Loop 030 printable

Volume 2, No. 8. April 26, 2002

Rebirths

It’s a train!
Folsom Children’s Zoo and Botanical Garden in Lincoln, Nebraska, announces the rebirth of its ZO&O train, April 13, 2002. Measurements: One C.P. Huntington Engine with four passenger coaches, one of which is wheelchair accessible. Delivered by Chance Rides.

John Chapo, executive director of the Folsom Children’s Zoo and Botanical Garden, calls the train, which predates the 37-year-old zoo by two years, a Lincoln icon. “It’s a tradition. We have people coming back who rode it as children bringing their children and sometimes bringing their grandchildren. If you have family visiting, you come ride the train. If it’s springtime, you ride the train at the zoo.” The train sees ridership of about 80,000 passengers per year, almost half the 170,000 annual attendance the zoo averages.

So, Chapo was not surprised that about 1,000 people showed up for the official dedication ceremony and free rides on the new engine and coaches that replaced the original train. The new version received a glorious welcome, too. With a Dixieland band playing “Chattanooga Choo Choo” and kettle corn popping, the new train carrying its donors and Lincoln’s mayor emerged from its storage shed and through an honor guard bearing American flags. Donors received chrome-plated rails as gifts of appreciation and engineer’s caps bearing the ZO&O logo. But what they really wanted was to get back on the train. “They hadn’t had a full ride.” Theirs was the first of the day’s free rides before the train went into regular-fare public service two days later, a Monday that saw 1,100 people visit the 17-acre zoo.

Chapo said that while the city holds dear the tradition of having a train at his zoo, it had no special affinity for the C.P. Huntington it put out of service last fall after 38 years. The new train maintains the look and patriotic red, white and blue color scheme of the old, but its newness drew appreciative remarks. “The seats are six inches wider, and people commented that this is roomier,” Chapo said. “My staff just loves the mechanics of it, especially the braking system and transmission. And the volunteer engineers love it because it’s easier to drive and safer to drive.”