All aboard!
A shiny new locomotive is rolling down the track in Irvine Regional Park.
With dozens of children, some in striped train-engineer caps and overalls, their parents and grandparents, OC Parks officials and county administrators climbing aboard, an electric-powered replica of a vintage CP Huntington train was unveiled this week at the Irvine Park Railroad.
A ride on the train that offers a 10-minute loop through the heart of Irvine Regional is a favorite of many when they visit the 126-year old park – the oldest regional park in the state. The train rides are also a featured attraction of the annual pumpkin patch, Christmas village and Easter events.
“My teenagers have grown up coming here,” said Karrie Pittman of Yorba Linda, a mother of five, who took the inaugural train ride with daughters, Lucy, 7, and Harley, 5. “We’ve come for all the Easter egg hunts and the pumpkin patch, and we just love having family time here. It’s very heartwarming to be here again and celebrating with everybody from Orange County.”
The one-third scale electric train replaces the propane-powered locomotive that had transported hundreds of thousands of passengers around the three-quarters of a mile loop since the mid-1990s.
“Our old train has been working out here daily for 27 years, taking families and kids for rides,” said John Ford, who owns the train concession along with partner Steve Horn. “It’s like a car. It just wears out.”
The new train was purchased from Chance Rides of Wichita, Kansas, the company from which the first Irvine Park train was purchased.
A charger installed on the tracks in the station area automatically charges the train’s battery when it is stopped for loading and unloading passengers.
Since there is no actual steam powering the train, the chugging sound now emanates from an on-board audio system.
“I think it’s a huge difference (from the propane-powered train) because it shows that we’re going to be able to…
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