CSX Train Location Updates - December 2020

[Talk]

D905 is recrewing D705 in Grand Ledge currently.

At 11:49am, heard D905-05 telling Halcom cab driver "we're good now". Sounds like they're about to depart there.
At 11:52am D905 reported clear west end Grand Ledge mp CH99.1

D905-05 @ 12:11pm westward reported by the DD mp CH104.3 with 828 axles & 12,154 feet long (2.3 miles). CSX engine #738 + mid CSX engine #3211 & 204 total cars.

At E Lake Odessa (12:40) ???

[Tom49801]

D905 is recrewing D705 in Grand Ledge currently.

At 11:49am, heard D905-05 telling Halcom cab driver "we're good now". Sounds like they're about to depart there.
At 11:52am D905 reported clear west end Grand Ledge mp CH99.1

D905-05 @ 12:11pm westward reported by the DD mp CH104.3 with 828 axles & 12,154 feet long (2.3 miles). CSX engine #738 + mid CSX engine #3211 & 204 total cars.

Sorry for the newbie question but I don't have a bearing on timing for trains on that sub yet...about how long should it take to get to Sunnyside? Looks like they should be going 40-50 that whole way (according to a 2005 timetable) so I'm thinking about 1:15pm to be to Sunnyside?

Hi, that's a good question & happy to help. It takes the train about 38 to 45 minutes to get from the DD at mp CH104.3 to the DD at mp CH126.3 depending on the size of his train. Sunnyside is at mp CH151.7
MP CH146.6 to Seymour mp CH148.1 is 40mph. At Seymour it's 25mph to Pleasant Street mp CH151.3
10mph on Track 1 & 15mph on Track 2 from Pleasant Street to Sunnyside.

[Tom49801]

D905 is recrewing D705 in Grand Ledge currently.

At 11:49am, heard D905-05 telling Halcom cab driver "we're good now". Sounds like they're about to depart there.
At 11:52am D905 reported clear west end Grand Ledge mp CH99.1

D905-05 @ 12:11pm westward reported by the DD mp CH104.3 with 828 axles & 12,154 feet long (2.3 miles). CSX engine #738 + mid CSX engine #3211 & 204 total cars.

At E Lake Odessa (12:40) ???

D905-05 @ 12:48pm reported from the e/e of Lake Odessa.
D905-05 @ 1:03pm westward reported by the DD at mp CH126.3 with 828 axles.

[Tom49801]

At 11:49am, heard D905-05 telling Halcom cab driver "we're good now". Sounds like they're about to depart there.
At 11:52am D905 reported clear west end Grand Ledge mp CH99.1

D905-05 @ 12:11pm westward reported by the DD mp CH104.3 with 828 axles & 12,154 feet long (2.3 miles). CSX engine #738 + mid CSX engine #3211 & 204 total cars.

Sorry for the newbie question but I don't have a bearing on timing for trains on that sub yet...about how long should it take to get to Sunnyside? Looks like they should be going 40-50 that whole way (according to a 2005 timetable) so I'm thinking about 1:15pm to be to Sunnyside?

Hi, that's a good question & happy to help. It takes the train about 38 to 45 minutes to get from the DD at mp CH104.3 to the DD at mp CH126.3 depending on the size of his train. Sunnyside is at mp CH151.7
MP CH146.6 to Seymour mp CH148.1 is 40mph. At Seymour it's 25mph to Pleasant Street mp CH151.3
10mph on Track 1 & 15mph on Track 2 from Pleasant Street to Sunnyside.

If all goes well for the train & if he's able to maintain the maximum authorized speed, D905 should arrive to Sunnyside about 37 minutes after being reported by the DD at mp CH126.3 (around 1:40pm), But, he's a long & heavy train & could take him a bit longer (I had looked at the all the speed limits for the various mile post to mile post).
For time calculations, take the speed limit & divide that by 60 to get "miles per minute" for each mile post to mile post. Then, (mile posts distance) x (miles per minute) = Minutes of travel time for each speed limit zone.

[trnwatcher]

13:40 EAR D90505 WB CLEAR FOX ON A PAIR. CSXT 738 LEADING.

[SD80MAC]

D905 westbound at Seymour, huge train.

[Tom49801]

D905 westbound at Seymour, huge train.

CSX engine #738 leading + mid CSX engine #3211 & 204 total cars & 2.3 miles long (based on the DD104.3 reported footage).

[BL2-1843]

Z62404 currently over on CSX doing one of their famous block every crossing in town for an hour routein. Setting off 52 cars and picking the 72 cars D708 sat off yesterday. The usual Ann Pere turn unit on the lead (383) followed by 398+399 back to back. From the time they first backed the 52 cars west over the crossings, it took six minutes to stop at the west end signal at Howell. It then took 22 minutes for the RN to answer his radio (shift change) to get permission into the siding on his 72 car pick up. Then, with the crossings STILL blocked, they have to walk the air test on the 72 cars pick up before they move east and clear the crossings. Such is life in Howell sometimes when GLC is here even though there is a way to get around this by doing it another way. Like D708 leaving cars on the main for their convenience, this move is for GLCs convenience. No difference in have road trains run through the siding than having vehicle traffic sit there for an hour or go another way, even if the trains are moving and the road traffic is standing. Today's set off includes 31 tie empties, 12 three bay hoppers, 7 tanks and 2 coke.

[C&O Dispatcher]

22 minutes to answer the radio calls? Oh, my! Probably "snowed under" even if in sunny Florida! I'll give the dispatcher the benefit of the doubt, though, knowing personally how things can get a little overwhelming at times in the "hot seat!"

[SD80MAC]

How else would you do it, if you have cars to set out and a pick up in the siding?

[Tom49801]

D801-05 @ 5:08pm westward mp CG25.3 with CSX engines #989 + #579 & an empty coal train possibly headed to Wells siding mp CG41.4 After dropping off the empty coal train, he might head to the west end of Kirk siding mp CG72.3 with his 2 CSX engines to be the DPU's for the N801-04 loaded coal train.
D801-05 @ 5:54pm westward reported by the DD mp CG44.2 with 544 axles & 7,055 feet long. CSX engines #989 + #579 & 2 BNSF engines & 130 empty coal cars. Appears they are headed to Grand Junction siding mp CG53.9 instead of Wells siding.
D801-05 @ 6:01pm westward reported an Approach Medium signal at mp CG51, they're headed into Grand Junction.

[Tom49801]

N800-05 @ 6:20pm eastward reported by the DD mp CG91.9 with 528 axles & 6,908 feet long. BNSF engines #6186 + #5731(?) & 129 loaded coal cars.
N800-05 @ 6:35pm eastward reported clear of the St Joseph Bridge. He'll be getting his DPU's added at west end of Grand Junction siding mp CG55.6

[SW]

NB mixed freight just cleared Main St in Plymouth. CSX 422 + 5219 + 146 cars.

[Saturnalia]

22 minutes to answer the radio calls? Oh, my! Probably "snowed under" even if in sunny Florida! I'll give the dispatcher the benefit of the doubt, though, knowing personally how things can get a little overwhelming at times in the "hot seat!"

I'm sure the RN desk didn't get any easier by adding Delray Tower to their responsibilities...

[Tom49801]

N800-05 @ 7:27:13pm eastward Bangor's Division St crossing mp CG60.93 with BNSF engines #6186 + #5731(?) & 129 loaded coal cars. He's getting his 2 pusher engines added at Grand Junction mp CG55.6

[BL2-1843]

How else would you do it, if you have cars to set out and a pick up in the siding?

I have explained this before. Numerous time when GLC comes to Howell as an Ann Pere turn with a large amount of set off cars, and cars in the siding from CSX to pick up, they will leave their entire set off north of Howell off of crossings, comes to Ann Pere power light, gets permission to come out on to CSX, goes to the west end and backs into the siding onto their pick up. They then can do it one of two ways, either back them across the diamond east towards and often beyond Chilson Road, or pull them west, back down the main, and around the transfer to south of Beck Road, almost a mile south of the Diamond.

They they go to back to the set off cars on the north side of town, take them to Ann Pere, backs them west of Howell to get a stacked in signal to go into the siding, out of the siding, and back west across the diamond to the transfer switch power light, back to Beck Road to get their pick and go back north, While there will never be without some delay at the crossings in Howell, this move holds the traffic delay to a minimum of ten minutes on each move, not a hour or so on one move,

Why they don't do it this way all the time and only on occasion is beyond me.

[Tom49801]

N800-05 @ 8:18pm eastward reported by the DD mp CG44.2 with 540 axles & 7,185 feet long. BNSF engines #6186 + #5731(?) & 129 loaded coal cars and CSX pusher engines #579 + #989. The pusher engines will be cut once the train is over the Saugatuck Hill near mp CG32.5
E800-05 @ 8:26pm westward Bangor mp CG60.7 with BNSF engines #6254 + #8557 & 130 empty coal cars.
D706-04 @ 8:39pm eastward reported from Seymour mp CH148.1 with CSX engine #3211 leading & probably has CSX engine #738 as a DPU.

[Tom49801]

D801-05 @ 9:06pm westward reported by the DD mp CG44.2 with 12 axles. CSX engines #989 + #579 lite headed to the west end of Kirk siding to either cut N801-04 that has a crossing blocked or may end moving him out - they're waiting on a decision.
D801-05 @ 9:24pm westward Bangor's Center St crossing mp CG60.35 It was decided they will cut N801-04 to un-block a crossing there.

[SD80MAC]

How else would you do it, if you have cars to set out and a pick up in the siding?

I have explained this before. Numerous time when GLC comes to Howell as an Ann Pere turn with a large amount of set off cars, and cars in the siding from CSX to pick up, they will leave their entire set off north of Howell off of crossings, comes to Ann Pere power light, gets permission to come out on to CSX, goes to the west end and backs into the siding onto their pick up. They then can do it one of two ways, either back them across the diamond east towards and often beyond Chilson Road, or pull them west, back down the main, and around the transfer to south of Beck Road, almost a mile south of the Diamond.

They they go to back to the set off cars on the north side of town, take them to Ann Pere, backs them west of Howell to get a stacked in signal to go into the siding, out of the siding, and back west across the diamond to the transfer switch power light, back to Beck Road to get their pick and go back north, While there will never be without some delay at the crossings in Howell, this move holds the traffic delay to a minimum of ten minutes on each move, not a hour or so on one move,

Why they don't do it this way all the time and only on occasion is beyond me.

Why tie a train down 3-4 times when you can only tie it down once? That’s a lot of handbrakes to apply and release, especially on the hill east of the Diamond. I definitely wouldn’t do it that way if I could avoid it. *shrug*

[Tom49801]

Amtrak P370-05 @ 9:36pm eastward reported by the DD mp CG91.9 with 16 axles & 306 feet long. IDTX engine #4624 & 3 SuperLiner cars.
Amtrak P370-05 @ 9:43pm eastward reported clear of the St Joseph Bridge.

D706-04 @ 9:56pm eastward reported by the DD mp CH126.3 with 872 axles. CSX engine #3211 leading & probably has CSX engine #738 as a DPU & 215 total cars.