T.G.'s Photography Blog

  As rain falls, CSXT 966 passes a MoW truck at CP 286 in East Syracuse, NY.   With rain falling, CSXT 966 leads intermodal train I004-16 east on the Syracuse Terminal Subdivision at CP 286 , while a maintenance of way (MoW) crew takes a break in their truck. I004 is on Track 2 (Main 2). In the background is the eastward absolute signal (EAS) bridge for CP 286. I004 runs daily from Bedford Park, Illinois, to South Kearny, New Jersey. Bedford Park is a suburb of Chicago, Illinois. Photograph taken on January 17, 2023, at East Syracuse, NY.

  The Lake Shore Limited, with two private rail cars behind the engines, heads east at Savannah, NY.   While driving to see what fall colors remained in Central New York, the timing worked out to photograph Amtrak's Lake Shore Limited at Savannah, New York. I caught the train as it headed east through Control Point (CP) 320 of CSX's Rochester Subdivision. CP 320 is on the eastern edge of Savannah, along the Seneca River . In addition to the train, a group of CSX maintenance of way (MoW) equipment is parked in the siding at CP 320. CSX has had crews working most of October on the Rochester Subdivision.   Today's Lake Shore Limited had the private passenger cars Hollywood Beach and Cimarron River trailing directly behind the Amtrak engines. Hollywood Beach is a former Seaboard Air Line car. Cimarron River is a former Frisco Railroad car. Photograph taken on October 28, 2022.

  SRS 131 sits on the team track off of the North Runner at DeWitt Yard .   Sperry Rail Services (SRS) 131 is a track inspection vehicle with ties to St. Louis, Missouri. SRS 131 was built in 1925, by Electro-Motive Company (EMC), in partnership with St. Louis Car Company. Built for the Leigh Valley Railroad, SRS acquired 131 in 1941. SRS then converted it into a maintenance-of-way track inspection vehicle. Originally, SRS 131 was gas-powered but today is diesel-powered. A straight-on view of SRS 131 at DeWitt Yard.   The styling of these vehicles earned them the nickname, Doodlebugs. Doodlebugs are self-propelled rail cars that hauled passengers and freight on lightly used rail lines in the early to mid-1900s. Today, some are on display in museums across the country, while others, like SRS 131, have gone on to still be used on today's railroads. Photographs taken on June 25, 2022, at East Syracuse, New York.

A CSX welder works on a switch frog on the eastern side of DeWitt Yard.   On Tuesday, I came across a CSX welder repairing a switch frog on the eastern side of DeWitt Yard. The switch is where a track from Track 1 at CP282 of the Syracuse Terminal Subdivision merges into the end of Track 4 and leads to the Departure Lead. Trains entering DeWitt Yard that needed to work the Departure Yard were entering via CP283 to the west.

 A railroad speeder is a small maintenance of way (MoW) vehicle that is used by track crews and inspectors to quickly move along railroad tracks. The speeder has been largely replaced by high rail vehicles. However, some smaller railroad operations, such as the Georgetown Loop Railroad (GLRR) still use them. Even railroad hobbyists collect and restore  (external link) them for operation. Morning track inspection While driving east on I-70 toward Georgetown, Colorado, my wife and I stopped to take in the view from the Georgetown Overlook Pull-out. As we took in the view of the Rockey Mountains GLRR's MoW speeder came around the loop to the southwest of Devil's Gate Station . Before the day's train excursions, track inspection had to being done. GLRR's speeder pushes a trailer car around the loop located to the southwest of Devil's Gate. Fairmont railroad speeder According to the GLRR's website, the speeder is a Fairmont A4 model, and it originally operated on the...

 On muggy morning in August 2006, I was exploring along BNSF's Cuba Subdivision in Pacific, Missouri . While out that way, I happened upon one of Loram Technologies' rail grinders working its way east on the Cuba Subdivision. Loram rail grinder RG331 Many companies today offer rail grinding services to the railroad industry. In addition to Loram, Speno, Pandrol Jackson, and Harsco provide the service. But Loram is probably the most well-known of this group. According to an article in Industry Today , Loram was founded in 1954 and got into the rail grinding business back in the 1970s. LMIX RG331 is grinding the rails on BNSF's Cuba Subdivision near MP 32, at Pacific, MO. Rail grinders are essential to maintaining the life of railroad tracks. Over time the profile of the rail head is worn and develops irregulates from contact with train wheels rolling over them. Rail grinding helps to restore the rail's profile and prolongs the life of the rails, as well as the wheels of ...