Boston Elevated Railway Snowplow #5106 is shown here at on the STM mainline after the museum (and most of the East Coast) received almost a foot of snow. The plow was used to clear the main line (shown here at the end). This is what the car will look like when actually repainted (only the end shown is-thanks photoshop!)

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The gray around the windows is all refurbished wood and metal, as this car is being painted, and minor body work done to keep the elements out of the car. The rest of the car will hopefully get painted this summer (‘07.)

5106 is a Type 3 car from Boston, built in 1908 by the St. Louis Car Company as a passenger car. In 1927, 40 of these passenger cars were converted into snowplows. Unlike many other wedge plows, or snow sweepers, Boston needed a plow that could handle the wet snow/sleet/sludge that formed on the streets. Wedge plows were impractical, and snow sweepers did nothing for the sludge that formed on the streets, and hence the building of these plows. They have 4 50 hp motors under the car, and were built with subway grade resistors, allowing long slow speed operations.

Photographed by Mark Sylvester (StmTrolleyguy), December 10, 2005.
Added to the photo archive by Mark Sylvester, December 11, 2005.
Railroad: Seashore Trolley Museum.

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