railfan.com/railnews Although NS has witnessed a reduc-
tion in crude oil volume this summer, increased natural gas drilling in the Marcellus and underlying Utica shale formations in the Northern Appalachian region has been beneficial for sand and pipe shipments. For example, Train 66T is an increasingly frequent sight, sometimes operating twice-weekly from Canadian National in Chicago to South- west Pennsylvania Railroad interchange in Radebaugh, Pa. This train, often run- ning with CN power in the mix, loads near Independence, Wis., on CN and terminates at a transloading facility on the SWP in Smithfield, Pa. Empties re- turn west as Train 67T. Although these trains are scheduled out of Chicago via Elkhart, Ind., they often operate via Fort Wayne when traffic patterns and crew supply warrant. One of the bright spots in NS’s recent revenue mix has been automotive traf- fic. This summer, NS has been operating special train movements of automotive frames from the Paducah & Louisville interchange at Louisville destined to as- sembly plants in the Detroit area. They operate as Train 099 and are routed via Danville, Ky., to Cincinnati, and then north via Fort Wayne, Ind., into the Oakwood, Mich., yard. The trains orig- inate at a frame supplier in Elizabeth- town, Ky., and typically consist of one to two dozen loaded FTTX flatcars and two buffer cars. A 28G train has been spotted several
times during July and August running from Fairlane yard near Cleveland to Cincinnati, handling empty autoracks destined to Honda in Greensburg, Ind. From Cincinnati, they move to the plant via the Indiana & Ohio. This train num- ber has also been used for empties from Kansas City destined to Toyota’s George-
Big Cover-Up in New York City
The new Hudson Yards Redevelopment Project will cover up the Long Island Rail Road’s West Side Yard in Manhattan. Formerly the site of New York Central’s 30th Street Yard, the LIRR opened this facility in 1987 to provide layover storage close to Penn Station. Just one block away is another development project that will cover up the daylight opening behind the Farley Post Offi ce and the entrance to the Hudson River Tunnels used by Amtrak and NJ Transit. While both projects will benefi t the West Side, they will remove classic railroad scenes from public view forever.
PHOTOS BY DENNIS A. LIVESEY
town, Ky., plant, operating via Frankfort and Muncie, Ind.
UNION PACIFIC KEVIN SNYDER
Job Cuts Systemwide
Faced with slumping freight volumes, Union Pacific announced in early August it would eliminate several hundred man- agement positions in coming months, mostly through terminations and attri- tion. The railroad employs about 50,000 people across its 23-state network. Prior to August’s announcement to eliminate an unspecified number of management positions, the railroad had furloughed 1200 employees in train, engine, and yard service in 2015. Freight volumes fell 6 percent com-
pared to second quarter 2014, with coal and crude oil volumes hit especially hard, plummeting 26 and 29 percent, re- spectively.
Bridge Replacement Little Sioux
A girder bridge that crosses a tributary of the Little Sioux River in Little Sioux, Iowa, collapsed sometime on August 19. According to a report in the Omaha World-Herald, a passerby alerted authorities to the collapse, who in turn contacted the railroad. The bridge sees up to eight trains daily, and no unusual activity was reported by train crews prior to the collapse. The railroad began inspections and repairs the next day and detoured traffic around the affected route. No specific date was announced for completion. —O.M.V.
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