T.G.'s Photography Blog

This ariel view looking is looking across B705 in the Belle Isle siding, toward the FGLK yard at Solvay, NY.     After photographing Z520-10 on Tuesday , I noticed that loaded ethanol train B705, with CN 3863 and CN 3099, was tied down in Belle Isle siding. With the drone still in the air I captured this view, looking west, of B705 sitting at Belle Isle with the Finger Lakes Railway (FLGK) yard behind the train. The industrial complex right behind the rail yard is the former Syracuse Energy Corp. (SEC) cogeneration power plant. The coal-fired power plant supplied electricity and steam power to nearby companies. In September 2013, the plant closed when its biggest customer built and began using its own power plant. Per a news article at Syracuse.com, The customer built its own power plant due to concerns about SEC keeping the plant open. Photograph taken on October 10, 2023, at Solvay, NY.

  NYSW 3014 is eastbound, running light through CP-293 after dropping cars off at Belle Isle in Solvay, NY.   After a bike ride on Tuesday at Onondaga Lake, I heard Z520-10 call the CSX NF dispatcher for permission to shove west across CP-293 from the Geddes Street Lead to the pocket track at Belle Isle to drop a block of interchange cars. I quickly headed over to CP-293 of the Syracuse Terminal Subdivision, which sits on the eastern edge of Belle Isle in Solvay, NY. There, and just in time, I caught NYSW 3014, running light, back through CP-293 after making the drop. Z520 is a New York, Susquehanna & Western Railway interchange job. CSX uses the Z designation for foreign railroad trains. NYSW 3014 is an EMD SD40T-2 "tunnel motor" that was built for the Southern Pacific in 1978. 45 years old and still going.

  CSXT 3206, and five GECX locomotives lead M368 east among the fall foliage at Canastota, NY.   Yesterday, while bike riding, I caught CSX's M368-29 at BeeBe Bridge Road at Canastota, NY. M368 had a group of five GECX locomotives (ex-BNSF) trailing behind CSXT 3206. M368 was photographed as it came around the curve to the west of BeeBe Bridge Road, where the tracks intersect with the old Erie Canal, which is out of sight to the right of the photograph. This location is milepost (MP) QC271 of CSX's Syracuse Terminal Subdivision . The five locomotives are GECX 4528, GECX 4827, GECX 4933, GECX 4851, GECX 4923. A going-away photograph of the five GECX locomotives on M368-29 at BeeBe Bridge Rd. Photograph taken on September 29, 2023.

  CSXT 1976 and CSXT 2626 lead M634 east through the curve west of BeeBe Bridge Rd.   After heading west on M363 earlier this month , CSXT 1976 came back east on M363's counterpart train, M364. M363 and M364 run between Selkirk, NY., and Avon, IN. While bike riding along the old Erie Canal at Canastota, NY., I caught M364 being led by 1976 at BeeBe Bridge Road (MP 271.5 of the Syracuse Terminal Subdivision). The canal is just out of sight to the right of the rectangular pond in the photograph. The rail line and canal intersect just around the curve, in the background. Looking at old topographic maps from the late 1890s, the rail line and canal have always met here. I'm assuming the rail line at one time crossed over the canal on a bridge, though today, the old canal segments just end on each side of the tracks.  Photograph taken on September 7,  2023, at Canastota, NY.

  CSXT 1976 and CSXT 489 lead M363-01 west on the Rochester Subdivision at Weedsport, NY. CSX's heritage locomotive , CSXT 1976, made an appearance today on Conrail's former Chicago Line. 1976 is leading M363-01 west through Weedsport, NY., at Auto 311 of CSX's Rochester Subdivision. Conrail was formed out of the ashes of many bankrupt and failing eastern railroads, one of the biggest being the Penn Central. In 1973 the Regional Rail Reorganization Act (3R Act) was signed into law, paving the way for Conrail. Under the 3R Act the United States Railway Association (USRA) was tasked with creating and implementing a plan combining rail lines from the eastern railroads. In 1976, the Railroad Revitalization and Regulatory Reform Act was signed into law, which included the USRA's final plan for Conrail. In 1998, with Conrail being a success, the railroad was split up and merged with CSX and Norfolk Southern (NS). Both railroads formed the railroad, Conrail Share...

I007-28, led by CSXT 1982 and CSXT 877, is slowly passing under the westbound absolute signal at CP-286 in East Syracuse, NY.   Last week CSX's Seaboard System heritage unit, CSXT 1982, made an appearance in Syracuse. CSXT 1982, along with CSXT 877, led intermodal train I007-28. I007 is a daily train runs from North Bergen, NJ., to Rose Lake, IL., (just outside St. Louis, MO ). Along the way I007 stops to work DeWitt Yard in East Syracuse, NY. The train also stops to work at Avon, IN.  CSXT 1982 and CSXT 877 sit at CP-286 waiting to reverse and shove east toward DeWitt Yard. In the background are the steeples of St. Matthews Catholic Church.   CSXT 1982 was the third heritage unit to be painted at CSX's Waycross, GA., paint shop. The number 1982 signifies the year that the Seaboard System came to be, from a merger of the Seaboard Coast Line and the Louisville and Nashville railroads. According to CSX's website, "the Seaboard System was the first step under the CSX Corp...

 CSX's latest heritage unit , CSXT 1973, commemorating the Chessie System, made an appearance in Central New York (CNY) on July 4th. The locomotive was leading intermodal train I157-03. With the family in tow (and for some reason my wife deciding to come along with us) we headed to Savannah, New York, to see it.  I003-04 rolls west under the cantilever signal bridge on the western edge of CP-320.   Shortly after arriving at Control Point (CP) 320 of CSX's Rochester Subdivision in Savannah, NY., the first train to make an appearance was I003-04. I003 was making it's daily trek from South Kearny, NJ, to Bedford Park, IL. Bedford Park is a suburb of Chicago, IL. X363-03 rolls under the EAS cantilever signal bridge at CP-320.   Amtrak's Empire Service train P281 was next, but I skipped photographing it. Then came X363-03, led by CSXT 3410 and CSXT 5350. X363 is an extra (X) M363 . X363 was running M363's normal route from CSX's Selkirk Yard in Selkirk, NY., to Avon...

  CSXT 4014, an SD40-3 rebuild, is switching a block of intermodal cars at a snow covered DeWitt Yard.   Back in January of this year, CSXT 4014 was switching blocks of intermodal cars at CSX's DeWitt Yard. CSXT 4014 is pulling a cut of cars west down the Departure Yard Lead from the Departure Yard. The Departure Yard sits east of the I-481 bridge in the background. Almost all of the intermodal trains that pass through DeWitt swap blocks of intermodal cars there. In addition, the yard itself is designated as an inland port and trailers and containers are dropped off and picked up there by customers. Below, I009-26 , one of the intermodal trains that works DeWitt Yard daily, is departing DeWitt Yard via the South Runner . I009 runs from Port Newark, New Jersey, to Bedford Park, Illinois, in the Chicago area. With fresh snow on the ground at DeWitt Yard, CSXT 4014 is pacing I009-26 west at DeWitt Yard.  Photographs taken on January 27, 2023, at East Syracuse, New York.

X368-11 comes around the curve along Oakland Rd. at Weedsport, NY.    At Weedsport, New York, in the area called Centerport by the railroad, CSXT 954 is leading X368-11 east on the Rochester Subdivision. In the background, just beyond the curve, X368 is passing through the Centerport defect detector (DD) (milepost (MP) QC 313.7) and Control Point (CP) 313  (MP QC 314.0). X368 is an extra M368 that originated at Chicago, IL., and is destined for CSX's Selkirk Yard at Selkirk, NY. Photograph taken on March 11, 2023, at Weedsport, New York. 

  M364-17 is eastbound passing the block signals at CP-285 on the west end of DeWitt Yard.   Led by CSXT 3121 and Canadian Pacific (CP) 8770, M364-17 is eastbound on the Syracuse Terminal Subdivision at Control Point (CP) 285 . CP 8770 is an unpatched Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC) Railway locomotive. CP-285 is on the west end of CSX's DeWitt Yard. M364 is a daily manifest train from Avon, Indiana (near Indianapolis), to Selkirk, New York.  Photograph taken on May 18, 2023, at East Syracuse, New York. 

  L024-09 is eastbound at CP 286, passing under Burnet Ave. at East Syracuse, NY.   L024-09 is returning from picking up cars from the pocket track at Belle Isle that the New York, Susquehanna & Western Railway (NYSW) set out. In addition to the interchange cars from the NYSW, L024 also has two cars of scrap metal picked up from Metalico, a scrap dealer in East Syracuse, New York. L024-09 is heading east on the North Runner track at CP 286 and is heading into DeWitt Yard. Photograph taken on May 9, 2023, at East Syracuse, NY.

  CSXT 5273 leads I001-24 west on the CSX Rochester Subdivision at Pump Rd.   CSXT 5273 and CSXT 992 lead the once-a-week priority intermodal train I001 (North Bergen, New Jersey, to Bedford Park, Illinois) west at milepost QC 309 of CSX's Rochester Subdivision. I001-24 is passing through the Pump Road crossing just west of Jordan, New York. The end of the train is passing through CP 308 (MP QC 308.6), which is east of the railroad crossing. At this location, I001 is about 300 miles into its almost 1,000 mile journey.  Photograph taken on January 24, 2023, at the Town of Brutus, NY.

AMTK 95 leads the Lake Shore Limited east at Laird Rd. near Elbridge, NY.   Amtrak's Lake Shore Limited, train P048 on CSX, is eastbound on CSX's Rochester Subdivision at Laird Road in the Elbridge, NY., and Jordan, NY ., area. The train had just passed through control point (CP) 306, which can be seen in the distance. The Lake Shore Limited is approximately fifteen miles away from its next station stop at Syracuse, New York. Photograph taken on March 27, 2023, at Elbridge, New York.

With three M7 EMUs behind CSXT 255 and CSXT 396, M367-06 passes under the Empire State Trail bridge on the southern end of Onondaga Lake.   On Monday and Wednesday this week, two movements of former Long Island Railroad (LIRR) M7 electric multiple unit (EMU) railcars passed through Syracuse, NY., on CSX manifest train M367 . On Monday, three M7s came through Syracuse on M367-06. Then on Wednesday, another set of three came through on M367-08. The cars had been stripped of most of their components and were just the railcar bodies bound for a scrapper.  M367 on the North Runner with three M7s on the head end passes through CP 286 at East Syracuse, NY.   The M7s were built by Bombardier and were used on both the LIRR and Metro-North Railroad (MNCW). Delivery to the railroads began in 2002. The MNCW's version was known as the M7A. The M7A differed due to the different electrical system the MNCW uses. The M7s were used in pairs and each car contained a set of controls. LIRR 7...

  I001 passes by the old NYC coaling towers between CP 285 and CP 286, near DeWitt Yard.   With snow on the ground and more still falling, I001-28 (North Bergen, NJ., to Chicago (Bedford Park), IL.) is westbound, passing by the old New York Central steam locomotive coaling towers. The coal towers sit along the Syracuse Terminal Subdivision between Control Point (CP) 285 and CP 286 . To the left is manifest train M560-27 on the North Runner heading east into DeWitt Yard. I001 is led by CSXT 7030 and CSXT 5115.  Photograph taken on February 28, 2023, at East Syracuse, New York.

  Intermodal train I017-02 is westbound, passing under the Oakland Rd. bridge and by snow-covered fields.   With a few inches of snow still on the ground from the last snowfall I headed to Weedsport, NY, to catch I017 (Worcester, MA., to Chicago (Bedford Park), IL.) as it passed by the snow-covered fields on the west side of town. Here, CSXT 3240, leads I017-02 west on the Rochester Subdivision, under the Oakland Road bridge. I017-02 is about a half of a mile east of CP 313 at Centerport.  Photograph taken on March 2, 2023, at Weedsport, New York.

  AMTK 709 leads P284 through CP 285, with Bridge St. and the old NYC coaling towers in the background.   With fresh snow on the ground and more falling, AMTK 709 leads train P284-28 east through control point (CP) 285 on the Syracuse Terminal Subdivision. CP 285 is at the west end of CSX's DeWitt Yard. In the background is Bridge Street and the old New York Central (NYC) coaling towers.  Photograph taken on February 28, 2023, at East Syracuse, New York.

  M621-26 is passing the westbound CP signal bridge for the siding and Departure Lead at CP 285.   M621-26, led by CSXT 5459 and CSXT 4574, is arriving at DeWitt Yard via Control Point (CP) 285. M621 is eastbound, coming off Track 1 of the Syracuse Terminal Subdivision to the controlled siding, which runs between CP 285 and CP 283. The siding sits between Track 1 (to the south) and the Departure Lead (to the north). M621 runs south from Masenna, NY., to Syracuse, NY., before going east to Selkirk, NY. Between Masenna and Syracuse the train uses CSX's St. Lawrence Subdivision to CP 291 (west of DeWitt Yard) where it gets on the Syracuse Terminal Subdivision and comes east to DeWitt Yard. M621-26 rolls east on the south side of a snow-covered DeWitt Yard. I009 is westbound in the background. Photographs taken on January 27, 2023, at East Syracuse, New York.

  Looking northeast, CSXT 3106 leads I017-14 west on Track 2, under the Oakland Rd. bridge.   Last week I was out at the Centerport area, between Weedsport, New York, and Port Byron, New York, where I caught I017 heading west on the Rochester Subdivision. I017 was making its daily trek from Worcester, Massachusetts, to Bedford Park (Chicago), Illinois.  I017-14 crossed from Track 2 to Track 1 at CP 313 (MP QC 314.0) .  Stretched over a mile and a half across the landscape, I017 crosses to Track 1 at CP 313.

  P048-14 is eastbound passing by a field along Tow Path Road, nearing Auto 311 of the Rochester Sub.   Amtrak's Lake Shore Limited , led by AMTK 87 and AMTK 86, is eastbound on CSX's Rochester Subdivision at Auto 311, at Weedsport, NY. The Lake Shore Limited, known as P048 on CSX, is a few hundred feet from the Auto 311 block signals (out of sight to the right). Hidden behind the trees is Interstate 90, and right behind from where the photograph was taken is the old Erie Canal. Photograph taken on February 14, 2023, at Weedsport, New York.