The Sandusky District: Lewis Center to Worthington

Author: Kyle Montgomery
Category: Railfan Guides Railroads:


The following is our first guest post by Giles Kennedy, taking a quick look at the Sandusky District around the Columbus area. Giles runs a Facebook railfan group called The Ohio Railroader. If you like this article, be sure to check out his page and become a fan. Finally, if you would like to guest post on Ohio Valley Railroads give me a shout. We accept articles from all over the state (and sometimes even out of it).

Railfanning this section of ’s busy Sandusky Line can be a feast or famine without a scanner. Trains can bottleneck easily, leading to long dry spells and brief periods of excitement. But, when the trains do fly by, you get a piece of America’s class 1 railroading. In this post I’m going to go over the southern part of the route and point out some great places to park and railfan.We’ll start with the portion of the line between Lewis Center and Worthington.
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Photo of the Week: NS 5349

Author: Kyle Montgomery
Category: Photo of the Week Railroads: ,

NS 5349

Conrail Blue still lives on today in Ohio! For this week’s photo we are returning to the largest contributor to our Flickr pool, Todd Dillion aka Fan T. He took this shot a few months ago of Norfolk Southern’s ex-Conrail GP-38-2 near Youngstown, OH. On the right side of the frame you can also see one of my favorite types of locomotive, the hi-hood Geep (GP-50 #7007 to be precise, according to Fan-T).

If you have a photo of your own to show off, put it up on your Flickr account and add it to the Ohio Valley Railroads Flickr Pool. Include some details like the date, location, and subject matter. You might see it featured on the main site.

The “Miracle Express” & A Call to Arms

Author: Kyle Montgomery
Category: News Railroads:
Norfolk Southern OCS

4271, shown here in a photo from Norfolk Southern’s Facebook page, was on-hand to lead NS’s special for the Children’s Miracle Network.

I’m not sure how I missed this initially, but Norfolk Southern recently posted a press release calling attention to their “Miracle Train” that ran last month. The special trip was organized specifically for Children’s Miracle Network, and ran from Cleveland to Toledo. On board were over 200 passengers making up 30 families with ill or special needs children.
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Heartland Corridor Opens Today

Author: Kyle Montgomery
Category: News Railroads:

This video was posted on Norfolk Southern’s Youtube page as part of their Heartland Corridor promotions.

Today is a big day for Norfolk Southern fans in Ohio with the official opening of the Heartland Corridor. The Heartland Corridor is a $191 million refurbishment of Norfolk Southern’s mainline that runs from the Virgina Ports through West Virginia to Ohio. Nearly 30 tunnels had their clearances raised to allow the movement of double-stack container trains. The project was funded through a public-private partnership, with Norfolk Southern paying for a little more than half the cost.

Heartland Corridor Map, via Earth and Industry.com

For Ohioans, this means more traffic on the Columbus District between Columbus and Portsmouth, OH. Be on the look out for trains 233 and 234 to run with double-stacks.

This news article in the Business First of Columbus provides a nice overview of the project. Here is another article with more of a West Virginia perspective.

If you have photos of double-stacks on the Heartland Corridor, please send me an e-mail or post them to our Flickr group. I would love to have a chance to get some posted on here. For now Norfolk Southern has posted a few photos on their Twitter page.

In other website housekeeping news, I’ve made a quick fix to our RSS Feed. I was unaware, but apparently it has been down for some time. If you have not subscribed to the feed this would be a perfect time to. If RSS is not really your thing or you are more traditional, then you can also subscribe to our feed by e-mail. Lastly, I’ve set the RSS Feed to update when one of the railroad pages are updated on the site. More and more activity is taking place on those pages, so it’s helpful in order to stay informed.

Norfolk Southern Railway

Author: Kyle Montgomery
Category: Railroads:

Norfolk Southern is one of the two major class one railroads that operate in Ohio, the other being CSX. Norfolk Southern, like the other major class one’s, was built mainly through mergers and acquisitions. The modern company came into existence in 1982 when the Norfolk and Western Railway merged with the Southern Railway. The name was taken from a previous Norfolk Southern that had been acquired by the Southern in 1974.

Norfolk Southern operates 20,832 miles of mainline track. There locomotive fleet is currently around 4,000 and approximately 95,000 cars make up the owned and leased freight car fleet. The railroad currently operates 25 major classification yards.

In 1998, Norfolk Southern acquired 58% of Conrail, with the other 42% going to . It’s acquisitions included most of Conrail’s former PRR lines including the famous Horseshoe Curve in western Pennsylvania.

Major Routes

Rather than attempt to list every Ohio line that eventually became part of the Norfolk Southern System, I’m going to instead outline the major lines and subdivisions that Norfolk Southern currently operates in the state of Ohio. As of 2009 Norfolk Southern operates 2,233 miles of lines throughout the state. Below is a map I took from a 2009 Report by the Ohio Rail Development Commission.

Norfolk Southern System Map

Fostoria District

The Fostoria District is a former Norfolk & Western line runs between Bellevue and Fort Wayne, IN. It is named for the major junction with CSX’s Toledo and Fostoria Subdivisions at Fostoria. It is single-tracked.

Chicago Line

The Chicago Line is a former Conrail line that runs between Cleveland and Chicago. It was originally built by a number of companies and became a crucial part of the New York Central’s water level route from New York to Chicago. It is doubled track and has provided Norfolk Southern a release valve for some of the traffic on its former Nickel Plate east-west mainline. Amtrak operates the Lake Shore Limited and Capitol Limited over this line.

Cincinnati District

Nicknamed the Peavine due to its hills and curves, this former N&W line was originally built in segments by the narrow gauge Cincinnati & Eastern starting in 1876. The line was completed from Cincinnati to Portsmouth in 1883. It is currently closed to traffic east of Peebles.

Cleveland District

The Cleveland district is an ex-N&W line that spans from Bellevue to Cleveland. The Wheeling & Lake Erie has trackage rights over the duration of the line.

Cleveland Line

The Cleveland Line is an ex-Conrail route that runs between Cleveland and Rochester, PA. Amtrak operates the Capitol Limited over this line.

Columbus District

This former Norfolk & Western double-track line runs from Columbus to Portsmouth. It is a major part of Norfolk Southern’s Heartland Corridor project.

Dayton District

The Dayton District is a former Conrail line that runs between Columbus and Cincinnati. Originally built as part of the CCC&StL (Big Four), it became part of the New York Central when they acquired the Big Four in 1920. When the NYC became part of the Penn Central in 1968 much of the line east of London was abandoned in favor of the Pennsylvania route. The I&O currently has trackage rights over the Dayton District between Hamilton and Cincinnati.

Detroit/Huntington Districts

A small segment of the Detroit District cuts through the northwest corner of the state on its route from Detroit, MI to Fort Wayne, IN. About 28.5 miles of this former N&W line are located in Ohio.

Lake Erie District

The Lake Erie District is a former N&W line that runs from Buffalo, NY to Cleveland. The line has a junction with the Bessemer & Lake Erie at Conneaut. CSX has trackage rights from Conneaut to Ashtabula.

Lima District

The minor line is a former N&W line that runs approximately 47 miles between Lima and Arcadia. It is single track with manual block control.

New Castle District

At one time a PRR owned line, the New Castle District was sold to the Norfolk Western as part of the Penn Central bankruptcy. It runs between Cincinnati and Fort Wayne, IN. Between Hamilton and Cincinnati CSX has trackage rights as part of their directional running agreement for Cincinnati, and the I&O has switching rights that it inherited from Conrail.

Toledo District

The Toledo district is a former Wheeling & Lake Erie line that runs between Toledo and Bellevue. The new Wheeling & Lake Erie has trackage rights over the line. It intersects the Chicago Line at Oak Harbor.

Sandusky District

The Sandusky District is a 110 mile route that runs between Columbus and the coal docks at Sandusky on Lake Erie. Built by the Sandusky and Columbus Short Line Railway in 1893 the line eventually came to be owned by the PRR and became a major coal hauler. In 1964 the line was purchased by the N&W. It gained new importance as a route to connect the recently purchased Nickel Plate system (with a major yard at Bellevue) to the Columbus District and the rest of the N&W system.

West Virginia Secondary

The West Virginia Secondary is an ex-Conrail (nee-NYC) line that runs from Columbus to Charleston, WV. It is currently single tracked and features 4 tunnels.

Youngstown Line

Located in the Northeast Corner of the state, the Youngstown Line is an ex-Conrail route between Ashtabula and Rochester, PA. It is single track and CSX has trackage rights over the entire line.

Radio Frequencies (Subject to change and revision)

  • 160.245 – Dispatcher to Train
  • 160.365 – ex-Southern carmen
  • 160.380 –
  • 160.440 – Yard (Watkins Yard)
  • 160.485 – Ex-N&W Carmen
  • 160.620 – Police
  • 160.770 – Ex-Southern Road
  • 160.830 – Ex-Southern Dispatcher
  • 160.950 – Ex-Southern Road (Gest Street Yard)
  • 160.980 – Road (Dayton District)
  • 161.055 – MOW
  • 161.070 – Road (West Virginia Branch)
  • 161.115 – EOT Devices
  • 161.190 – Road (Sandusky District)
  • 161.205 – NS Police
  • 161.250 – Yard (Gest Street Yard, Watkins Yard)
  • 161.490 – Ex-Southern Yard

Roster

For an up to the minute Norfolk Southern locomotive roster visit NS Dash 9.com.

References

Cbus #3: Sandusky District

Author: Kyle Montgomery
Category: Photo Essays Railroads: ,

Before you think my life has become all CSX all the time, I did spent a little bit of time on the other side of town and managed to get some passable shots. The first one (shown above) happened just as I was walking up to my chosen spot along “Big Four Road”. For as quickly as I fired the shot off I think it turned out okay.

I thought my chosen spot was pretty interesting. It was a short side street that ran along the tracks. You could see the road had lost importance over the years and was severed in a number of places. I was probably one of the few people around who could easily figure out why such a small street had such a strange name. The Big Four (or more formally the Cleveland, Columbus, Cincinnati, & St. Louis Railroad) was a NYC predecessor road and the forerunner to ’s Columbus line. Of the two lines in these photos, the Columbus line (along with the Weber Road Connection) run along ground level while the Sandusky District (ex-N&W, ex-PRR) runs along the viaduct.
Speaking of the viaduct, below is the only train I saw on the Sandusky District over the two hours I was waiting. Oddly I saw three trains on the far less busy Columbus Line. I do think the shot turned out well even though by this time my light was beginning to fade.
One last photo before I wrap this post up, a CSX hi-rail truck went by. Of course, as is typical, I had just put my camera away and barely managed to get this off with my point and shoot.
Thus ends my trilogy of Columbus posts. Don’t let me have all the fun though, if you would like to share some Ohio Railroad photos on this blog just let me know.

Columbus Photos Part 2

Author: Kyle Montgomery
Category: Photo Essays Railroads: ,

The journey with the my new SLR continues. This is the second batch of photos I’ve taken over the course of a couple of days around the Columbus area. Above is my favorite shot of the whole batch, and the first night shot I’ve tired. It’s a ten second exposure of a coal train crossing the Scioto River in downtown Columbus. It pretty much turned out exactly as I hoped for, and I really enjoy the reflection of the headlight in the river.

Speaking of Columbus, I also took a couple of skyline shots. At the very bottom of both these shots you can see a Norfolk Southern train on the Sandusky District.

In a perfect would I would have been able to get a little bit closer for these two shots, but I was stuck waiting by the Toledo Sub for a CSX train to cross the river. Downtown Columbus is a very frustrating place to railfan because there is no real good way to watch every track at once. At best the Norfolk Southern trains were bonuses, at worst they were distractions that kept things bottled up at CP Scioto. So overall I would say these two could be better.

The photos above and below were taken right when the Toledo Sub crosses 315 and the Olentangy River, right off of the Olentangy River Bike Path. There was a train being held at the signal so it was just a matter of waiting, but even with all the time in the world it was hard to find a good angle I liked. Eventually I finally settled on the curve with the signal in the foreground. Unfortunately for me, the open door on the short hood kind of ruins the shot.

While waiting for the shot above, a northbound train snuck up behind us. I took this quick shot of the power crossing the bridge.

And lastly, I have one more night shot. This one didn’t turn out nearly as well as I hoped (it’s kind of out of focus) but wanted to put it up anyway. This was only my second attempt at a “streak-shot” after dark.

Big Four in Clyde

Author: Kyle Montgomery
Category: Photo Essays Railroads: ,

Here’s an interesting shot from Clyde, Ohio. The building in the foreground was built on a triangle shaped lot formed by the tracks and a nearby roadway. The structure has been here a number of years, with the wide end on the far side narrowing into the short end you can see.

The track is a small remaining segment from an ex-NYC (nee-Big Four, nee-Mad River & Lake Erie) mainline from Sandusky south. Most of the line is abandoned, but this part is used by Norfolk Southern to access a grain storage operation (seen below) from their ex-Nickel Plate mainline.

When the storage silos are being switched the train apparently ties up the roadways for some time. Signs put up by the city point to a “Train Detour” around the area.

Guess the MOW

Author: Kyle Montgomery
Category: Uncategorized Railroads: ,

While driving along Norfolk Southern’s Sandusky Line I spied all this equipment stored on an interchange track. Unfortunately, I am terrible with MOW equipment and know very little about which piece is used for each task. If anyone knows that these things are, post a comment or give me an email.



A Brief History of Buckeye Yard

Author: Kyle Montgomery
Category: History Railroads: , ,
Photo: Entrance to Buckeye Yard (Source)

With the announcement earlier this week about the mothballing of Buckeye Yard I thought it would be appropriate to take a closer look back on the yard that the Penn Central built.

Planning and Construction

Buckeye Yard was originally planned by the Pennsylvania Railroad in the middle of the century. By this point Columbus was a PRR town, with 4 lines running through the city.2 Each of these lines were formerly independent companies with their own terminals and facilities. The PRR was forced to use a number of yards all across town. The largest yards were located on the east side of Columbus and were known as Yard A and Yard B.

Buckeye Yard, known in planning as simply Columbus Yard3, was designed as a modern classification yard that would eliminate the expense of operating these yards separately as well as simplifying operations around Columbus. In 1968 the PRR merged with its arch-rival and competitor the New York Central System. The new company, known as the Penn Central Transportation Company, was designed to increase profitability by reducing duplicate routes and their associated costs. With planning of Buckeye Yard already completed, the new company decided to continue with its construction as well as folding the NYC‘s former yards into it as well.

Construction of Buckeye Yard began in 1968 under Penn Central. It was completed in December the following year. Columbus Railroads has a great photo (with labels) of the yard in 1970. About a year after its opening the Penn Central formally renamed Columbus Yard wit the name is has been known by since.3

Operation

Photo: A look down at the classification tracks (Source)

Buckeye Yard was built on the west side of suburban Columbus between two major PRR lines. It was oriented perpendicular so that traffic could flow most efficiently through the yard and out the mainlines. The ex-C&I Bradford line that ran west to Indianapolis was located on the north end of the yard while the ex-Little Miami line ran by on the south end of the yard.1

The classification yard itself involved 1 track going over a hump and 40 classification tracks in the “bowl”. There was also an (undersized) yard for locals, a car repair shop, and a locomotive shop. During the Conrail era the locomotive shop was converted to a signal training facility for crewmen.

Mergers and Changes

Throughout the Penn Central years Buckeye Yard was a model of what the railroad could do when it had money to invest in capital improvements. However, the efficiency of one yard could not save a decrepit system, and Buckeye Yard was absorbed by Conrail on April 1st, 1976.

Under Conrail Buckeye Yard served as the busy hub of Conrail’s Columbus operations. Traffic flowing east-west and north-south was able to use the yard for classification. However, the abandonment of both the Little Miami through Cincinnati and the Bradford Line through Indianapolis left the yard isolated. Only short stretches of the former mainlines were left in order to allow access to the yard.

After Norfolk’s Southern purchased Buckeye as part of the Conrail split in 1999 the future became more murky. It was clear that the yard played a less crucial part of Norfolk Southern’s route map, with large yards in nearby Bellevue and Cincinnati. Trains in Columbus had to travel out of their way to get to Buckeye, and over time more and more trains were cut from the yard.

Still, it came as a shock when Norfolk Southern announced the temporary shutdown of Buckeye Yard in May 2009. While an end to the recession and an increase in traffic could bring the yard back online, it is not guaranteed. For now the once busy classification yard will be used for locomotive and car storage. ’s nearby Intermodal Yard (also acquired as part of the Conrail split) has not been affected, so abandonment of more trackage seems unlikely in the near future.

Photo: A quiet Buckeye Yard in May 2009 (Source)

Today, subdivisions have sprouted on the farmland that the Pennsylvania once surveyed for their “Columbus Yard” and the tracks sit empty as a ghost town. Could this be the end of Buckeye Yard’s story, or will there be more to tell? It’s hard to say. From troubled beginnings Buckeye has served a prosperous life, but the legacy of the Penn Central hasn’t completely disappeared yet.

References:

  1. Alex Campbell. “Photo of the Month January 2009“, Columbus Railroads, January 2009, Accessed 8 May 2009.
  2. “PRR Terms“
  3. Jerry Taylor. A Sampling of the Penn Central. Indiana University Press, 2000.

In other news, I found an interesting story about the last Pullman Porter reunion that will be happening in Philadelphia.

Also, this Sunday is Mothers Day. I’d like to thank all the mom’s out there and let everyone know that the Toledo, Lake Erie, & Western Railway Museum is letting mom’s ride for free Sunday with a child’s ticket.

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