1907 in rail transport

Years in rail transport

This article lists events related to rail transport that occurred in 1907.

Events

February – Great Western Railway of England begins production of 'Star' Class 4-6-0 locomotives at its Swindon Works, beginning a series of successful 4-cylinder designs.^[1]

March 4 – The first section of the Market–Frankford Line opens in Philadelphia from 69th Street Terminal to a loop around City Hall at 15th Street.^[2]

April 15 – William N. Page is named president of the newly formed Virginian Railway.

May 18 – The Ravenswood branch of the old Northwestern Elevated system of the Chicago 'L' (today's Brown Line), opens for service between the Loop and Western and Leland Avenues in Lincoln Square.
May 22 – Philadelphia and Western Railroad makes its inaugural run.

June 20 – Construction begins on what would become the Causeway Street Elevated streetcar line in Boston.
June 22 - Opening of the Charing Cross, Euston & Hampstead Railway in London, a deep tube railway which now forms part of the London Underground's Northern line.
June 26 - The Pennsylvania Tunnel and Terminal Railroad is formed from the merger of the Pennsylvania, New Jersey and New York Railroad and the Pennsylvania, New York and Long Island Railroad; the new railroad company is chartered to build the Hudson River tunnels that will connect the Pennsylvania Railroad to Pennsylvania Station in New York City.

July 1 – All New York Central Railroad services into and out of Grand Central Terminal in New York City are electrically hauled.^[3]

August 4 – Following a locomotive derailment, the railway bridge over the Loire at Les Ponts-de-Cé in France collapses. 27 are killed. The bridge reopens a year later.
August 29 – Due to faulty design, the cantilever bridge over the St. Lawrence River at Quebec City collapses while being built. Between 70 and 84 workers are killed. It will take 10 years to rebuild and complete the project.

October 1
- Pacific Fruit Express (PFE) begins operation with a fleet of 6,600 refrigerator cars.^[4]
- The Empire of Japan completes the nationalization of nationwide 17 private railroads.
October 15 – 18 die as a result of the Shrewsbury rail accident on the London & North Western Railway when a sleeping car train is derailed passing through Shrewsbury station, England, at excessive speed.^[5]
October 27 – Union Station in Washington, DC, although still unfinished, opens.

November 7 – Jesús García Corona is blown up driving a burning dynamite train away from a populated area of Nacozari, Sonora.

December 8 – The Southern Pacific Bay Shore Cut-Off is opened for revenue service between San Francisco and San Bruno, California.^[6]
December 14 – The Ravenswood extension on what is now the Brown Line opens between Western Avenue and the current terminal at Kimball and Lawrence Avenues in Albany Park.

Government of India purchases most major railway companies and leases them back to private operators.^[7]
Electrification of the New York, New Haven, and Hartford Railroad: The New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad electrifies its mainline between Stamford, CT and Woodlawn, NY using a high-voltage (11 kV) AC single-phase 25 Hz overhead line system with a triangular cross-section catenary.
The Deepwater Railway and the Tidewater Railway combine to form the Virginian Railway.
Stearns Manufacturing Company is reorganized as Heisler Locomotive Works.
The Apalachicola Northern Railroad runs its first train northward from Apalachicola, Florida.
E. H. Harriman removes Stuyvesant Fish from the presidency of the Illinois Central.
Pennsylvania Railroad builds its third experimental electric locomotive, number 10003, the forerunner of the PRR DD1 class of locomotives.
The Lackawanna Railroad opens its Beaux Arts station in Hoboken, NJ, which is still in use today.

June 2 - Eric Treacy, British Anglican bishop and railway photographer (died 1978).

May 19 - Benjamin Baker, British civil engineer, designer of the Forth Railway Bridge (born 1840).^[8]

^ Nock, O. S. (1967). The G.W.R. Stars, Castles & Kings, pt. 1, 1906-1930. Newton Abbot: David & Charles. ISBN 0-7153-4743-8.
^ Cox, Harold E. (1967). May, Jack (ed.). The Road from Upper Darby. The Story of the Market Street Subway-Elevated. New York, NY: Electric Railroaders' Association. OCLC 54770701.
^ Cudahy, Brian J. (2003). A Century of Subways: Celebrating 100 Years of New York's Underground Railways. New York: Fordham University Press. ISBN 0-8232-2292-6.
^ Sacramento History Online (2004). "Timeline - Transportation, Agriculture". Retrieved 2005-05-18.
^ Rolt, L. T. C. (1955). Red for Danger: a history of railway accidents and railway safety precautions. London: Bodley Head.
^ "Bay Shore Cut-Off Is Now Open". The Evening News. San Jose. 9 December 1907. Retrieved 11 July 2016.
^ Saxena, R. P. (2008). "Indian Railway History Time Line". Archived from the original on 2012-02-29. Retrieved 2009-12-23.
^ Marshall, John (2003). Biographical Dictionary of Railway Engineers (2nd ed.). Oxford: Railway and Canal Historical Society. ISBN 0-901461-22-9.