05-07-04 CLASSIC PHOTOS: Winslow Jct

Winslow Junction could be considered the nexus of railroading in South Jersey. Although of lesser importance today when compared to Pavonia or the Delair Bridge complex, at one time in the early 20th century it featured some of the highest traffic densities in the world as high speed steam train shuttled the middle and working classes between Philadelphia and the shore points. Created in it's final form with the PRSL merger in 1934, Winslow joined the PRR Camden and Atlantic main line with the Reading line to Ocean City and other points south with the CNJ Southern Division also making an appearance on the lower level.

Today, as in 2005, Winslow is the home base of the Southern Railroad of New Jersey short line, although 13 years ago it was home to a distinctly more eclectic mix of locomotives and rolling stock as the former owner was still alive enough to indulge his various personal railroading interests. In this photo set we'll take a quick tour of what was hanging out at Winslow Jct in the summer of 2005 along with some other random photos from a trip to Washington, DC via MARC and the Metro Orange Line.

The former owner of the SRNJ had a thing for Alcos and the New York, Ontario and Western and while the latter interest eventually manifested in some special paint schemes, the former was exercised via the purchase of a small fleet of Montreal Locomotive Works M-420 locomotives. These were a wide cab copy of the Alco century series C420 built in the 1970's after Alco had shut its doors in 1969. Here we see SRNJ #3579 and #3519 still in their Canadian National livery.

Here we see a non-CN painted #3517 coupled to CN #3578 on the ready service track. Much of this collection would eventually be scrapped after the indictment and death of the long time SRNJ owner in the early 2010's.

The SRNJ cast its net far and wide, harvesting this M-420 (#802) from the Iowa Interstate railroad.

The SRNJ had a pair of GE 44-ton locomotives and in 2005 this example was getting rebuilt to operating condition. I forget the exact details, but after the death of the old owner I believe both the 44-tones were either scrapped or sold. GE 44-ton switchers featured two 8 cylinder diesels in the 150hp range. The model was popular as at the time any locomotive weighing under 90,000 lbs did not have to run with a fireman in the cab.

Lehigh Valley painted Alco C420 #414 was a mainstay at Winslow Jct until it was moved to Scranton and used in Delaware Lackawana service that may have also involved a change of paint scheme.

Of course the EMDs were the most economical units to run and GP10 #102 was sitting on the main line awaiting the next call to duty. This unit had an oil fired burner installed in place of a plug-in block heater.

Up on the NJT Atlantic City line Comet IV cab car #5014 passes Winslow Tower.

WINSLOW tower was built after the 1934 merger to control the new wide ranging interlocking plant. You can learn more about it in another of my posts. The tower was closed with the end of NJ DoT RDC operations in 1983 and now serves as an NJT radio base.

05-06-04 CLASSIC PHOTOS: Lehigh Gourge

Back in 2005 I was still somewhat active with my old scout troop in South Jersey and every June the troop would take a rafting/canoe/bike trip on either the upper Lehigh or Delaware rivers. In 2005 the trip was of the bicycle variety down the Lehigh gourge from White Haven to Mach Chunk, a distance of about 15-20 miles. Using the former Central Railroad of New Jersey right of way, the trip, on a constant downgrade, would only take about 2-3 hours with a stop for lunch. After spending the night in Hope Creek State Park, the group would break early in the morning giving my dad and myself a few hours to check out the local railroad scene.

At that time the Reading and Northern was just starting to ramp up it's scenic passenger operations with a tourist train heading up the Lehigh Gourge between Mach Chunk and M&H Jct. In fact the R&N had restored a connection over the Lehigh river to connect to the former Conrail Lehigh Line. In later years the R&N would lease the Lehigh Line all the way up to Scranton and run all sorts of excursions between the tourist base on the Lehigh and the company HQ in Port Clinton. Having nothing better to do my dad and I went for a ride and I was able to get some photos from the open window coaches.

Also included in this set are photos from the last day of operation of NORTH PHILADELPHIA interlocking tower located in...North Philadelphia.

In fact that is where I am going to start. NORTH PHILADELPHIA tower was built on the Phildelphia Connecting Railroad around 1915 at the junction of the Chestnut Hill West branch and the Main Line. It was probably built in conjunction with the CHW electrification project in mind and also managed trains stopping at the new station with it's novel high level platforms. At the time North Philadelphia was the primary station for the PRR's premier east-west long distance train in the Philadelphia region as running into downtown and having to reverse or wye was unacceptable. Therefore the trains would stop at North Philadelphia instead, with passengers connecting to local PRR trains or the Broad Street Subway. The tower had a 47 lever US&S Electro-Pneumatic interlocking machine and controlled ladders on either side of the station along with the previously mentioned junction. At some point in the 90's a mural was applied as a beautification project.

 

Here we see two things that aren't around anymore, NORTH PHILADELPHIA tower and Amtrak AEM-7 #944. I can remember when passing by the tower after dark on Amtrak NEC trains I could often see the model board lit up inside.

Here we see an arriving SEPTA R8 train with Silverliner IV #163. The signal to the right is 50L, protecting a trailing point crossover on the CHW branch and controlled from a separate table style interlocking machine next to the main frame. It is notable for being mounted on an very rare "basket" style mast that provided a signal-level working platform for signal maintainers. This signal became an automatic after the tower's closure, eventually being removed by SEPTA after a re-signaling effort about 10 years later.

The same SEPTA train making a stop at the generally disused North Philadelphia R8 station platform. Access to the far track is still via an underpass. Today the underpass has been closed and replaced by a pedestrian grade crossing. The 34R signal on the signal bridge is displaying Slow Approach for the diverging movement onto the NEC. The signal has already been replaced by a new LED colourized model, but is still worked by the tower. After the cut-over this same movement would be given a Medium Clear signal indication.

Here we see NORTH PHILADELPHIA tower standing next to the famous massive signal bridge that spanned both the Main Line and Chestnut Hill West branch. About 5 years prior to this, the east end of the interlocking had been spun off into it's own remote controlled plant called CLEARFIELD. After the tower closed the remainder of the interlocking would be re-named LEHIGH. Both projects involved substantial plant rationalization as many industrial and station tracks were no longer needed.

Skipping ahead to the Lehigh gourge, we find R&N SD50 #5033 providing power on the north side of the 3 car consist. A second SD50 was on the rear to avoid shoving. The R&N was and is all about preservation, even 2nd and 3rd generation diesel power like SD50's and GP30's. In 2005 the SD50's were both enjoying a fresh coat of paint that 10+ years later is looking rather worn out.

Although not currently operating, former Reading railroad T-1 class steam location #2102 was on hand for the tourists to look at. The engine had last operated in the 90's for both excursions and to pull the occasional freight train.

CNJ painted F3A's #56 and #57 were not unknown to me because at the time they had recently lived at Winslow Junction along with a matching F3B unit. Over the years they would occasionally return to Winslow before finally being sold and repainted at Steamtown.

05-01-10 CLASSIC PHOTOS: Old Bailey

When I was going to school in Baltimore I never seemed to have the time to go downtown to check out what CSX was up to or the linger B&O infrastructure. During the winter break of 2004 I did manage a walkabout around Bailey's Wye, a junction between the Baltimore Terminal main line and the Locust Point branch serving port facilities and the MARC repair and overhaul facility. I didn't take that many photos ( mirror ) on this little excursion, but they are still interesting all the same.

For some reason the set kicks off with this photo of Baltimore Light Rail LRV #5036 at the BWI Business Park station. Not sure how I got down there, but I guess I did!

From there I rode up to Hamburg St station, which is adjacent to the Raven's Stadium and only used to be open on game days before opening full time. From Hamburg I walked down to the Leadenhall St grade crossing on the Locust Point branch apex of Bailey's Wye. Someone had parked a second generation Mercury Comet under a cantilever type grade crossing signal which seemed to be about the same vintage as the car.

I managed to catch a meet between two opposing Baltimore Light Rail LRV's on the Bailey's Wye flyover. This location would have been across the street from the old Baltimore city animal rescue center, which was later bulldozed for a Top Golf.

This bit of street running south of Warner St was possibly still in service as the first China shock had not quite set in for urban manufacturing. In the 2010's the far end of Warner St visible in this picture would wind up being cut to make way for a casino with the rest of the street running about the same time.

CSX #8737, a former Conrail SD60I, crosses under the eastbound B&O CPL signal bridge at BAILEY interlocking with former UP SD40-2 lease unit #5869 behind. It is hauling a mostly solid train of New York City municipal waste cubes.

While walking past the Raven's Stadium I managed to catch an eastbound CSX freight en-route to the Howard St Tunnel with a pair of CSX SD50's, #8528 and #8513, in the YN2 paint scheme leading. Unit #8513 in particular was part of the last batch of locomotives ordered by the L&NN railroad.

Because this was a Monday, a MARC train was laying over at the Camden Station terminal adjacent to MLB's Camden Yards and the Baltimore Convention Centre. The train of single level stock featured GP40WH-2 #62.

Like I said, this was a short set. It's interesting just how much has changed even from 2004.

04-12-30 CLASSIC PHOTOS: IND Tower Hunt

So here's a quick photo set from the tail end of 2004, right after I learned that the NYC Subway IND division was littered with classic interlocking towers, many of them visible from the platform a la West 4th St. After consulting a published list of active towers, I planed out a tour of the Queens Blvd Line to try and get some photos. Long story short I didn't get many and because I was mostly underground in the middle of winter I didn't wind up with many photos in general. Still, since I've been busy for the last couple of weeks, a short set of classic photos is just about all I have time to produce!

You can find the complete batch of photos here

We begin at the 36th St RiverLINE station with #3502a making a stop. The line was so new that the Intrusion Detection System was not yet operational.

At Trenton, because Amtrak Hippo #660 was hogging the Track 4 platform with a long distance train, a southbound Regional with AEM-7 #937 performed a rather extreme wrong railing operation, platforming on Track 1.

In 2004 one could still look into the tower at 5th Ave and watch the operator manipulating the GRS Model 5 interlocking machine to line routes for (V) and (E) trains.Unfortunately it was closed in 2013.

Union Turnpike is another visible tower, this one with a Union Switch and Signal Model 14 interlocking machine.

With service extended to 168th St, the original IND tower at PARSONS was dark and appeared to only be in service as needed.

Returning to Manhattan, I decided to give the Roosevelt Island Tram a try. This was partly motivated by the fact that it was one of the last places on the NYCTA where one could buy and use tokens.

Approaching Manhattan one can see why people are concerned that the Queensboro Bridge might simply fall down on its own.

Two AEM-7's, #929 and #918, were applying their combined 14,000hp to the short 7 car Vermonter trainset. 

The 7th car being the Vermont branded baggage car fitted to carry bikes and skis.

I'll finish up with this photo of a Southbound Inland Shittle train at Meriden, CT with Metroliner Cab Car #9640 in the lead.

Well that's pretty much it. As I work to catch up from my vacation, look for another short subject classic post in the near future.

04-12-29 CLASSIC PHOTOS: SEPTA Mid-Winter Trip IV

The fourth annual SEPTA Mid-Winter Trip took place in 2004 and was built around the mid-day Cynwyd round trip, departing Suburban Station.  At the time SEPTA was actively trying to kill the Cynwyd branch service, but despite all of its efforts people kept riding the line and in the following years ridership would actually increase so much that it started to require a single married pair to serve them (as opposed to a single Silverliner unit).

To fill the morning the trip ventured out onto the Market Street Elevated, which was being targeted for reconstruction, and the R8 Fox Chase Line.  After Cynwyd the trip embarked on a CHE to CHW transfer, continuing up at North Philadelphia and finishing with a BSS Fern Rock express turn.  All in all it was a fantastic trip with a lot of Silverliner II and III action.  I got a lot of photos of "things that aren't there any more" and if you'd like to check out the entire set you can find it here.


First stop in the morning was the Market Frankford Line 62nd St station where a new headhouse was under construction.

Returning to Center City, the group transfered to an R8 Fox Chase.  Here we are getting a Medium Clear signal indication at NEWTOWN JCT.  You can see the removed connections to the Reading Wayne Jct freight bypass that had since been re-designated the Conrail (CSX) Trenton Line.  CSX was in the process of untangling itself from the control of SEPTA dispatching both here on the R8 and northern R3 West Trenton.

The flat junction with a movable point diamond would soon be reconfigured into a more typical configuration leading to a single track line.

SEPTA Lawndale Station.  Today the outbound platform is closed because SEPTA and CSX couldn't learn to share.

At CP-CHELTENHAM JCT the former Reading Newtown Branch diverges from the New York Short Line.  The branch was electrified to the City border in Fox Chase in the 1960's. SEPTA ultimately replaced double track  segment with a single passing siding between Cheltenham and Lawndale.

Budd Silverliner II #257 at Fox Chase.

At one point the Fox Chase siding was bounded by interlockings on each end.  Here NORTH CHASE interlocking stands abandoned, although its signals and overhead lines remain intact.  Beyond this point diesel RDC shuttle service operated until the early 1980's.  Attempts to reduce costs by converting the line into a transit operation also failed.  Service has been "temporarily" suspended since then with SEPTA leading parts of the RoW as trails to pretty much prevent a full restoration of service.

Our R8 train was composed of 3 Budd Silverliners with #217 on the reverse end, seen here laying over at Fox Chase.

Diesel power at 30th St station was in transition.  New P42DC's had taken over from F40PHs and HHP-8's had displaced the E-60's, but AEM-7's and high hood GP-8/10 rebuilds were still on the active roster.

Here a fairly new P42DC #145 sits next to GP-10 #770 painted in MoW orange.

Amtrak N-11 Caboose was of PRR or Conrail vintage.  These utilitarian boxes were built to replace the earlier classically designed N-5 series of cabin cars in PRR service.

NJT GP40PH-2B #4205 arrives into the lower level of 30th St station with an Atlantic City Line train.  15 years later the GP40PH-2B's would still be holding down this assignment.

Heading out to Cynwyd the single SL-IV car departs Suburban and joints PRR Main Line on the same route of such famous trains as the Broadway Limited, which arrived from New York via the NY-Pittsburgh Subway to the left.

Previously Main Track #4, the "Valley Jct" ramp and Flyover were built to send passenger trains over the adjacent Belmont freight yards.  This was because freight trains kept to the middle tracks while most passenger trains stayed on the outer tracks. Valley Junction gets it name from the Schuylkill Valley Branch that departed the Main Line at this point. Here we can see the old 52nd St station that had its platform elevated on the ramp to serve outbound trains on track 4.

In 1994 a new track 4 was constructed so that SEPTA's new Overbrook Maintenance Facility could be built on the old track 4 alignment.  Westbound trains would cross over at the new STILES interlocking just west of ZOO.  This move was intended to remove the burden of maintaining the increasingly dilapidated Valley flyover bridge.  SEPTA, assuming the Cynwyd service would eventually be terminated, put no work into the bridge, eventually seeing train speeds reduced to 5mph.  It was only around 2015 that work was started on a new flat connection between the Main Line and the Cynwyd branch that would allow the bridge to be retired.  Here we can see the old Valley truss and the VALLEY interlocking 68L signal, remotely controlled from OVERBROOK tower.