No, George Bush isn’t traveling through the area

May 19th, 2008 at 12:59pm Thomas V. Bona

An observant Belvidere resident noticed an oddity this morning - a passenger train riding on the freight tracks through Belvidere. Moreover, it said something about “George Bush” on it.

That’s the Operation Lifesaver train that Union Pacific is using to raise awareness about railroad crossing safety. The railroad is taking a few carloads of local leaders and dignitaries from Rockford to Union and back today, talking about the Operation Lifesaver program. Tomorrow, the train goes from DeKalb to Clinton, Iowa, and back. I was invited on today’s train, but couldn’t make it as I’m on vigil for $4 a gallon gasoline.

What’s George Bush got to do with it? Well, Union Pacific and other railroads have several special edition engines. One of UP’s was painted in honor of the George Bush (the elder, obviously) Presidential Library and Museum, which opened in Texas in 1997:

And here’s a video of the train in action:

Drive safe out there!

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