24-12-01 PHOTOS: Severn

While I can typically do other things on Black Wednesday to overcome Amtrak's lack of a Thanksgiving program, Black Sunday is a little different as I only have limited time and space in which to act. In the past this was sufficient to catch the NJT Arrow III sets running in Maryland, but without them it takes a bit more effort to string together an interesting set of photos. In November of 2024 the best I could manage was a stop by the MARC Halethorpe station and the location of the old grade crossing and station in Severn, MD.

The first part of this set actually takes place on Saturday where we see a northbound weekend MARC Penn Line train, shown here taking the diverging route at WINANS interlocking with SC44 #83 in the head. Before Halethorpe was given high level platforms, Most MARC trains would platform across Track A using duckboards, but now they have to takes a time hit for a diverging movement.

Upon departure the outbound train met its opposite just north of the Halethorpe station. Cab car #8051 was on the end of the northbound with K-cab-car #7854 was leading the southbound and MP36PH-3C #30 on the rear.

I did manage to catch some Amtrak action with southbound Amtrak Regional Train #147 with ACS-86 #656 meeting northbound Regional Train #168 with ACS-86 #649. Both trains were traveling around 100mph.

 

Sometime that week I was also at the Halethorpe Station at night where I encountered MARC SC44 #87 at the head of a late night northbound Penn Line train taking the Limited Clear signal at WINANS interlocking track #1 for the Halethorpe station stop. 

 
 

 

Suburban Maryland developed mostly after WW2 and due to the strong county-based government there was little to keep the old centralized town centers intact. Severn was one such pre-war community, but little remains to distinguish it from the surrounding sprawl except for a small amount of grid streeting and what used to be an NEC grade crossing that was replaced by a pedestrian underpass.

I have been to this location before, but only in conjunction with unrelated photo sets and not Thanksgiving. Here we see a northbound MARC Penn Line train with SC44 #81 doubleheading with MP35PH-3C #22. The corresponding southbound still featured SC44 #83, but the cab car had changed to #7855.

On the Amtrak side of things first to appear was a northbound Regional with ACS-86 #618 leading.

My lucky catch of the day was a northbound Regional with ACS-86 #648 meeting a southbound Acela with power car #2007.

This was followed by a northbound Acela with power cars #2036 and #2017.

Next up was Amtrak Train 96 with ACE-86 #640.

Popping back to the eastern side of the tracks I caught southbound Regional with ACS-86 #623 along with a southbound push-pull Regional with ACS-86 #620 subbing for a Metroliner cab car on the leading end and penultimate ACS-86 #669 pushing on the rear.

That's all for Thanksgiving 2024, check back next time as I head out to Chicago's famed 21st St crossing.