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.

‘East siding’ grade shows world is not flat

, , ,

In a telephoto image proving that the world is indeed ‘not flat’, Norfolk Southern train 68Q is seen parked on the Port Reading yard track, aka the ‘east siding’, in Carteret, NJ, on the Conrail Shared Assets Chemical Coast Secondary. Evidence of the grade is apparent with the small piles of sand alongside the rails, where engineers have had to activate the onboard sanders to increase adhesion of the steel wheels on the steel rails to gain traction.

Traffic is a bit busy on this spring day, as another loaded ethanol train is sitting on the ‘west siding’, directly across the main. NS 9517, along with sister C40-9W 9241, will have to wait until tonight or tomorrow morning to be off-loaded, as the South Jersey Dispatcher will take the adjacent train first, issuing a Form D south to Sewaren within an hour of this photo.

Image recorded May 7, 2010.

Norfolk Southern train 68Q parked on the Port Reading yard track, aka the 'east siding', in Carteret, NJ

Click on the image to display it at a larger size. Use your browser’s Back button to return to this page.

Rare locomotive deserves many photographs

, , ,

Some might say that there are too many pictures of EMD SD45-2 locomotives on this website, but considering the rarity of this particular model in the US, I say “Bah, humbug”!

With only 136 units ever produced (although Southern Pacific/SSW received 247 of a variation of this model, the SD45T-2), the sight of two of these monsters coupled together in 2010 is an image worth recording, especially in New Jersey. The only northeast railroad to order this model was the Erie Lackwanna Railroad, with 13 units built in late 1972 at the famed General Motors ElectroMotive Division plant in LaGrange, Illinois.

After the Conrail split-up of 1999, Norfolk Southern acquired six of the ex-EL SD45-2’s, and they are frequently seen on Conrail Shared Assets trackage, both in northern NJ, and also in southern NJ, operating out of Camden’s Pavonia Yard; NS 1703 is ex-CR 6662, nee-EL 3677, built 11/72, and trailing unit NS 1700 is ex-CR 6654, nee-EL 3669, built 11/72. On a beautiful spring day in May, 2010, we see southbound Conrail Shared Assets train OI-16 at the ‘Hess’ crossovers, approaching CP-PD on the CSAO Chemical Coast Secondary, about to make a set-out at Port Reading Yard.

Even though these locomotives were rebuilt to SD40-2 specs during their time on Conrail, 38 years on the rails is a long time in RR years, and before long these veterans will become a distant memory, so let us enjoy them while we can.

Image recorded May 5, 2010.

Rare locomotive deserves many photographs

Click on the image to display it at a larger size. Use your browser’s Back button to return to this page.

Norfolk Southern train 38G crosses the Lehigh Canal

, , ,

Traversing the bridge across the Lehigh Canal dating back to 1916, just west of CP ALLEN, Norfolk Southern train 38G begins its journey to Pavonia Yard in Camden, NJ. Today’s power has a mix of GE and EMD power, with NS 2528 (SD70, blt 12/93), followed by NS 9817 (C40-9W, blt 4/04) and NS 2712 (SD70M-2, blt 12/05). With the train just assembled in Allentown Yard, the engineer will pull another 3/4 of a mile to the home signal at CP BURN to pick up his conductor, and head west to Reading on the NS Lehigh Line.

Image recorded April 24, 2010.

Norfolk Southern train 38G crosses the Lehigh Canal

Click on the image to display it at a larger size. Use your browser’s Back button to return to this page.

Classic EMD locomotives work hard into their golden years

, , ,

These two classic EMD locomotives continue to work hard into their ‘golden years’. Norfolk Southern GP38-2 5271 started life as Penn Central 8061, built in February of 1973, and she kept her original number through the Conrail years. CSX GP38-2 began as Conrail 8724, leaving LaGrange, Ill., in June of 1979, to go to work for Big Blue.

This is the Conrail Shared Assets Chemical Coast Secondary, so NS/CSX lashups are common operating procedure in this area; today we have local CSAO crew PR-8 in charge of their short train, making good time on a beautiful spring day, passing CP-PD.

Image recorded April 14, 2010.

Classic EMD locomotives continue to work hard into their golden years

Click on the image to display it at a larger size. Use your browser’s Back button to return to this page.

‘Raccoons’ viewed passing under Hill to Hill bridge

, , ,

Known as ‘raccoons’ by many (because of the white painted outline of the front windshields), Norfolk Southern SD70M 2615 is joined by NS C40-9W 9453 as power for today’s train 18G. Passing under the ‘Hill to Hill’ bridge in the background, and the Fahy bridge in the foreground, the crew accelerates slowly after crossing the Lehigh River on the truss bridge seen just to the right of the lead unit, where the middle of the train just happens to be at this moment.

Crews on eastbound trains will negotiate the two fairly sharp curves at the east exit of Allentown Yard with caution, to avoid any problems. The signals seen are the westbound home signals for CP BETHLEHEM, just a few hundred feet behind the locomotives, milepost 88 on the Norfolk Southern Lehigh Line.

Image recorded April 3, 2010.

Norfolk Southern SD70M 2615 is joined by NS C40-9W 9453 as power for todays train 18G

Click on the image to display it at a larger size. Use your browser’s Back button to return to this page.