Dayton Railfanning

Is Dayton, Ohio still a hotspot? In the Steve Neff video, Ohio Hot Spots Part 1, there is a busy section of joint trackage between 2nd and Washington Street. It also passes through a location known as Wayne Avenue Junction, and some PRR and B&O signals were still being used. Is this location still busy, and is it accessible? Are there any old signals still in town?

I don't think you are going to find any old signals in Dayton. Within the last few years CSX replaced the older signals on the Toledo Sub. There are still maybe one or two of the older NYC signals left on the NS Dayton Dsitrict at Fairborn.

All the old signals are gone but the location is still busy. You'll see more CSX than NS but it's still pretty busy. Another location is the top of the parking garage for the Dayton Convention Center at Fifth and Patterson. It is well worth the $2 charge for parking. If you're a photographer the sun angle from there to the Toledo Sub is perfect in the afternoon. Yet another spot is the Washington St grade crossing, a.k.a. MC Cabin on the Toledo Sub.

Drive a few miles north to Springfield and maybe you can catch the IORY negotiating the diamond at Maitland; crews have to "saw" their trains to get from the DT&I Sub onto the Urbana Sub. It gets interesting with a 65 car grain train. Viewable from the west end of Snyder Park; or catch the NS and IORY activity downtown from any number of vantage points. The DT&I three stall engine house (built in 1949), coaling, and water towers are still standing. Until recently, the IORY had an office inside the engine house; but as the facility is falling into disrepair, the IORY has placed a trailer adjacent to the engine house for use as a yard office. This facility is located on the east end of town north of Leffel Ln. A golf course parallels the east side of the yard, bracketed on the north by the NS main, which crosses the IORY overhead. There are several residential city streets where you can view this yard without trespassing on company property. Get there before the leaves come out to get an unrestricted view, as there are numerous large trees surrounding the yard. A tilting target, operated manually by the traincrews, protects the diamond at Lagonda (Springfield). Enjoy.