Railroad News Brief: August, 2003

Chris Talluto reports that Artrain USA will move from Ann Arbor to Saginaw either on September 6th or 7th via NS to Wayne Yard and interchange with the CSX. Caboose (DT&I 141) will run with kero markers. This maybe one of the last trips for the cab before its retirement from Artrain.

Old D&M cars moved out of Tawas...

Former D&M railroad owner C. A Pinkerton III has moved several cars out of the former D&M Tawas City roundhouse in preparation for sale of adjacent property to Walmart. Today (8/27) Lake State Railway #974, an RS-3, pulled its last "turtle" train. The consist included D&M passenger car No. 5, D&M diner No. 6, D&M business car No. 2, a D&M flat car, D&M troop car No. 7, and D&M caboose #205. The cars are at North Bay City awaiting disposition. From Michael Koprowicz.

New web site for Transportation Summit...

The Michigan Department of Transportation has launched its new web site for the Transportation Summit, scheduled for December, 2003. For further information, click on http://www.michigan.gov/mdot/0,1607,7-151-9620-73975--,00.html. From Mike Frezell.

Norfolk Southern Labor Day operations...

Norfolk Southern will continue to operate over Labor Day, Monday, September 1, 2003 in order to protect service commitments, local customer requirements and specific customer production needs during this holiday period. Delays may occur due to lighter traffic volumes, which may necessitate train consolidations or reduction of local and yard operations. If you have any questions regarding service at your local facility, please contact Customer Service-Central Yard Operations at (800) 898-4296. The National Customer Service Center will provide coverage from 7AM until to 3PM (EDT), Monday, September 1, and can be reached at (800) 635-5768.

Pere Marquette #10 moved from Port Huron...

Despite efforts to keep the last river carferry in Port Huron for preservation, the Pere Marquette #10 has been moved from Port Huron, Michigan to Toledo, Ohio. The former Pere Marquette/ C&O Carferry, last operated in October of 1994, left the dock last week to join former Norfolk Southern carferries Roanoke and Windsor in layup at Toledo. The last known asking price for the #10 was $250,000, a sum considered considerable in her current state. From T. J. Gaffney.

Steam Railroading Institute announces "Engineer/Fireman for an Hour" 2004 dates...

The Steam Railroading Institute, in partnership with Lake Central Rail Tours has announced new dates for their "Engineer/Fireman For An Hour" program in 2004. The dates are June 26 & 27, July 3, 4, 5, 10 & 11. For further information, you can download their announcement by clicking on http://www.mstrp.com/efh04.pdf.

NS evacuates Detroit Terminal due to fire...

Norfolk Southern's Detroit Terminal has been evacuated due to a fire at a refinery facility adjacent to Norfolk Southern's Oakwood Terminal early this morning (8/16).

NS Service Alert due to power failures...

Norfolk Southern's operations have been adversely affected as a result of the power outage in Michigan, Ohio and the northeastern United States that occurred at approximately 4:00 PM today. Customers with traffic moving through these areas should expect delays. We are working to restore service to normal levels as soon as possible. Updates will be posted as conditions change. For information on specific shipments, please contact the National Customer Service Center at 800-635-5768. Special note to customers with committed service agreements: Force majeure is invoked effective 4:00 PM, August 14, 2003 on all traffic originating or moving through the above noted area. From Norfolk Southern.

Bluewater Chapter Picnic...

For those members of the Bluewater Michigan Chapter of the NRHS (or people that are interested in joining), the Chapter will hold its Annual Chapter Picnic on Saturday, September 20, 2003 from 1:00 p.m. It will be held at the Lapeer depot, located between Court and Saginaw Street at the tracks. Its a potluck picnic with dessert, beverage and table service provided. If you can attend and bring a disk, please call Leona (810-664-1211) or email DLWX@glis.net with the info. Needed are meat dishes, potato, vegetable or a large salad. Bring your lawn chair, sunglasses, and scanner if you plan to sit outside to watch trains.

Another signal bridge bites the dust...

Atubular steel jungle gym has appeared in the grass next to the five-track ex-NYC signal bridge at Westwood Avenue in Toledo (the east end of the former Nasby Tower interlocking). As of Friday, no concrete footers had been poured and signal assemblies were not present, but it's only a matter of time. From David Patch, Toledo, OH

Bluewater Chapter Excursion on the Lake State...

Lake State Railway Alco 976 pulls the Bluewater excursion train at Linwood. [Jim Milnor]

The Bluewater Michigan Chapter of the NRHS sponsored an excursion train from Bay City to West Branch on Saturday, August 9th. The train brought passengers to the Victorian Arts Festival in West Branch. Jim Milnor captured this view of the train (left) as it passed LInwood on its trip north.

Amtrak schedule changes in Michigan...

NS trackwork will cause some Amtrak Chicago-Detroit (Pontiac) trains to stop in Battle Creek Mon-Thu thru October 9. The full story is on the trains.com website under "newswire". You'll need to register to read the story, a spam-free process. From Mark Tomlonson, Kalamazoo MI

Passenger train movements on the Lake State Railway...

This Thursday, August 7th, CSX will deliver 9 coaches to Lake State at Bay City. The coaches are for the excursion from Kawkawlin to West Branch and return this weekend, August 9th and 10th. The delivery of the cars from Saginaw to Bay City will be rare to see. I'm not sure the last time a passenger train (albeit a deadhead) ran on this line. Engines for the excursion will be the LSRC 976 (City of West Branch) on the north end of the train and the LSRC 181 (City of Bay City) on the south end of the train. From Jeremy J Schrader, LSRC Signal Maintainer.

Reward offered in Iron Mountain bridge fire...

IRON MOUNTAIN — A $1,000 reward is being offered in the East Kingsford Train Bridge fire on July 23. Escanaba & Lake Superior Railroad officials are posting the reward in the Breitung Township fire. Dickinson County Sheriff’s Department and the East Kingsford Fire Department responded to a bridge fire at 3 p.m. on Wednesday, July 23. Two juveniles reported the fire to a nearby house. Some railroad ties and rails were damaged in the fire. Fiber optic cable lines also suffered damage. Initially, the fire was thought to be accidental. Further investigation indicates the fire was purposely started. The bridge spans the Menominee River, and is popular with area swimmers. Individuals with information on the fire are asked to call E&LS officials at 1-800-562-4829 or (906) 786-0693. All calls are confidential, E&LS officials said.

More News Briefs from July...