Category: Norfolk Southern

The Norfolk Southern Railway was created as a result of the 1982 merger of the two mid-Atlantic powerhouses Norfolk & Western Railroad, and the Southern Railway. Norfolk Southern now reaches into the northeast, along with competitor CSX Transportation, and is a major player east of the Mississippi, as one of two Class 1 railroads (CSX being the other) operating in this region.

Roundabout route explains odd-numbered train symbol

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Just a few miles out of Norfolk Southern’s Allentown Yard, NS train 38G pulls hard through Emmaus, Pennsylvania, as she heads west on the NS Lehigh Line. On the point we see NS 9251, one of seven GE C40-9W locomotives painted in the special Operation Lifesaver 25th Anniversary scheme.

Why is this train westbound, when NS usually symbols their trains with odd numbers when heading west? Well, there is an explanation, as this train’s destination is geographically east of Allentown, Pennsylvania;  initiating in Allentown, this move heads west to Reading, Pa, then turns southward to Philadelphia, then heads eastward across the Delair bridge into New Jersey, destined for the CSAO Pavonia Yard in Camden, NJ. So, technically, this is an eastbound consist, albeit in a roundabout way. In any event, she’s a money-maker for NS, with train lengths commonly in excess of 100 cars, running seven days a week.

Image recorded October 23, 2010.

Odd-numbered locomotives painted in the special Operation Lifesaver 25th Anniversary scheme

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Executives tour the NS system from Office Car Special

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There is no mistaking one of the the finest ‘Executive’ trains in the world, as we witness the passing of the Norfolk Southern OCS, or Office Car Special. In the late summer and early Fall of 2010, NS President Wick Moorman and his executive staff toured the entire system on rails, getting a close view of their empire, and perhaps a better idea of how to handle todays rail-freight traffic. Proudly displaying the colors and scheme of NS predecessor road Southern Railway, the spotless F9A/F7B/F7B/F9A EMD locomotives capably handle the westbound 10 car consist as it negotiates the sweeping S-curve alongside the Lehigh River in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, milepost 87 on the NS Lehigh Line.

Image recorded September 26, 2010.

One of the the finest 'Executive' trains in the world, Norfolk Southern Office Car Special

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Dormant Bethlehem Steel mill backdrop for several tracks

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Sitting in the shadows of the giant, and unfortunately dormant, Bethlehem Steel mill in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, Norfolk Southern local H74 pauses on track 2 in River Yard, awaiting paperwork for the ‘dangerous’ loads in the train before departing for the much larger Allentown Yard, a major classification facility on the NS system. Two large General Electric C40-9W  locomotives  (#9398 & #9362) are in charge of the short ‘transfer’ run, a procedure not uncommon to see in the Bethlehem area.

As seen from left in this image: the ‘layoff’ track, used for staging empty/loaded coal trains to and from western NJ, and any other train that may need to sit for awhile; NS Lehigh Line main 1, NS Lehigh Line main 2, then River Yard tracks 5, 4, 3, and 2.

Image recorded August 7, 2010.

Dormant Bethlehem Steel mill backdrop for the many tracks of Norfolk Southern

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Ethanol empties train waits to head west

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On a warm July morning, Norfolk Southern train 69Q (ethanol empties), with NS 8395 in the lead, waits patiently on the yard track at the ‘Hess crossovers’ in Port Reading, NJ, as inbound NS train 68Q (ethanol loads) brings its train northward on the main, headed towards the west siding in nearby Carteret, NJ. The South Jersey Dispatcher will then give 69Q the OK to crossover from the yard track to the main, then immediately onto the west leg of the Wye at CP-PD to connect to the Port Reading Secondary, and head westward to later join the NS Lehigh Line for the trip west.

Shortly, a local crew will climb aboard and guide the just arrived 68Q southward to the refinery for spotting. It’s not as complex as it sounds, and the crews and dispatchers keep everything moving smoothly on this often congested trackage of the CSAO Chemical Coast Secondary.

Image recorded July 30, 2010.

Ethanol empties train waits to head west

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Norfolk Southern train 69Q negotiates southbound

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Doing things a little differently today, Norfolk Southern train 69Q negotiates southbound through the “Hess” crossovers on the Conrail Shared Assets Chemical Coast Secondary at Port Reading, NJ, to gain access to the west leg of the wye at CP-PD so that it may head west on the Port Reading Secondary, and join the NS Lehigh Line main at CP Bound Brook for her trip west for reloading.

Routing for the ’empty buckets’ (as the local crews call them) ‘usually’ brings the train north to Oak Island Yard before turning west for the main; the mostly single-track Port Reading Secondary acts as a bypass of sorts, and a good way out of central coastal NJ should the rails be clogged at busy Oak Island. It’s also slightly unusual for CSX power to mix with NS power on NS road trains; one will more often find lease units, or BNSF or UP power as assistance on the NS mainline.

This day features a homecoming for NS C40-9W 8395, as she began life as Conrail 6188 in June of 1993; assisting with todays move is CSX AC44CW 481 and CSX ES40DC 5224.

Image recorded July 29, 2010.

Norfolk Southern train 69Q negotiates southbound through the "Hess" crossovers on the Conrail Shared Assets Chemical Coast Secondary at Port Reading, NJ.

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