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Ma & Pa No.101 Inspection Car

The second in the B&O Heritage Series.

"After World War I, the railroads began using converted automobiles to transport their local officials and track inspectors. The Ma & Pa No.101 was built in 1937 by Buick for the Harkins Funeral Home in Delta, Pennsylvania. Five years later, the funeral home sold the car to the Maryland & Pennsylvania Railroad. The Ma & Pa equipped the car with regular railroad wheels, a compressor, air brakes, and a sander. The railroad also added a full wheeled truck at the front end of the car.

The Ma & Pa No.101 replaced a 1926 Rickenbacker as the main automobile on the rails. The No.101 was given the task of testing the efficiency of a radio communications between locomotives and the offices. The Ma & Pa was one of the first railroads to use the in-cab radios and the No.101 was one of the first cars equipped with a radio. In 1972, the No.101 was traded in for a new "road-master" and was donated to the B&O Railroad Museum."

To see original pictures, go here:
http://www.borail.org/Ma--Pa-No101.aspx
The vehicle is currently parked in the Roundhouse at the Museum.

I believe this is my new favourite car to run around with. The Trackmobile is cool, but it's not an automobile...