CSXT 842 and AMTK 109 on the Rochester Subdivision at Pottery Road

After watching Amtrak's Lake Shore Limited roll east on the Virtual Railfan camera at Fairport, NY, I  decided to head out and try to catch it near Warners, NY. I had a bit of time to wait before heading out since the train was at least 45 minutes away still, and the location I had picked out at Pottery Road was only 10-15 minutes from where I was at.

CSX Train Q017

Soon after arriving, the block signals west of Pottery Road came on indicating a westbound CSX train. As luck would have it, I had the possibility of catching two trains, as long as the westbound cleared in time for the Lake Shore Limited. After a couple of minutes CSXT 842 and CSXT 3249 came around the curve, heading west, leading intermodal train Q017-12 on the Rochester Subdivision.

CSXT 842 leads train Q017-12 west at Pottery Road.

Below, the locomotives had passed through the Pottery Road railroad crossing (milepost QC297.76), and in the distance the signals giving the train the all clear can be seen. Train Q017-12 is an priority intermodal train that runs daily from Worchester, MA to Bedford Park, IL. Its counterpart train is Q020, which runs east from Bedford Park to Worchester.

CSXT 842 & CSXT 3249 lead Q017-12 away from Pottery Road.

Amtrak's Lake Shore Limited

Within a minute of train Q017-12 clearing the railroad crossing, Amtrak's Lake Shore Limited came into view west of the block signals. The train was led by Amtrak 109 and Amtrak 103 (reporting mark AMTK). It's next stop would be the Syracuse Regional Transportation Center in Syracuse, NY. In the distance the tail end of Q017-12 can be seen, just past the block signals. The Lake Shore Limited runs between Chicago, IL. and New York City (NYC) and Boston, MA. Trains from Chicago, split at Albany, NY, with one part of the Lake Shore Limited going to either Boston, and the other part going to NYC.

CSX Rochester Subdivision

The CSX Rochester Subdivision was part of the New York Central's (NYC) famed Water Level Route, connecting New York and Chicago. After the NYC's ill-fated merger with the Pennsylvania Railroad, that formed the Penn Central Railroad, the line became part of Conrail, before finally coming under the ownership of CSX. Today, the line is a busy one, seeing on average around forty trains a day. Amtrak trains, in addition to the Lake Shore Limited, that use the line include Amtrak's Maple Leaf and Empire Service trains.

Photographs taken on August 12, 2021, east of Warners, NY.