MMRR trackage

[OaklandCountyCustoms]

Hello everybody... i'm starting to get into shortlines and i've been trying to research a few of them. I'm curious about the MMRR/GRE... The map i'm looking at on LSRC's site shows them on the map but it appears that they have very little trackage... Does anybody know how many miles of track they cover and approx how many industries/elevators they switch? Just curious. thanks in advance.

Chris

[SD80MAC]

MMRR is kind of divided into 3 seperate lines. The eastern part, which is pretty much melded into HESR now, runs from Saginaw to Alma. I know there is atleast one grain elevator on the line, they've pulled 70+ car grain trains with a single Geep over the line.

The middle part is the Grand Rapids Eastern, running from Grand Rapids to Ionia, meeting the Mid Michigan from Greenville to Lowell in Lowell. Their 2 biggest customers are Amway/Alticor in Ada and King Milling in Lowell. Used to get lots of traffic from Electrolux in Greenville and American Bumper in Ionia, but both stopped using rail (Electrolux left town completely). At one time they were run as 2 railroads with 3839 running GRE and 3836 or GP9 #24 running the MMRR. Now GP9 #24 runs the whole thing. They only go as far east as Lowell now, sometimes running west from GR to a lumber yard(?) in Fruitport.

The western part I believe is technically all Michigan Shore. Before Rail America bought the CSX line to Muskegon and Fremont, Michigan Shore ran a few miles of ex GTW trackage in Muskegon. Now that they own everything in town, I think it's all Michigan Shore. Currently GRE 3839, MMRR 3836, MS 180, MMRR 179 and MS 73 are the power over there, with 73 being out of service for a while now. Biggest customers I believe are Nugent Sand, Webb Chemical and Sappi Fine Paper in Muskegon. The Co-op in Fremont also gets a few cars a week.

That's a basic run down. There are many here who could go a lot more in depth (and correct my mistakes )

[OaklandCountyCustoms]

With them abandoning the greenville sub it seems like they lost a lot of their territory... is this company failing or are they efficient with the customers they have? From not knowing about them and just browsing the net it seems like their future is pretty shaky. Not that their a bad company...but as CN will soon learn: track + no customers = no business. Is MMRR already part of the Rail America family? i had heard that they were...if not, it seems like that merger would help keep them around.

Chris

[OaklandCountyCustoms]

I found a newer map from MDOT which now shows what you are saying which makes understanding a lot easier... it does show all 3 branches now whereas the map i had looked at earlier (Rail America map) only showed the one section where GRE met the former greenville sub. I'm now feeling better about them... i was starting to worry that we may have soon had another fallen flag in michigan. The more i look into this the more i'm hoping for a Holly sub takover by GLC though... With CN losing Orion and other auto contracts some forums speculated Holly being turned over to a shortline to better serve those companies. With GLC's proposed passenger/commuter service and a JCT with the Holly at durand i could see that as being a viable possibility. They have a nice paint scheme also... Perhaps i'll need to make a freelanced GLC unit on a former GTW GP38-2 assuming CN would sell off power. who knows... i live near pontiac and would love a commuter rail system to take trips to traverse city... been awhile since those tracks have seen passengers (other than excursion of course).

Chris

[AARR]

Great run down Conrail Jon! Paines-Alma has two gigantic elevators and one medium sized when they still serve. Although with most of MAC's corn be trucked to local ethanol plants their rail shipments maybe down from two of the elevators.

[SD80MAC]

Oakland, GRE, MMRR and MS were all originally Railtex companies. Rail America bought Railtex in 2000 I think.

Here's a quick run down of the GRE/MMRR/MS power:

GR GP38 #3839, formerly GR #5106 before the RA takeover, ex B&O 4806, currently in Muskegon


MMRR GP38 #3836, formerly 5080, ex C&O 3880, Muskegon


MMRR GP9 #179, ex QCM #5, Muskegon


MMRR GP9 #24, ex NP #368, Grand Rapids


MS GP9 #180, formerly MMRR #180, ex QCM #6, Muskegon


MS SW1200 #73, ex KCT #73, bad ordered in Muskegon


SOR SW1200RS #1367, ex CN, bad ordered in Grand Rapids


The Alma line gets power from HESR, usually a GP38, U23B or their B30-7, it seems.

[OaklandCountyCustoms]

awesome pictures... that all helps a ton. i need to make it out there one of these days to see them run.

[Raildudes dad]

The middle part is the Grand Rapids Eastern, running from Grand Rapids to Ionia, meeting the Mid Michigan from Greenville to Lowell in Lowell. Their 2 biggest customers are Amway/Alticor in Ada and King Milling in Lowell. Used to get lots of traffic from Electrolux in Greenville and American Bumper in Ionia, but both stopped using rail (Electrolux left town completely). At one time they were run as 2 railroads with 3839 running GRE and 3836 or GP9 #24 running the MMRR. Now GP9 #24 runs the whole thing. They only go as far east as Lowell now, sometimes running west from GR to a lumber yard(?) in Fruitport.

Should be "sometimes running west from GR to a lumber yard on Fruitridge in the City of walker or a lumber yard in Marne. They occasionally pick up or deliver at Marne a private car stored on the C&M and take to to or from to Amtrak 371.

[odave]

...Paines-Alma

I grew up two blocks from the tracks in Merrill. I have many fond memories of tearing down the street on my bike when I heard the Chessies blowing for crossings out of town. Does anyone know if Bear Truss in St. Louis is still rail served? Anything in Alma?

[penn central]

Real nice photo roster jon thanks for posting.

[SD80MAC]

The middle part is the Grand Rapids Eastern, running from Grand Rapids to Ionia, meeting the Mid Michigan from Greenville to Lowell in Lowell. Their 2 biggest customers are Amway/Alticor in Ada and King Milling in Lowell. Used to get lots of traffic from Electrolux in Greenville and American Bumper in Ionia, but both stopped using rail (Electrolux left town completely). At one time they were run as 2 railroads with 3839 running GRE and 3836 or GP9 #24 running the MMRR. Now GP9 #24 runs the whole thing. They only go as far east as Lowell now, sometimes running west from GR to a lumber yard(?) in Fruitport.

Should be "sometimes running west from GR to a lumber yard on Fruitridge in the City of walker or a lumber yard in Marne. They occasionally pick up or deliver at Marne a private car stored on the C&M and take to to or from to Amtrak 371.

Thanks Tom.

[penn central]

...Paines-Alma

I grew up two blocks from the tracks in Merrill. I have many fond memories of tearing down the street on my bike when I heard the Chessies blowing for crossings out of town. Does anyone know if Bear Truss in St. Louis is still rail served? Anything in Alma?

Hello odave as far as i know in st louis, there is bear truss and right next door to them is the old royster phosphates place that gets seasonal loads of fertilizer, In alma is the alma iron and metal scrap yard, and terry materials, witch gets asphalt loads mostly at the beginning of the construction season to stock up on asphalt supplies thats what the shipping and recieving clerks there told me.

[AARR]

penn central got it right. Although Bear Truss and the old Royster place (CPS now, I think) both are way down in business from what I've heard. When the economy was better Bear used to be around 150-200 cars a year and Royster 100.

[pbmaxno15]

I was in St. Louis at my parents for Thanksgiving and took M-46 east on my way home Friday. There was one centerbeam at Bear Truss and nothing at Royster. There was nothing at the MAC in Breckenridge. The MAC at Ransom Road between Breckenridge and Wheeler had a single tank car. There were several covered hoppers behind the beet transfer station just west of Wheeler.

[GR Ron]

Anyone here know when they run out to Sappi? I would like to get some shots sometime this week.

Thanks!

[SD80MAC]

Anyone here know when they run out to Sappi? I would like to get some shots sometime this week.

Thanks!

I thought I heard Sappi was shutting down for 6 months, atleast. I imagine they won't be running down there for awhile. Don't know when the shut down is schedueled to start, but there goes a chunk of MMRR's traffic.

[JDavis21835]

Can you guys explain to me how this operation works east of Breckenridge. From what I have seen HSER does not go any farther than the elevator at M46 in Saginaw. Anything that goes out from there is LSRCs SBS. They take cuts out to a siding just west of the Titabawassee river. MMRR takes from that siding on.

[~Z~]

Anyone here know when they run out to Sappi? I would like to get some shots sometime this week.

Thanks!

I thought I heard Sappi was shutting down for 6 months, atleast. I imagine they won't be running down there for awhile. Don't know when the shut down is schedueled to start, but there goes a chunk of MMRR's traffic.

Went by Sappi today in Muskegon, no railcars, and their pile of wood on the west side of the plant was basically non-existant. Sad to see the place basically idle.

[AARR]

Can you guys explain to me how this operation works east of Breckenridge. From what I have seen HSER does not go any farther than the elevator at M46 in Saginaw. Anything that goes out from there is LSRCs SBS. They take cuts out to a siding just west of the Titabawassee river. MMRR takes from that siding on.

Looks to me like you have it right. Any traffic from Paines to Alma for CMGN goes to SBS or GLC first. I think MMRR is allowed engine hops between Paines and Saginaw.

[JDavis21835]

Thanks Don, just happened to look at google maps and found what you call Paines. Funny thing is I grew up not more than 5 miles from there, and never heard it called Paines, in fact ive always known the area as Thomas Township. Learn something new everyday.