CSX River Line Status Updates

blocksignal wrote:I have a few questions regarding the signalling and track switching at CP10 and vicinity:

1) I know that there are block signals South of CP10 at CP7. Where are the next block signals North of CP10 located? Town? Street?

2) I recall seeing a picture on the internet taken in 2009 of the 3 headed signal (located just South of New Bridge Road in Bergenfield) protecting the Southbound flow of traffic. It was on the right side of the single track before that track splits up into 3 tracks. In February of this year I was over there and the signal was on the left side. Any particular reason for the move?

3) While I was over there I noticed Southbound trains either taking the straight-away track or the one all the way to the left (I also saw a Northbound train coming up that far left track before crossing New Bridge Road). When and how often do they use that middle track? Is that track mainly a passing track perhaps? I located a pedestrian crossing at West Fort Lee Road in Bogota and noticed the middle track is not as clean and shiny as the tracks to the left and right of it.

4) Regarding question #3 what would the signal aspect be if a Southbound train was switched to go down the middle track? I noticed that when the signal was green or yellow over red over red the train would go straight ahead. I also noticed if the signal was, for example, R-G-R (Medium Clear) or R-Y-R (Medium Approach) or R-Y-G (Medium Approach Slow) the train would end up going over to the far left track. Thanks.

Blocksignal.

1) I don't know
2) It's easier for the engineers to look at the signal from farther away because some trees can block their view if the signal was on the west side of the tracks
3) The middle siding is a siding that connects to Track 2 at CP7. They use that track when they need to pass trains, or wait for yard space.
4) The one time i've seen a southbound (Q433) go onto the middle siding the signals were R-Y-R.

I hope this helps!

Yesterday (4-28-12) on the River Line in Ridgefield Park,NJ:

Q-417
CSX AC4400CW 5107 (W. Thomas Rice Special)
CSX AC4400CW 576

K-531
CSX SD70MAC 4730
CSX SD70MAC 4766

Q-433
CSX ES44AH 994
CSX AC4400CW 571
CSX GP40-2 4406
Amtrak GP38-3 525

Q-409
CSX SD70MAC 4706
CSX ES44AH 723

Just north of MP13, New Milford Avenue in Dumont.
Between MP15-16 at Old Hook Road, Closter.
Just north of MP18 at Broadway, Norwood.
Around MP20, north of Greenbush Road, Tappan, NY.
Around MP21, just south of Glenshaw St. (entrance to a big industry that gets hoppers...forgot the name at the moment), Orangeburg, NY.
Then CP22, south end the passing siding at Bradley Parkway. North end of Blauvelt or south end of Nyack. I do not know the boundary of those two towns.

Enjoy!

Vincent Zablocki

Around MP21 would be Aluf plastics. They receive cover hopper cars of plastic pellets. Serviced by Kingston local (C712).

AMK0123 wrote:Around MP21 would be Aluf plastics. They receive cover hopper cars of plastic pellets. Serviced by Kingston local (C712).

Wait the Kingston local comes all the way down to rockland county? (I believe orangeburgh is in rockland county?) Kingston from rockland county is at least an hour give or take by car. By train you go there service customer then go back to yard, could be like 2-3 hours. Doesn't CSX have a local from NJ that can go up there, it'd be alot closer I think.

airman00 wrote:

AMK0123 wrote:Around MP21 would be Aluf plastics. They receive cover hopper cars of plastic pellets. Serviced by Kingston local (C712).

Wait the Kingston local comes all the way down to rockland county? (I believe orangeburgh is in rockland county?) Kingston from rockland county is at least an hour give or take by car. By train you go there service customer then go back to yard, could be like 2-3 hours. Doesn't CSX have a local from NJ that can go up there, it'd be alot closer I think.

The NJ local (Y220) has only gone up to CP5. It could service Aluf Plastics, plus more trains for me to see when I railfan there :D

Y220 is a shared asset (Conrail) with NS. CSX may want to keep it to themselves or may be limited by its contracts with NS over the shared assets scope of work.

Heard a rumor that there was a derailment on the CSX River Line, somewhere in NJ this weekend.

Any truth to this rumor? Anyone have any details?

Yes there is a thread w a few pics, rerailing one car I believe. Near the Durie ave crossing, Haworth side.

Interesting move yesterday on the River Line. Was home listening to the scanner when I heard the NI dispatcher start telling track crews to start clearing up due to a very hot train coming north. I then heard the dispatcher tell one of the track crew that he couldn't stop this train even if he wanted to and that it was hotter than a UPS train and to landline if they needed further. After hearing this I knew something out of the norm was coming so I headed over to Milton, NY (milepost 68) in the early afternoon. Train was lead by HLCX 7177 and CSX 825. There was a DODX flatcar, followed by a heavy load (8 axle) DODX flatcar, a DODX flatcar, and a bright red DODX caboose. The middle flatcar had some large round shaped device on it and was covered in a heavy looking canvas. The train went northbound at max track speed. Train crew was only calling out it engine number and signal, not it's direction or train symbol.

Well looking up the symbol DODX, I see that it is department of defense. So that train must be military something related.

I'm not sure, but perhaps it headed up the St. Lawrence Sub to Fort Drum?

Charlie

I'm going to speculate that it was a nuclear reactor vessel (probably submarine) bound for Portsmouth, NH. Caboose indicates classified load. BTW, there were a gaggle of armed operators inside the caboose.

Poppyl

I spent the last few weeks in the Coxsackie area and learned from the locals that there is a plan to double track from Selkirk to Catskill. I saw a ballest regulator and a brand new tamper in Coxsackie and spoke to a crew that was working on the line twho shared this with me.

Just curious if the locals said they were dbl tracking or was it the CSX crew. Obviously I'd put a lot more behind it if the CSX crews said so. CSX has been doing track work all up and down the River line for the two months at least. Looking at the timestable it looks like they'd have to add about about 7 miles of rail between the controlled siding at CP128 and CP121 going through Ravena, and about 12 miles between CP118 and CP106, going through Catskill to connect the controlled sidings to make a dedicated second track which would go right from CP102 in Alsen all the way up to CP-SK. Wonder if CSX is planning ahead or if they're already near capacity on the River line. If you get an more info please pass it along.