Category: Conrail

Consolidated Rail Corporation (Conrail for short) was created by the US government, as a result of several major eastern railroad bankruptcies in the 1970’s. The end result was a well-run, profitable railroad; a true ‘rags to riches’ story, which the government then sold to the other two major eastern roads, Norfolk Southern Corporation and CSX Transportation, in a 58-42 split. Conrail does still survive, as Conrail Shared Assets Operations, serving as a terminal switching entity only, owning no locomotives or railcars.

Rock & Roll

Conrail

New Jersey is home to some pretty good music, and within 40 minutes of this location you can find Bruce Springsteen, Jon Bon Jovi, Deborah Harry, Sebastian Bach and Peter Criss, original Kiss drummer, all at home (if not on tour). You can also find a different type of rock & roll, this kind on the rails of the Conrail Shared Assets Operations Southern Secondary. The Southern is a lightly used rail line which sees just one train a week, and maintenance has been deferred for many years. Because there has been no new wooden ties installed or tamping (the act of slightly raising the individual tie and pushing ballast underneath so that all ties sits level) occurring on the route since the late 20th century, the rail tends to dip an inch or two in certain spots, usually at the joints of each 39 foot section of rail. It is for this reason that we see this day’s weekly freight, Conrail WPSA-31, leaning slightly as the train makes it’s way southbound through Tinton Falls, NJ. This line has seen a speed restriction (10 mph) for many years, so there is no fear that the train will topple over…it just makes for a crooked locomotive every now and then. You see, there’s more than one way to rock & roll in the Garden State.

Image recorded on September 6, 2018

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And the seas parted…

Conrail

Running through a sea of green on a brutally hot July day in New Jersey (air temp of 92, heat index of 99), Conrail Shared Assets Operations weekly Sayreville, NJ based local WPSA-31 makes its way to Lakewood, NJ on her regular Thursday afternoon schedule. Just 45 minutes later, a strong thunderstorm with torrential rain would engulf the area, rendering this photo impossible. Many thanks to the crew for getting out of Browns Yard just a little early for this run!

Image recorded July 13, 2017

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A stroll through Red Bank

Conrail

Red Bank, NJ, is a cool little town, and has had rail service since 1855 or so, when the Raritan & Delaware Bay (the second railroad in the state, after the Camden & Amboy) began surveying here. The Central Railroad of New Jersey eventually assumed control of the line, and Red Bank would become the northern point on the CNJ Southern Division mainline, which extended to the Bridgton area in extreme southern NJ. After Conrail reorganized the railroads of the northeast in 1976, this route was cut in half, with the northern portion running from Red Bank to Lakehurst, and the railroad abandoned from Lakehurst to Winslow Junction (except for a 13 mile stretch under private ownership from Lakehurst to Woodmansie). The northern portion of line is still active today as the Conrail Southern Secondary, although trains presently only go as far as South Lakewood, served by the once-weekly Conrail Shared Assets Operations local SA-31. The crew is seen here strolling through the south end of Red Bank, crossing Newman Springs Road & approaching MP 39; business has been good lately, with trains of 10-15 cars on many trips, but the train today consists of only 3 cars for two customers on the line. Hopefully this is just a brief winter slowdown, and traffic levels will return to normal soon.

Image recorded January 22, 2015.

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Once dormant, now active again

Conrail

On the now 150 year old ex-CNJ Southern Division mainline, business had dwindled to a customer or two in the late 20th century. Things did not look good for this once proud high iron to southern New Jersey as recently as 2009, but, as everyone knows, there is nothing constant but change. Conrail Shared Assets Operations local SA-31 has operated on this line since Conrail proper assumed rights from the CNJ in 1976, and the line has seen hard times in the last decade & a half. With change rearing its ‘positive’ head, for a change, the current Southern Secondary has seen a significant increase in traffic in 2014, much to the delight of the local economy, and to local railfans as well.

The weekly Thursday afternoon runs have seen trains of 12+ cars for the past year, compared to runs of 1 to 5 or 6 cars previously. This days consist had 17 cars, with 14 lumber loads destined for the lines largest customer, Woodhaven Lumber in Lakewood, as well as 2 empty gondolas for loading at Brick Recycling, another ‘once dormant, now active again’ business in Howell, NJ, and one boxcar full of brick products for Extech Building Materials. The Extech (formerly Atlantic Building Supply) siding, pictured here, had lain dormant for several years, but started receiving inbound loads again back in 2011, and has been a regular drill since then. Conrail Shared Assets crew SA-31 is seen here spotting the loaded car on the Extech siding, after having pulled the empty boxcar just moments ago. With the continued business from Extech, and the new business from Brick Recycling, just a half-mile north of here, the future looks bright for the Southern Secondary, almost forgotten about just a few years ago.

Image recorded October 30, 2014.

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The usual Thursday stroll

Conrail

On a surprisingly sunny Thursday afternoon (most Thursdays in NJ are cloudy), Conrail Shared Assets local train SA-31 heads down the CR Southern Secondary (the old CNJ Southern Division) in Eatontown with a short consist for Lakewood, NJ. This was a main freight route for the Central RR of NJ, running from Jersey City to extreme southern NJ, from the late 19th to mid 20th century, hosting at least two trains a day. Many years ago, there was a passing siding at this point on the line, with the north switch located just about where NS 5283 (GP38-2, ex-CR 8081, nee-PC 8081, blt 2/73) is positioned in this photo. In November of 1953, CNJ train SJ-2 derailed 21 cars at this spot, with a few even climbing the embankment to the left, and it is thought that the switch contributed to the accident.

There will be no problems for the crew today, as they take their very regular Thursday stroll down the Southern; in fact, if you wake up & don’t remember what day it is in this area, you will know it’s Thursday if you see the local going by. The train is never big, and never fast (10 mph restriction on this line), but there is much rr history in this area dating back to the 1850s, and it’s good to see the line still in operation into the 21st century.

Image recorded on August 15, 2013

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