New Hampshire Central Railroad (NHCR) Discussion

So long as its somewhere on a list of things to do (no reason for me to assume it isn’t, especially with all the tie work they were up to beforehand), then I’m alright with whatever pace they take, within reason.

Apparently VRS has been talking the folks who own the Gilman, VT mill site. There’s also rumblings of them wanting to rehab the tracks to Gilman for car storage and trash hauling purposes.

This comes from the Lunenburg selectman’s meeting in early July, details below. Should note that this comes from a trail advocate so the light they paint is negative. They mentioned the junk hauling in the verbal version, apparently.

https://irp.cdn-website.com/cefd8893/f ... PSUKkv43jg

DOT Highway removed the rails and ROW embankment between Dorsey Rd and the route 142 grade crossing in Dalton, NH a few years ago. While technically not abandoned in the legal sense, there's no visible evidence a railroad existed in that area now. It will be extremely difficult to get the state to rebuild that section, never mind the numerous washouts on the VT side.

I absolutely won’t disagree that the ROW northwest of Whitefield is more like a pathway that may or may not have tracks hidden in it than a serviceable railroad.

That said, if the opportunity for service ever arises, I think VRS is is a better spot to some variety of rehab compared to NHCR, in terms of capital and possible connectivity.

What's ironic about a situation like this is the same politicians who would complain about the enormous cost involved with filling in all those washouts for rail service restoration would then turn a blind eye and allocate whatever funds were necessary to fill in all those same washouts to establish a rail trail.

To the same degree, look at the Lamoille Valley Railtrail. The state wouldn't fix the bridge which collapsed to preserve the online freight traffic. However funding suddenly appeared once the trail came along.

New Haven 1 wrote: ↑Mon Jul 15, 2024 9:08 am What's ironic about a situation like this is the same politicians who would complain about the enormous cost involved with filling in all those washouts for rail service restoration would then turn a blind eye and allocate whatever funds were necessary to fill in all those same washouts to establish a rail trail.

They did exactly that on the Ammonusuc Rail Trail I use to bike to work. Several major washouts this spring near Lisbon/Bath, and Stump Jumpers/other local groups had expended their annual allotted funds on other fixes along the trail.

Magically the trail is fixed and rideable again.

New Haven 1 wrote: ↑Mon Jul 15, 2024 9:08 am What's ironic about a situation like this is the same politicians who would complain about the enormous cost involved with filling in all those washouts for rail service restoration would then turn a blind eye and allocate whatever funds were necessary to fill in all those same washouts to establish a rail trail.

Bingo, money is hard to come by when a railroad needs to be rebuilt but for a rail trail the money falls from the trees.

I think if VRS does do car storage in the area, it will be between Hazens and Whitefield, and perhaps the former yard tracks in Lancaster. Both of those have worked for NHCR in the past. As others have stated, I can't see how they could justify rebuilding the old Mountain Division from Whitefield to Dalton exclusively for car storage, especially given the rails being removed around the Route 142 crossings.

It's been nearly 6 years since a train went beyond Hazen Rd, are the tracks even in service down to the diamond? A lot can happen in 6 years, not just brush that begins choking out the ROW's.

From what I have been able to grasp (IE: a solid dose of speculation), I think VRS is simply obtaining information of their new property and exploring what businesses opportunities may exist. They could very well come out of these discussions and decide that the tracks aren’t worth rehabbing to Dalton after all, or they could decide it is.

I think the tracks are technically in service, though when I went to the diamond in mid-June only the rails on the Berlin branch were clear of brush.

The MEC side was overgrown at least as far back as the Red Ball specials in 2017 and 2018, all three moves down there during that time used the B&M side.

The last time the MEC side was brush cut was in April 2007, I think they stopped at Cross St in downtown Whitefield, and didn't continue west. It was the first and only time that section between there and Hazen had been brush cut since Twin State shutdown in September 1999.

Word on the street is, trains will be rolling through downtown Whitefield again, I don't have any more details, but had it not been for the flooding that caused major washouts, track rehab would already be underway.

I just saw similar news on Facebook, I wonder what the new business is and where it will be located.