Old Stuff On The MARC, Part One: The RDCs

During the first few years of my railfan apprenticeship, I spent many a rush hour shooting the parade of MARC commuter trains in Maryland. In the early 1990s, that often meant shooting some of the oldest power on any major railroad in the U.S. - including venerable E and F units and Budd RDCs. Today we're looking at the RDC (Rail Diesel Car), built throughout the 1950s. As MARC Rail struggled to keep up with increasing ridership in the early 1990s, they ran these ancient self-propelled smog belchers as long as they could. The shot above captures a four-car consist as it heads west from DC, crossing the Monacacy River near Dickerson, MD in 1992.

EB P878 rolls through the signals at Seneca Field, west of Germantown, MD in 1991.

#9913 (one of the former B&O RDCs on the MARC) at Germantown, MD in 1991.

Another four-car set - arriving at Germantown, MD in 1991.

Smoking away under Powder Mill Road - Beltsville, MD in 1991.

An Orioles special train arriving at Camden Station in Baltimore, MD in 1993. The end was near.

EB P878 approaching Barnsville, MD in 1995. The RDCs are not under power; they're just being used as coaches.

An era rolls into the sunset. Westbound RDCs approaching the old "Halpine" signal beneath Twinbrook Parkway in Rockville, MD in 1991.

THANKS FOR VISITING!
Join us next time for yet another trip to the islands...