Re: PC: It was a bad move anyway?!?

["Jim Kosty" <j_kosty@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

An interesting note on AE Perlman, was that, after the PC Board of Directors 
gave him, Stuart Saunders, and Bevan the boot, Perlman went on to become the 
head of the Western Pacific.  In fact, the dark green and orange scheme they 
had was referred to as the "Perlman" scheme, especially the green.  The yard 
at Selkirk NY was named Alfred E. Perlaman Yard, although it was not 
completed as amodern hump yard as it is today until after the PC merger had 
taken place.  Somewhere in the history of Conrail, they ceased using that 
name and just called it "Selkirk".  Perlman was also the man under which the 
famous 4 track main between New York City and Cleveland, Ohio(west of 
Cleveland it was always just double) was pared down to a double track, CTC 
line.  Perlman finished the dieselization of the Central and was an exponent 
and proponent of their "Flexi - Van" service.  They also came up with the 
use of the pressure differential cars, today known as Pullman - Standard 
"PD" cars. GATX's "Airslides" are similar also.  They also developed a car 
that had an inflatable diaphragm inside to expel the contents.  This was to 
be called "Flexi - Flator".  I saw pictures of it back in a 1966 NYC 
Headlight employee magazine.  BF Goodrich designed the inflatable parts, and 
the car looked like a covered hopper.  NYC also had a Research Center in 
Cleveland , Ohio, where they had scientists working on various inventions, 
including plastic third - rail covers, the "Vortacool" water coolers for 
railroad and general use, certain types of crew alertor systems, the jet 
snowblowers, rail analyzer technology, etc.
Perlman was the forward - thinking type, but I believe the PRR folks were 
probably more practical in some respects.  If they had worked together, and 
had the political environment we have today with regard to regulation and 
rate making, the history of NE railroading may have been much different than 
what it has become - or perhaps the ultimate outcome would have brought it 
right to this very same scenario.  We will never know, beyond educated 
guesses and informed speculation, based on the situations that have shaped 
the industry in the last 30 or so years.  Actual conditions that ran the 
railroads down the path that led to PC's ultimate failure began long before 
the two roads would ever consider combining their respective companies.


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