by bwparker1
http://www.dailyitem.com/archive/2006/0 ... /02biz.htm
Track work under way
By Jaime North
The Daily Item
LEWISBURG — The SEDA-Council of Goverments' Joint Rail Authority has
10 projects in full swing throughout its multi-county region.
Jeff Stover, chief of transportation and public safety for SEDA-COG,
gave an overview Wednesday of the projects to the rail authority board
during its monthly meeting.
"We have a number of projects that are up and off the ground," Mr.
Stover said. "A lot is getting done. It's almost an unprecedented
amount of activity."
Among the highlighted projects are:
* The Moran siding project recently was completed on the
Williamsport Industrial Track with the assistance of a $126,000 state
grant.
* Progress has been made with the Whiterock Quarry Track in Centre
County. Mr. Stover said the contractor is ahead of schedule, and the
track should be done before August.
* This year's Grade Crossing Program is set to go out to bid with
slated projects, pending board approval, at six locations, including
Tenny Street in Bloomsburg and Clay Street in Shamokin.
* The Krentzman siding extension and Maitland runaround projects
in Mifflin County are expected to be completed by mid-summer.
After a two-month lull, rail traffic picked up last month and created
$33,000 in revenue. The profit brought the rail authority closer to
breaking even with a first-quarter deficit of $15,000, a much better
situation than last year, according to Richard D. Robey, rail operator.
"We're pretty close to breaking even," he said. "Last year, we were
down more than $250,000."
The change is partly due to fewer expenses this year compared to last,
according to Mr. Robey.
"That's been the nature of the business since we started 22 years ago,
bouncing around numbers," Mr. Robey said. "Profit-loss figures do not
necessarily reflect track traffic data."
Mr. Robey said increased traffic has been a result of the beginning of
the construction season, which creates more demand for stone. Much of
the traffic was on the Nittany and Bald Eagle Railroad crossing Centre
County, he said.
"This (traffic) is still pretty small," Mr. Robey said. "Back when all
the industry was around Nittany, we had as much as 1,500 carloads in
one month. We have had 644 for the first three months of this year.
All this is related to the industry change that is going on."
The rail authority board will next meet at 12:30 p.m. May 10 at SEDA-COG.
http://www.centredaily.com/mld/centreda ... 402613.htm
Nittany & Bald Eagle railroad still right on track
By Jeffrey Allen Federowicz
For the CDT
The roar of railroad locomotives chugging through the Nittany Valley
has quieted over the past few decades, replaced by the hum of
tractor-trailers on the highways.
Here, as in other parts of the state, railroad tracks, smothered with
weeds and neglect, lead only to abandoned and decaying rail yards.
In one part of the valley, though, the Nittany & Bald Eagle Railroad
lives on, a legacy of the once-powerful railroad industry.
The Nittany & Bald Eagle, or NBER, is operated by Northumberland-based
North Shore Railroad, as are Juniata Valley, Lycoming Valley, North
Shore, Shamokin Valley, Union County Industrial and Wellsboro &
Corning railroads. Of the seven, all but Union County Industrial and
Wellsboro & Corning are owned by SEDA-COG's Joint Rail Authority, a
public-private partnership.
North Shore and NBER began providing local rail service in 1984,
transporting products from one industry to another or delivering
freight to a central location for pickup by other railroads for
shipment to a final destination. Among other items, North Shore
transports coal, lumber, plastics, chemicals and railroad ties.
"Business is good, and it keeps us busy," said Richard Robey, founder,
chairman and CEO.
Last year, he said, the company hauled 36,000 carloads of products --
the equivalent of almost 500,000 tractor-trailer loads.
The NBER line runs between Lock Haven and Tyrone, with stops in Mill
Hall, Milesburg and Port Matilda. In Milesburg, the train tracks run
southwest to Tyrone or switch off to Bellefonte, creating a T with
stops at Pleasant Gap and Lemont.
"We are very proud to be a part of the community here," said Gary
Shields, president of North Shore Railroad. "Not only do we work with
local businesses and agencies, we also have a responsibility to the
community where we do business."
With 11 workers on staff, NBER runs seven locomotives as well as
numerous rail cars out of its yard in Bellefonte. Systemwide, North
Shore employees 90 workers and has a payroll of almost $3 million,
according to the company.
Although NBER handles many different products, hauling limestone and
related products is a large part of its business.
"We haul an awful lot of limestone out of the area that is used in
numerous factories in and out of the area," Shields said.
Limestone mined in Centre County is loaded onto NBER's railcars and
hauled to the Newberry Yard, where the cargo is transferred to
Lycoming Valley Railroad for delivery to several industries as well as
a contractor near Williamsport.
This rail transportation accommodates more than a million tons of
material, eliminating 20,000 truckloads of traffic from local
highways, according to the company.
In recent years, NBER took the loss of major industries, such as the
Corning plant, and replaced it with new opportunities through an
aggressive marketing plan.
This type of innovation is one of the reasons the railroad was named
Railway Age magazine's 2004 Short Line Railroad of the Year. NBER was
selected from short lines across the country for its achievements in
customer service, general operation and operating safety.
Safety -- for it employees, its customers and the community -- is one
of the line's hallmarks. The company boasts a record of more than a
1,000 days without an accident.
It cites track maintenance as a key factor in accident prevention, and
North Shore Railroad employs roughly 20 people to maintain its 300
miles of tracks.
"We are always doing maintenance and repairs on our lines, making sure
everything is safe and in working order," Shields said.
North Shore also works with Norfolk Southern and Canadian Pacific
railroads, both of which handle the railcars connecting the region
with the rest of the country. These larger railroads, and others such
as Union Pacific, CSX and BNSF, are known as Class I railroads.
Major Maintenance of Way improvements on the Nittany & Bald Eagle line
has allowed Norfolk Southern to use this line as a shortcut in moving
coal between Tyrone and Lock Haven, NBER Manager Phil Lucas said.
"Norfolk Southern crews say that this line looks just as good as the
NS main line," he said.
http://www.centredaily.com/mld/centreda ... 402615.htm
Along for the ride on a wayward locomotive
By Jeffrey Allen Federowicz
For the CDT
If you think driving a sport utility vehicle or an extended-cab truck
is a challenge, try maneuvering a 2,000-horsepower diesel engine
towing several dozen rail cars.
Granted, you don't have to steer this thing -- the track does it for
you -- but you do have to make sure the switches are positioned the
right way, the track is in good condition and nothing is blocking your
way.
I recently rode along in the cab of Nittany & Bald Eagle Railroad's
1601 diesel locomotive to witness the difficult and highly demanding
work firsthand. I quickly realized that moving a real train down the
tracks is quite different from playing with a toy train under the
Christmas tree.
The day started early for the NBER crews. I met them at the Bellefonte
engine house at 6:30 a.m., and they were already hard at work. NBER
manager Phil Lucas was busy preparing the day's work schedule,
coordinating activities between his crews, local industries and the
connecting rail lines.
One crew took a locomotive and headed out for its daily chores.
Shortly thereafter, I met up with the crew that was going to be
serving some of the industries in the Bellefonte, Milesburg and
Pleasant Gap areas.
I climbed up the steep steps of the engine and joined the crew as they
began their work.
Behind the "wheel," or controls, was engineer Brandon Reese.
"He's the 'hoghead' today," conductor Bob Davidson said with a laugh,
referring to Reese's job as engineer. "That's what the old-timers
called engineers, because they were always in a hurry.
"The conductor was called the 'flatfoot,' because he was the guy that
always had to do all the walking to disconnect and connect cars. So,
today, I'm the flatfoot."
Railroad engineers and conductors are constantly on alert, thinking
and planning ahead for the unexpected, such as a speeding car.
"One concern for all railroad workers is impatient drivers who try to
beat the train at a crossing," Reese said. "We see it all the time.
These people are in such a hurry they just can't wait a few moments
for us to pass. Instead, they would rather risk their lives and the
people traveling with them instead of waiting a few seconds.
"It's insane how some of these people will cut in front of a moving
train. These engines can't stop on a dime, and if they cut out in
front of us when they shouldn't ... and I hit them, even though it
would not be my fault, that is something I have to live with the rest
of my life."
After going through a list of safety checks, we were off. Our first
stop was in the rather extensive rail yard near the engine house,
where the crew had to rearrange some rail cars.
After getting proper clearance from the Norfolk Southern dispatcher,
we headed out onto NBER's main line, which runs from Tyrone to Lock
Haven, to exchange some rail cars with Hilex Poly Corp., where they
make plastic bags.
A series of radio repeaters is used to communicate with the
dispatcher, who is actually in Pittsburgh. That dispatcher is
responsible for controlling traffic on the NBER main line, which is
also used by Norfolk Southern as a shortcut between Tyrone and Lock Haven.
After detailed guidelines established by the Federal Rail
Administration, all train crews must request detailed permission from
the dispatcher to occupy a portion of the main line to perform its
work. This permission is granted and repeated, word for word, back to
the dispatcher to make sure nothing was missed. The information is
recorded on a special sheet of paper that the railroad must keep on file.
As we made our way to the next stop, I sat looking out the window at
the countryside. Occasionally we would see folks standing near the
tracks, waiting and watching for the train to go past. Small kids --
and not so small kids -- waving at the train in hopes of a wave or
toot back, which they always received.
"A lot of people just love seeing trains," Davidson said. "They will
stand there and watch us go by, take photos and wave, so we always
wave back."
After completing an extensive operation of moving cars back and forth,
we left the main line and headed to our next stop, Graymont in
Pleasant Gap. Once the train was off the main line, the crew had to
report back to the dispatcher.
As the morning dashed by, more stops were made, which required
Davidson to exit the cab and go about connecting and disconnecting
cars, often walking a great distance.
"When I'm doing the job of the conductor, no matter if it's snowing,
raining or scorching hot, I love doing this type work," Davidson said.
"I could never sit inside at a desk or anything."
After several more stops, we were back in the yard and although my
"train work" was done for some of the NBER crew, more work was still
to come, prepping the engines for the next day.
Track work under way
By Jaime North
The Daily Item
LEWISBURG — The SEDA-Council of Goverments' Joint Rail Authority has
10 projects in full swing throughout its multi-county region.
Jeff Stover, chief of transportation and public safety for SEDA-COG,
gave an overview Wednesday of the projects to the rail authority board
during its monthly meeting.
"We have a number of projects that are up and off the ground," Mr.
Stover said. "A lot is getting done. It's almost an unprecedented
amount of activity."
Among the highlighted projects are:
* The Moran siding project recently was completed on the
Williamsport Industrial Track with the assistance of a $126,000 state
grant.
* Progress has been made with the Whiterock Quarry Track in Centre
County. Mr. Stover said the contractor is ahead of schedule, and the
track should be done before August.
* This year's Grade Crossing Program is set to go out to bid with
slated projects, pending board approval, at six locations, including
Tenny Street in Bloomsburg and Clay Street in Shamokin.
* The Krentzman siding extension and Maitland runaround projects
in Mifflin County are expected to be completed by mid-summer.
After a two-month lull, rail traffic picked up last month and created
$33,000 in revenue. The profit brought the rail authority closer to
breaking even with a first-quarter deficit of $15,000, a much better
situation than last year, according to Richard D. Robey, rail operator.
"We're pretty close to breaking even," he said. "Last year, we were
down more than $250,000."
The change is partly due to fewer expenses this year compared to last,
according to Mr. Robey.
"That's been the nature of the business since we started 22 years ago,
bouncing around numbers," Mr. Robey said. "Profit-loss figures do not
necessarily reflect track traffic data."
Mr. Robey said increased traffic has been a result of the beginning of
the construction season, which creates more demand for stone. Much of
the traffic was on the Nittany and Bald Eagle Railroad crossing Centre
County, he said.
"This (traffic) is still pretty small," Mr. Robey said. "Back when all
the industry was around Nittany, we had as much as 1,500 carloads in
one month. We have had 644 for the first three months of this year.
All this is related to the industry change that is going on."
The rail authority board will next meet at 12:30 p.m. May 10 at SEDA-COG.
http://www.centredaily.com/mld/centreda ... 402613.htm
Nittany & Bald Eagle railroad still right on track
By Jeffrey Allen Federowicz
For the CDT
The roar of railroad locomotives chugging through the Nittany Valley
has quieted over the past few decades, replaced by the hum of
tractor-trailers on the highways.
Here, as in other parts of the state, railroad tracks, smothered with
weeds and neglect, lead only to abandoned and decaying rail yards.
In one part of the valley, though, the Nittany & Bald Eagle Railroad
lives on, a legacy of the once-powerful railroad industry.
The Nittany & Bald Eagle, or NBER, is operated by Northumberland-based
North Shore Railroad, as are Juniata Valley, Lycoming Valley, North
Shore, Shamokin Valley, Union County Industrial and Wellsboro &
Corning railroads. Of the seven, all but Union County Industrial and
Wellsboro & Corning are owned by SEDA-COG's Joint Rail Authority, a
public-private partnership.
North Shore and NBER began providing local rail service in 1984,
transporting products from one industry to another or delivering
freight to a central location for pickup by other railroads for
shipment to a final destination. Among other items, North Shore
transports coal, lumber, plastics, chemicals and railroad ties.
"Business is good, and it keeps us busy," said Richard Robey, founder,
chairman and CEO.
Last year, he said, the company hauled 36,000 carloads of products --
the equivalent of almost 500,000 tractor-trailer loads.
The NBER line runs between Lock Haven and Tyrone, with stops in Mill
Hall, Milesburg and Port Matilda. In Milesburg, the train tracks run
southwest to Tyrone or switch off to Bellefonte, creating a T with
stops at Pleasant Gap and Lemont.
"We are very proud to be a part of the community here," said Gary
Shields, president of North Shore Railroad. "Not only do we work with
local businesses and agencies, we also have a responsibility to the
community where we do business."
With 11 workers on staff, NBER runs seven locomotives as well as
numerous rail cars out of its yard in Bellefonte. Systemwide, North
Shore employees 90 workers and has a payroll of almost $3 million,
according to the company.
Although NBER handles many different products, hauling limestone and
related products is a large part of its business.
"We haul an awful lot of limestone out of the area that is used in
numerous factories in and out of the area," Shields said.
Limestone mined in Centre County is loaded onto NBER's railcars and
hauled to the Newberry Yard, where the cargo is transferred to
Lycoming Valley Railroad for delivery to several industries as well as
a contractor near Williamsport.
This rail transportation accommodates more than a million tons of
material, eliminating 20,000 truckloads of traffic from local
highways, according to the company.
In recent years, NBER took the loss of major industries, such as the
Corning plant, and replaced it with new opportunities through an
aggressive marketing plan.
This type of innovation is one of the reasons the railroad was named
Railway Age magazine's 2004 Short Line Railroad of the Year. NBER was
selected from short lines across the country for its achievements in
customer service, general operation and operating safety.
Safety -- for it employees, its customers and the community -- is one
of the line's hallmarks. The company boasts a record of more than a
1,000 days without an accident.
It cites track maintenance as a key factor in accident prevention, and
North Shore Railroad employs roughly 20 people to maintain its 300
miles of tracks.
"We are always doing maintenance and repairs on our lines, making sure
everything is safe and in working order," Shields said.
North Shore also works with Norfolk Southern and Canadian Pacific
railroads, both of which handle the railcars connecting the region
with the rest of the country. These larger railroads, and others such
as Union Pacific, CSX and BNSF, are known as Class I railroads.
Major Maintenance of Way improvements on the Nittany & Bald Eagle line
has allowed Norfolk Southern to use this line as a shortcut in moving
coal between Tyrone and Lock Haven, NBER Manager Phil Lucas said.
"Norfolk Southern crews say that this line looks just as good as the
NS main line," he said.
http://www.centredaily.com/mld/centreda ... 402615.htm
Along for the ride on a wayward locomotive
By Jeffrey Allen Federowicz
For the CDT
If you think driving a sport utility vehicle or an extended-cab truck
is a challenge, try maneuvering a 2,000-horsepower diesel engine
towing several dozen rail cars.
Granted, you don't have to steer this thing -- the track does it for
you -- but you do have to make sure the switches are positioned the
right way, the track is in good condition and nothing is blocking your
way.
I recently rode along in the cab of Nittany & Bald Eagle Railroad's
1601 diesel locomotive to witness the difficult and highly demanding
work firsthand. I quickly realized that moving a real train down the
tracks is quite different from playing with a toy train under the
Christmas tree.
The day started early for the NBER crews. I met them at the Bellefonte
engine house at 6:30 a.m., and they were already hard at work. NBER
manager Phil Lucas was busy preparing the day's work schedule,
coordinating activities between his crews, local industries and the
connecting rail lines.
One crew took a locomotive and headed out for its daily chores.
Shortly thereafter, I met up with the crew that was going to be
serving some of the industries in the Bellefonte, Milesburg and
Pleasant Gap areas.
I climbed up the steep steps of the engine and joined the crew as they
began their work.
Behind the "wheel," or controls, was engineer Brandon Reese.
"He's the 'hoghead' today," conductor Bob Davidson said with a laugh,
referring to Reese's job as engineer. "That's what the old-timers
called engineers, because they were always in a hurry.
"The conductor was called the 'flatfoot,' because he was the guy that
always had to do all the walking to disconnect and connect cars. So,
today, I'm the flatfoot."
Railroad engineers and conductors are constantly on alert, thinking
and planning ahead for the unexpected, such as a speeding car.
"One concern for all railroad workers is impatient drivers who try to
beat the train at a crossing," Reese said. "We see it all the time.
These people are in such a hurry they just can't wait a few moments
for us to pass. Instead, they would rather risk their lives and the
people traveling with them instead of waiting a few seconds.
"It's insane how some of these people will cut in front of a moving
train. These engines can't stop on a dime, and if they cut out in
front of us when they shouldn't ... and I hit them, even though it
would not be my fault, that is something I have to live with the rest
of my life."
After going through a list of safety checks, we were off. Our first
stop was in the rather extensive rail yard near the engine house,
where the crew had to rearrange some rail cars.
After getting proper clearance from the Norfolk Southern dispatcher,
we headed out onto NBER's main line, which runs from Tyrone to Lock
Haven, to exchange some rail cars with Hilex Poly Corp., where they
make plastic bags.
A series of radio repeaters is used to communicate with the
dispatcher, who is actually in Pittsburgh. That dispatcher is
responsible for controlling traffic on the NBER main line, which is
also used by Norfolk Southern as a shortcut between Tyrone and Lock Haven.
After detailed guidelines established by the Federal Rail
Administration, all train crews must request detailed permission from
the dispatcher to occupy a portion of the main line to perform its
work. This permission is granted and repeated, word for word, back to
the dispatcher to make sure nothing was missed. The information is
recorded on a special sheet of paper that the railroad must keep on file.
As we made our way to the next stop, I sat looking out the window at
the countryside. Occasionally we would see folks standing near the
tracks, waiting and watching for the train to go past. Small kids --
and not so small kids -- waving at the train in hopes of a wave or
toot back, which they always received.
"A lot of people just love seeing trains," Davidson said. "They will
stand there and watch us go by, take photos and wave, so we always
wave back."
After completing an extensive operation of moving cars back and forth,
we left the main line and headed to our next stop, Graymont in
Pleasant Gap. Once the train was off the main line, the crew had to
report back to the dispatcher.
As the morning dashed by, more stops were made, which required
Davidson to exit the cab and go about connecting and disconnecting
cars, often walking a great distance.
"When I'm doing the job of the conductor, no matter if it's snowing,
raining or scorching hot, I love doing this type work," Davidson said.
"I could never sit inside at a desk or anything."
After several more stops, we were back in the yard and although my
"train work" was done for some of the NBER crew, more work was still
to come, prepping the engines for the next day.
