Comet (train)

This article includes a list of general references, but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations. Please help to improve this article by introducing more precise citations. (October 2011) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

New Haven Comet
The Comet in 1935.
Manufacturer	Goodyear Zeppelin Corporation
Constructed	1935
Scrapped	1951
Number built	One 3-car set
Number preserved	None
Capacity	160 passengers
Operators	New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad
Specifications
Car body construction	Aluminum alloy
Train length	207 ft 0 in (63.094 m)
Car length	Power cars: 74 ft 2 in (22.606 m) Trailer car: 58 ft 8 in (17.882 m)
Width	9 ft 10 in (3.00 m)
Height	11 ft 3 in (3.43 m)
Floor height	2 ft 8+1⁄4 in (0.819 m) above railhead
Doors	'Plug' type, three each side
Articulated sections	Three
Wheel diameter	Powered: 36 in (914 mm) Unpowered: 30 in (762 mm)
Maximum speed	95 miles per hour (153 km/h)
Weight	126 short tons (114 tonnes)
Traction system	Diesel-electric
Prime mover(s)	Two 400 hp (298 kW) Westinghouse/Beardmore Inline-6 model 160 diesel engines (one each end)
Power output	800 hp (597 kW)
UIC classification	B′2′2′B′
Track gauge	4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm)

The Comet was a diesel-electric streamliner built in 1935 for the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad by the Goodyear-Zeppelin Company.^[1] Smaller than the other streamliners, it was a three-car, double-ended train that could operate in both directions and thus did not need to be turned at destinations—ideal for the New Haven's cramped terminus at South Station in Boston.

It was initially placed into service between Boston, Massachusetts and Providence, Rhode Island on a 44-minute schedule; later, intermediate stops were added at Back Bay in Boston and Pawtucket/Central Falls, Rhode Island, on an advertised "44 miles in 44 minutes" schedule. It ran 5 daily round trips on weekdays, and was often used for weekend excursion trips. This service lasted until the beginning of World War II, when increased traffic volume overwhelmed the capacity of the Comet, after which it was placed on local commuter services around the Boston area. The trainset was withdrawn from service in 1951 and scrapped.

The interior was furnished with 48 seat in each power car, and 64 in the center car divided into two sections: a smoking section seating 28 and a non-smoking seating 36. Seating was of the 'walk-over' type, and all seats were coach-class; there being no provision for first- or parlor-class seating.^[2]

The exterior was machined aluminum in a whorled pattern with color bands of bright blue enamel at window height, dark blue enamel at wheel level, and a gray enamel roof. The whole exterior was covered with a coat of clear varnish to prevent tarnishing. The front ends were sharply raked, with a pointed "chin" pilot.

• The New Haven Railroad Historical and Technical Association. "The Comet". Archived from the original on 2004-12-15. Retrieved 2004-12-19.
• "The American "Comet"". Mike's Railway History. Retrieved 2006-01-02.
• "Latest Diesel-Engine Train Built Like Airships" Popular Mechanics, July 1935
• Keitry, Edmund (1979). Interurbans Without Wires: The Rail Motorcar in the United States. Glendale, California: Interurbans. pp. 169–170. ISBN 0-916374-38-6. LCCN 79053961.
• "New Haven's "Comet"". Railway Age. 98 (17). Simmons-Boardman Publishing: 632–635. April 27, 1935.
• McCutchson, K. D. (2022, March 11). Beardmore . Enginehistory.org. Retrieved March 17, 2023, from https://www.enginehistory.org/Piston/Before1925/EarlyEngines/B/B.shtml

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Comet (train).

• Plan59.com scan of the Comet featured in a 1936 ad