru Oakland — she didn’t appreciate being crushed while I tried to grab shots of everything in the yard

A photograph taken 2025-04-07, of a locomotive stored at the back of a siding in Oakland, California. The engine is CDTX 2052, a GE B32-8WH diesel-electric passenger locomotive — colloquially known as “Dash 8s” — built in 1991 for Amtrak and numbered AMTK 502. Caltrans purchased the 502, as well as sibling 501, from Amtrak in 1995 to use as additional motive power on the burgeoning “Amtrak California” services. 2052 was painted in a livery consisting of a flat silver primary color, navy blue secondary accents, a black “cheat line”, and a yellow pinstripe along the bottom, to match the CDTX rolling stock. Today, 2052 is stored in the Oakland deadline, where it has been awaiting disposition for several years; some rumors circulate that one of the two CDTX Dash 8 locomotives will be sent to the California State Railroad Museum, to be preserved.

A photograph taken 2025-04-07 of several trains in the Amtrak train yard in Oakland, California. On the track in the foreground is an Amtrak yard switcher numbered AMTK 590, and on the background track sits an Amtrak California passenger car, numbered CDTX 5011 and named “The San Diegan”. In the distance is downtown Oakland.

A photograph shot 2025-04-07, taken through an open-air train shed, of several trains in the Amtrak yard in Oakland, California. The two cars visible are Caltrans passenger coaches, ex-New Jersey Transit (NJT) Comet IB cars, now numbered CDTX 5002 and 5009.

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Morgan 🚂 @spacemanfrompluto.bsky.social · 11/04/2025

Tbh I’m especially, perhaps irrationally miffed, because this was the culmination of *days* of waiting on Oak Ave in Visalia, just so I could catch *something* street-running. I did get some good shots on my α6000 tho, and I’m glad for that.

A photograph of a freight train running down tracks laid within a municipal city street. Cars either wait at a crossing or have pulled over to the side of the road, to allow the train to pass through. In Visalia, trains run down the center of Oak Avenue for eleven city blocks, a practice known as “street running”, bringing traffic to a standstill in all directions until the train has gone by. The train is pulled by San Joaquin Valley Railroad (SJVR) number 3517, a rebuilt EMD GP38-3 diesel-electric freight locomotive. Behind the locomotive are several box cars and tank cars, contents unknown.

A photograph of a freight train running down tracks laid within a municipal city street. Cars have pulled over to the side of the road, to allow the train to pass through. In Visalia, trains run down the center of Oak Avenue for eleven city blocks, a practice known as “street running”, bringing traffic to a standstill in all directions until the train has gone by. The train is pulled by San Joaquin Valley Railroad (SJVR) number 3517, a rebuilt EMD GP38-3 diesel-electric freight locomotive. Behind the locomotive are several box cars, contents unknown.

A photograph of a freight train running down tracks laid within a municipal city street. A pedestrian, certainly not a railroad employee, hangs from the side of one of the freight cars, a tanker. Cars either have pulled over to the side of the road, to allow the train to pass through. In Visalia, trains run down the center of Oak Avenue for eleven city blocks, a practice known as “street running”, bringing traffic to a standstill in all directions until the train has gone by.

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Morgan 🚂 @spacemanfrompluto.bsky.social · 11/04/2025

Why do I even bother setting up a half-decent shot, if some guy in a Dodge Charger can just park in a red zone and throw it all out of balance

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Morgan 🚂 @spacemanfrompluto.bsky.social · 03/04/2025

Some little locos hauling a little local

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Morgan 🚂 @spacemanfrompluto.bsky.social · 02/04/2025

I’m not late to the ACNH party, y’all are just early

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Morgan 🚂 @spacemanfrompluto.bsky.social · 31/03/2025

Were the colors of the “NJT-style” stripes on the Caltrans Comet IBs taken from the original pre-1985 CalTrain livery? Big “living under a rock” moment here — but, holy shit. It’s been over a decade; I can’t believe I hadn’t picked up on that one!

A cropped photograph of a passenger railcar, taken on 2024-05-18. The car is a Comet IB owned by the California Department of Transportation, or Caltrans, numbered CDTX 5012 and named “The Feather River Express”. The photograph focuses on the paint colors of three parallel diagonal stripes on the side of the railcar — a faded red (appearing orange), a faded blue (appearing cerulean), and a faded teal or turquoise. The livery design is inspired by that of the railcar’s original owner, New Jersey Transit (NJT), but the colors appear to be inspired by the original, short-lived, pre-1985 Caltrain “Rainbow” livery. The rest of the car is unpainted and bears brushed, fluted stainless steel sides.

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