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Canadian National
VIA OCEAN ROUTE IS THREATENED: Canadian National has reached an agreement with the Province of New Brunswick which will see freight service continue for the next 15 years on two segments of the Newcastle Sub, but 44 miles of track with no freight cus- tomers are still up for abandonment. The province will spend up to $25 million to upgrade track on the northern and southern ends of the Newcastle Sub between Irvco (east of Campbellton) and Nepisquit Junction (Bathurst), and between Catamount (near Moncton) and Nelson Junction (near Newcas- tle). In exchange, CN will operate those line segments for the next 15 years, but the section between Nelson Junction and Nepisquit Junc- tion, which carries no freight, is still up for abandonment.
CN says that in February the Nelson-
Nepisquit segment will be offered for sale to private and public entities in accordance with the Canada Transportation Act. The province would be the most likely buyer if VIA’s Mon- tréal-Halifax Ocean route is to be maintained via Riviere du Loup, Campbellton, and Bathurst. Otherwise, the train could be rerouted over CN’s faster, shorter, CTC- equipped but less populous southern route through Edmunston using the Pelletier and Napadogan Subs.
MORE ALGOMA PASSENGER CUTS: On April 29, 2014, Canadian National will discon- tinue triweekly local passenger service be- tween Sault Ste. Marie and Hearst, Ontario, as the federal government considers continu- ing its $2.2 million subsidy, which is set to ex- pire on April 1. The trains provide residents in many remote locations along the 296-mile route with their only connection to the outside world. At press time, on-line communities in- cluding Sault Ste. Marie, Wawa, and Hearst, sought a way to keep the service running until a permanent funding solution can be devised. Last year CN discontinued the winter week- end Snow Trains out of the Soo due to declin- ing ridership; the summer season tourist trains through the scenic Agawa Canyon will continue to run.
Coos Bay Rail Link
TRAFFIC NEARLY DOUBLES: Coos Bay Rail Link says that it moved more than 4800 loads in 2013, up from about 2500 loads in 2012, the railroad’s first full year of operation. Interchanging with Union Pacific at Eugene, Ore., the railroad operates 134 miles of former Southern Pacific trackage to Coos Bay and Co- quille. In 1994 SP sold the route to Railtex (later, RailAmerica), which operated it as part of the Central Oregon & Pacific. In September 2007 CORP suddenly embargoed the route due to bridge and tunnel conditions and the line lay dormant until 2009 when it was pur- chased by the state. Service was reinstated beginning in October 2011. The railroad cur- rently owns five locomotives and serves a dozen customers on trackages that’s good for between 25 and 40 m.p.h. Tunnel repairs and track work are largely complete and bridge improvements continue.
New Paint Scheme For North St. Louis Switcher
FOSTER TOWNSEND RAIL LOGISTICS MP15DC NO. 1345 (ex-UPY 1345 , ex-Union Pacif- ic 1545 ) is painted in this attractive scheme for long term lease to Lange Stegmann Fertilizer in North St. Louis, Mo., a company which transloads fertilizer, urea, and other commodities along the Mississippi River. This unit and sister MP15DC No. 1315, along with ex Copper Basin GP9 No. 207, all are painted in this scheme which was designed by Rich Stegmann. The paint work was done at Metro East Industries in East St. Louis, Ill.
Florida East Coast
ORDERS 24 ES44C4s: Florida East Coast Railway has ordered 24 new ES44C4 locomo- tives from GE Transportation which will be delivered in late 2014 and be used in through freight service between Jacksonville and Miami, Fla. They’ll be painted in FEC’s classic coral-and-orange “Champion” scheme. In late February, 11 GE loaners arrived on the prop- erty to replace FEC’s eight SD70M-2s and three others leased from CITX. This marks FEC’s first order for non-EMD locomotives.
MBTA
NEW CARS NEED REPAIRS: The T’s con- troversial bilevel coaches now being delivered (two years late) by the Hyundai-Rotem assem- bly plant in Philadelphia, Penn., are having teething problems. Issues with the brakes, doors, climate control systems, and cab signals are keeping a team of Hyundai technicians busy at the T’s Somerville, Mass., mainte- nance facility; the builder is responsible for re- pairs and modifications made during a car’s first two years of service. About 60 of the 75- car order have been delivered so far.
Something From a Model Railroader’s Parts Box?
CLCX 12132 is a PL1500 “Process Locomotive” from CLCX of Cornelia, Ga., formerly known as Chattahoochee Locomotive. Reportedly built on the frame of former Pittsburgh & Lake Erie GP7 No. 5728, the snub-nosed locomotive is designed for low-speed industrial switching; Process Loco- motives feature High Adhesion Traction Control for up to 38% adhesion compared to 28%-30% for other traction control systems. A nine-camera closed circuit television system provides 360-degree vision for the operator. The extra brake cylinders on trucks are for the “parking” brake. Details are sketchy: CLCX says “at this point, everything about this unit is proprietary and not for publi- cation.” It was photographed on BNSF Railway at Moore, Okla., on February 14, 2014, en route to Cargill Grain in Bovina, Texas, located along BNSF’s Hereford Sub.
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ANTHONY WESSEL
MARK MAUTNER
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