View source for Birmingham Zoo Express

[[Image:Red Diamond Express sm.jpg|right|thumb|295px|The Red Diamond Express in May 2008]]
The '''Birmingham Zoo Express''' and the '''Red Diamond Express''' are two-foot gauge zoo trains operating from the [[George Seibels|George G. Seibels Jr Train Station]] at the [[Birmingham Zoo]] in [[Lane Park]]. The zoo train, in its various incarnations, has provided over 2 million rides to zoo visitors.

Both trains operate on the zoo's 4,200-foot rail circuit. Riders purchase tokens at a kiosk that are handed to the conductor before boarding. The current conductor is [[Joe Meadow]].

===G-16 trains===
From [[1957]] to [[1976]], the zoo operated three "Grand Scale" G-16 train sets, among the last ones manufactured by the Miniature Train Company of Rensselaer, Indiana. They were constructed as representations of the first generation of streamlined diesel locomotives and scaled to run on steel tracks set 16" apart. The zoo's three trains were owned and operated by Bob Heath and Associates of Cape Canaveral, Florida. Heath designed and laid out the one-mile loop railway and invested $70,000 in obtaining the equipment and installing it at the zoo. The first public excursion left the station at 9:00 AM on Sunday [[July 23]], 1957 with [[Ed Keagals]] at the throttle.

In [[1976]] the system was sold to a Mr Yarborough who operated other concessions at the zoo. He sold the #901 train to [[Rickwood Caverns State Park]], where it was operated on an older 16" gauge track. The #900 train (pulled by the "Falcon" locomotive) was purchased by [[Ben Black|Ben]] and [[Joy Black]] for their estate south of Birmingham. The couple also stored, and eventually purchased, the #902 train (pulled by the "Vulcan"). They operated the trains on a 200-foot loop in their back yard until the mid 1980s.

In [[2000]] the Blacks donated the #900 and #902 trains to the Southeastern Railway Museum in Duluth, Georgia. The #900 locomotive has been restored and pulls four cars on a 1,500-foot track outdoors. The #902 has also been cosmetically restored and is displayed indoors. The museum plans to someday have both trains operating with a total of 4,000 feet of track.

===Magic City Express===
From 1976 to [[2001]] the zoo operated a Crown propane-fired steam locomotive on 24" gauge track, replacing the original smaller gauge track. The #1869 locomotive was built in [[1974]].

This train was sold to a private owner who leases it to the [[Heart of Dixie Railroad Museum]] in [[Calera]]. The train was restored at the Tweetsie Railroad shops in western North Carolina with additional repair work performed by mechanic [[Denverd Moss]]. It is currently operated as the "[[Shelby & Southern Railroad]]" on the museum grounds.

===Birmingham Zoo Express===
The "Birmingham Zoo Express" went into service in 2001. It consists of a propane-powered engine and four open passenger carriages totaling 88 feet long with a seating capacity of about 65-75 people.

The "Red Diamond Express" was purchased and donated by [[Red Diamond]] in [[2008]]. The new train was constructed from recycled materials and debuted with an African theme to coincide with the planned "[[Trails of Africa]]" exhibit. The train was updated with a "pirate" theme in [[2017]]. Scenes featuring animatronic pirate figures were placed in select locations along the route. The scenes were developed to convey to children the importance of water conservation.

===Tea===
[[File:Red Diamond Tea train.png|right|thumb|295px|The Red Diamond "Tea" locomotive in June 2020]]
In [[2022]] Red Diamond donated a new all-electric "C. P. Huntington" locomotive and four coaches manufactured by Chance Rides of Wichita, Kansas. The train's audio/visual system communicates educational programming in the queue and on board, and also produces simulated steam engine sounds.

The new train was named "Tea" and the older "Red Diamond Express" was renamed "Coffee", reflecting Red Diamond's commercial product lines.

==Conductors==
* [[Ed Keagals]], [[1957]]-
* [[Claude Gray|"Engineer Claude" Gray]], [[1983]]-[[2003]]
* [[Joe Meadow]], [[2006]]-present

==References==
* [http://www.birminghamrewound.com/fun-and-games.htm Birmingham Rewound: Fun & Games] www.birminghamrewound.com (October 21, 2006) - accessed July 23, 2007
* Lathrop, Dave (November 6, 2005) "[http://www.shelbyandsouthernrr.com/updates.htm Steam returns to Alabama]". Railway Preservation News Briefs
* Batson, Roger Jr (July 5, 2007) "Zoo train conductor rides rail to relaxation despite old job injury."{{BN}}
* Wolfson, Hannah (May 20, 2008) "All Aboard! Birmingham Zoo adds second train." {{BN}}
* Byington, Pat (June 14, 2022) "[https://bhamnow.com/2022/06/14/introducing-tea-the-new-all-electric-red-diamond-express-train-at-the-birmingham-zoo/ Introducing “Tea” the new all-electric Red Diamond Express train at the Birmingham Zoo]" {{BNow}}

==External links==
* [http://www.train-museum.org/the-park-train/ The Park Train] at the Southeastern Railway Museum's website
* [http://www.shelbyandsouthernrr.com/ Shelby & Southern Railroad] website
* [http://www.birminghamzoo.com/ Birmingham Zoo] website
* [https://www.chancerides.com/cphuntington_train/ C. P. Huntington Train] at chancerides.com

[[Category:Miniature railroads|Zoo]]
[[Category:Birmingham Zoo|Express]]
[[Category:1957 establishments]]
[[Category:1976 establishments]]
[[Category:2001 establishments]]
[[Category:2008 establishments]]