Rumors & Sightings on and Around Springfield Terminal
#1 ST Yahoo
February 22, 1996
Volume II, Issue 4
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_Update - Amtrak Service to Portland Maine_
The efforts to initiate passenger service between Portland, Maine
and Boston's North Station are proceeding on schedule with
service planned to begin in October barring any major, unforeseen
setbacks. Wayne Davis of Trainriders revealed that there are
minor ROW upgrade issues in a few areas which may keep the train
from operating at peak speed for the first few months, but that
this shouldn't have any impact on service or ridership. Projected
travel time for the new service will be 2 hours, 5 minutes which
seems competitive with other transportation modes.
The new service will leave Boston's North Station on the MBTA
Lowell Route (the original Boston and Lowell main), switch to the
"Wildcat" connector to CPW-WJ (Wilmington Junction) on the
original Boston and Maine's main and then on to CPF LJ (Lowell
Junction) on Springfield Terminal's Freight Main. The new trains
will use the Freight Main from there to Portland. The "Wildcat"
may be one of those ROW upgrade issues that Mr. Davis mentioned,
track speed is reportedly limited to 10 mph. The aforementioned
route near Boston is preferred over the route through Reading (as
the Haverhill commuter rail does) to avoid potential delays by
the single track on the latter route.
Preliminary stops mentioned for the new service in Massachusetts
will be Mishawum (Industriplex) and Lawrence, Bradford, or
Haverhill. Stops may also be made at Exeter, Durham (when UNH is
in session), Dover (new location, not the old station site) in
New Hampshire and Wells Beach, Old Orchard Beach (summer season
only), Biddeford-Saco, and Portland (west side of town - not the
old waterfront location) in Maine. New stations/shelters will be
constructed at these stops as necessary.
Funding for the project will come from a variety of sources. The
necessary capital improvements to Springfield Terminal's Freight
Main (reportedly $60-odd million) are being funded in part by
Federal Transit Administration (FTA) & the Maine Department of
Transportation at sufficient levels to cover the New Hampshire
portion as well. Maine DOT is to make up any operating deficit
for Amtrak & cover the cost of station help, porters, and other
related personnel. The Maine Turnpike is reportedly funding the
Wells Beach stop which will be near Exit 2. All other stops are
being paid for & maintained by the municipalities. The Portland
design has been finalized, however, higher than expected costs
may cause further delays before the start of construction.
Equipment will likely be push-pull cars, either using
ex-Metroliner cab cars similar to those on the "Vermonter", or
possibly stripped F-40's as control cabs. Plans call for 4 round
trips a day to start. The busiest trains will likely be the
early morning Boston-bound train following the Dover & Exeter
stops and the Portland bound trains returning during the
afternoon on weekdays. Additionally, it is expected that
vacationer traffic will fill all the trains during the summer,
especially on weekends
Springfield Terminal will benefit from the project by receiving
funding to rebuild its Freight Main from CPW WJ to Portland.
Construction contracts should be let by April assuming there are
no more delays in the multi-tier agreements between
NNEPRA-Amtrak, NNEPRA-ST & ST-Amtrak. Note, it was rumored that
Guilford made a proposal to run this service which was later
rejected by the States involved.
_Springfield Terminal Power Update_
Issue 7 of NC News forwards an interesting summary log of
Springfield Terminal power sighted near North Chelmsford in the
last 90 days:
GP-7s: 3 sighted of 14 on the roster
GP-9s: 8 sighted of 10 on the roster
GP-35s: 14 sighted of 17 on the roster
GP-38s: 1 sighted of 1 on the roster
U-23s No sighting of the #288
GP-40s: 10 sighted of 13 units (B&M) on the roster
22 sighted of 35 exCR units on the roster
6 sighted of 6 exNS units on the roster
U-18Bs: 4 sighted of 4 operable
SD-40s: 4 sighted of 5 on the roster, #602 missing
SD-26s: 4 sighted of 4 operable. #619 missing
SD-45s: 5 sighted of 5 operable, #688 missing
SD-39s: 2 sighted of 2 operable (see #690 below)
Switchers: None
Note, this sighting log is skewed towards the North Chelmsford
area and may not reflect power that is typically assigned to
other areas on the Springfield Terminal System, particular the
nether regions of District 1 in Maine. Additionally, some of the
expected units have been taken permanently out of service in the
last 90 days (see Volume II, Issue 2).
_District 1: exMaine Central_
Former Guilford Transportation Industries flagship #470, a
rebuilt GP-7 with a low nose and -2 electronics was sighted in
Rigby Yard along with GP-9's #45 and #52 and GP-7 #18 on Monday,
February 20... Additionally, two Russell plows, MEC #90 & MEC #77
in MEC orange and green have been stored in Rigby all winter.
Additionally, GP-7 # 66 and GP-7 #18 was sighted in Rigby on
February 21...
_District 2: exB&M East End_
The welded rail train is being stored in the West Yard at Lowell.
Both yards are pretty much out of service and are rapidly being
reclaimed by nature... On February 20, GP-9 #77 powered the
Lowell Switcher... Low nose GP-35 #209 worked the Lawrence Local
LA-1 on February 20... The Rail Diesel Car reported in Nashua in
Volume 2, Issue 2 has been moved to the New Hampshire Central At
Columbia, New Hampshire. The car is exNewHaven #33, then
PennCentral, then MBTA #77...
_MBTA/Amtrak: exB&M Boston East & Boston West_
East Cambridge Yards
Springfield Terminal still provides traffic in the yards in East
Cambridge with car storage numbering near the 80 to 100+ car
range in the past few weeks. On Monday, February 11, GP-40 #340,
exCR GP-40 #349 and GP-35 #208 were idling at East Street. There
were 89 cars in the yard including those at East Street and in
the yard by the Washington Street Overpass plus 6 white Guilford
boxes set off near the former location of the Boston Engine
Terminal. A breakdown of the cars finds 23 boxes, 26 bulk, 7
gons, and 33 tank cars (mostly sugar cars for ADM). Note that the
total was only about 50% to 60% of the cars that were there a few
days earlier. Additionally, other sightings of note in the area
are:
- ExB&M plow, now MBTA, on New Washington Street prior to
February 7.
- MBTA #1921 in B&M style maroon at the fuel island on
February 11.
- CP caboose #434618 was in the Amtrak vehicle yard on
February 11.
- Two exB&M plows were together near the fuel island on
February 11.
- exB&M Caboose #494 on February 11 & 12.
- exMEC asphalt tanker built in 6/1920 near the Washington
Street Overpass on
February 11.
Amtrak GP-40TC #192(6?) at the fuel island on February 20.
Littleton
The MBTA has rejected the new Littleton station and parking lot
as proposed by the town of Littleton. It was to have been on the
south side of MA Route 2. Reasons cited for the rejection were
cost ($5-6 million), the environment (wetlands & big blue heron
nesting area), and the need for a new exit from Route 2 too close
to the existing I-495 and Newtown road exits. The MBTA proposes
to expand the existing station instead. Another possible
location is west of the original B&M wooden frame station near
Sanvel Concrete.
Shorts
The first rebuilt Pullman coaches were delivered to the MBTA on
February 20 in Readville. These coaches will soon begin revenue
testing on the Rockport Branch... Construction on the New Engine
Terminal is continuing. Additionally, tracks 1, 5-10 are all
open to the new bumpers. It looks like the steel work is near
completion for a 3(?) story building over by the New Hampshire
main. Piles are in place and concrete is being poured for a
large structure near the exFitchburg main... The MBTA is seeking
to lease surplus Amtrak F-40's when they become available to
expand the power pool for the new Old Colony lines...
Reactivation of the Old Colony lines will likely be delayed as
contractors and the MBTA sort out disputes over awards of
engineering and construction contracts... Apparently Amtrak GP-40TC #194
will continue on in MBTA commuter service on the North
Side as long as it doesn't break down...
_District 3: exB&M Gardner District_
Bow Coal Trains
Numerous coal trains bound for Bow, New Hampshire have plied the
rails these last two weeks - more than usual, typically averaging
a train per day. Additionally, Springfield Terminal power has
drawn assignments on the Bow Coal trains as of late. SD-26 #620
and SD-45 #684 were seen being coupled on the head of 3 Conrail
units on a westbound coal train during the week of February 5 at
E Deerfield. ST SD-45 #680 brought up the rear of the power set
led by SD-40-2 #6480, C30-7a #6561, and C32-8 #6619 which was all
at the head end of the Loaded Bow Coal Train spotted at CPF OX in
Fitchburg on February 20... Another rare visitor, Conrail SD45-2
#6665, was reported on one of the coal trains during the week of
February 12.
The "Phoenix Project"
On Tuesday, February 13, westbound Portland, ME -> Delaware &
Hudson Train PODH was sighted heading west near Tyters in Orange,
MA. The train had GP-40 #342 in grey "Boston & Maine" paint,
exCR GP-40 #306 in blue "MEC" paint, GP-40 #370 in black "MEC"
paint, GP-40 #337 in grey "Boston & Maine" paint, U-18B #406 in
grey Guilford Rail Systems paint, and SD-39 #690 in grey Guilford
Rail Systems paint. SD-39 #690 is the latest of the rebuild
units returned from the Springfield Terminal deadline. SD-39
#690 was later spotted trailing exCR GP-40 #302, exCR GP-40 #313
and GP-38 #252 on train PODH in Ayer on February 18.
Additionally, SD-690 was sighted on point of the Delaware &
Hudson -> Portland, ME Train DHPO in Ayer on February 21,
followed by SD-45 # 681 and SD-40 #603.
Shorts
Conrail C32-8 #6612, with a replacement late-model Dash 8 angled
cab was on the point of Maine Central -> Selkirk train NESE on
February 9. The train (CR NESE 9) was later delayed on Conrail's
Boston Line due to brake defects on the third trailing C30-7a...
Recently returned to service GP-38 #252 was sighted on the
Portland, ME -> Delaware & Hudson train PODH on February 11 in
Ayer, along with GP-35 #205 (on the point), exNS GP-40 #373,
SD-40 #604, and exCR GP-40 #302. Both GP-40s were offline while
#352 more than made up for the lost sound volume of these two
engines while climbing the Shirley grade out of Ayer... On
February 12, Lowell Local LO-2 was sighted at CPF WL (the Willows
at Ayer) with GP-9 #77 on the point... GP-38 #252 was sighted on
eastbound East Deerfield -> Lawrence train EDLA on Tuesday,
February 13 along with GP-40 #327 (lead unit), exCR GP-40 #303
and SD-26 #620... On February 15, Portland -> D&H train PODH was
running at least 8 hours behind its usual schedule, being sighted
at CPF Slab City (Shirley) at 5:45 pm... On February 18 train
Portland, ME -> Delaware & Hudson train PODH was combined with
intermodal train #261... ST is storing numerous box cars in the
old Fort Devens staging tracks in Ayer... On February 20, GP-35s
#211 and #207 were sighted shutdown in the Ayer Hill Yard. On
December 20, Selkirk -> Maine Central train SENE suffered a
failure in one of its Conrail locomotives on the Worcester Main.
The unit was isolated, shutdown, and drained... On December 21,
Conrail's Selkirk -> Ayer multilevel train ML-438's light power
was coupled to the rear of Selkirk -> Lawrence train SELA for the
ride to Ayer from Barber (Worcester)... Also on February 21,
Local AY-1 was powered by SD-45 #680, which pulled 43 autoracks
out of the Hill Yard at Ayer. The high nose SD-45 was later
sighted disabled near the West Main Street crossing in Ayer,
unable to move in either direction. The locomotive was later
picked up by Selkirk -> MEC train SENE...
_District 4: exB&M West End_
West End Update
Reports from Springfield Terminal indicate that rumors regarding
a switch in the interchange point with Conrail from Barber
Station in Worcester, MA to Rotterdam Jct., New York are
unfounded. Reportedly, the current interchange agreement with
Conrail and the Providence and Worcester is working well and
there are no plans to change it. Additionally, Springfield
Terminal reportedly is considering whether it can continue to
provide intermodal service once the CP Rail run-through trains
are discontinued on Feb. 29. Speculation seems to center on ST
bringing intermodal trains up the Worcester Main from Conrail,
perhaps even as part of Conrail's Selkirk <-> Ayer multilevel
trains 438/439.
It is interesting to note, however, that circumstances continue
to indicate a change in interchange to Rotterdam:
- ST has replaced its GP39-2s with GP-40s on a one for two
basis bring their power up to an operating level last seen
when they were operating the west end gateway.
- Track work efforts last summer focused on the exFitchburg
Division Main from Fitchburg to Charlemont and beyond.
- The Rotterdam Jct. Branch has been upgraded from 10 to 25
mph following extensive rebuilding.
- Conrail has been qualifying crews on the Worcester Main in
order to run its own trains to Ayer (ML-438/439) which takes
away the problem of what to do with the racks and the
high/wides since they cannot fit through Hoosac.
- Radio chatter in Portland, Lawrence, Fitchburg, E.
Deerfield, and North Adams starting at about August of last
year has independently indicated the shift was to happen
"soon".
Hoosac Tunnel Upgrades
On February 14th, 1996, the Massachusetts legislature passed the
Seaport Improvement Bond Bill which calls for substantial
improvements to the Port of Boston and state financial support
for removing overhead obstructions on major freight rail lines
throughout the state to allow doublestack trains to operate to
and from the Port. With passage of the bill, the state has
committed to invest $110 million in improvements on rail lines
owned by Conrail, the Boston & Maine Corporation (Guilford) and
the Providence & Worcester Railroad Company. The bill provides
funds for final design & engineering services to improve the
clearances of _the_ major obstacle to doublestacks on Springfield
Terminal's Boston and Maine Freight Main - the Hoosac Tunnel.
Allegedly, Guilford Rail Systems will need to find additional
funding for a significant portion of the construction costs once
the project design phase nears completion.
Shorts
On February 13, Springfield Terminal self propelled crane #40209
was removing scrap iron from "The Loop" from the ConnRiver Line
to E. Deerfield Yard... Also on February 13, the switch at CPR 35
was out of correspondence (frozen) after being flooded followed
by a cold snap... Springfield Terminal's MOW forces have brushed
out the wye just west of CPF 384 and E. Deerfield Yard. The long
overdue operation removed trees up to 6 inches in diameter close
to the right of way... ALCo C-424m #452 has joined sisters #450,
#451, & #454 in the East Deerfield deadline... On February 20, A
CPRail SD-40-2 #5792 (?) power was joined by two six axle and one
high hood four axle Norfolk Southern units in powering the Loaded
Mount Tom Coal Train south on the ConnRiver Line...
_Department of Corrections!_
John A. Joyce writes concerning the last issue:
>The following first generation power was sighted in Rigby Yard
>these past two weeks: GP-9's #45 & #52 and GP-7's #18, #23, #33,
>& #35.
"#33" is a misprint, as only 32, 34, and 35 still exist on ST's
roster, all ex-B&M GP7's, and all still in service. Therefore,
this engine must have been either 32 or 34. First, for the
record, it is certain that ST #33 has never even existed... let's
take a look at the ones which have:
ST 29, ex-B&M 1563 Retired Waterville 10/10/95;
ST 30, ex-B&M 1564 Stored Wat. 9/93, retired Waterville
11/17/93, scrapped 8/94;
ST "31", B&M 1566 This unit was assigned ST 31 as a
number, but was never renumbered as it
was not in service when renumbering
began in the late '80s. Retired
Billerica 7/19/90, scrapped 3/95;
ST 32, ex-B&M 1568 Active;
ST 34, ex-B&M 1575 Active;
ST 35, ex-B&M 1577 Active;
We can see that, in this numbering sequence, perhaps ST left the
33 numbering slot open for a unit which could _possibly_ see
service again. Recall, this was way back in 1987, and that was 9
years ago. In other words, that unit could have been retired
anywhere between 1987-1989, because I lack retirement dates for
those years. This unit is the only "single gap" in the whole
GP7/9/18/9r numbering sequence which originally went 10-32,
34-35, and 40-77. Maybe someone with roster expertise before
1990 could help us with this one.
Editor's note - it is impossible to verify numbers that may have
been written down incorrectly in the field. This sighting is
likely to be an "original" GP-40 in the 330 series.
Others write to point out that we are blurring the boundaries of
Springfield Terminal's Dispatching Districts 1 and 2:
>... Please note that
>ALL territory west of Rigby, including Saco, is in District TWO
(you listed
>under District One).
_Contributors_
Special thanks to this issue's contributors: Mark A. Stoffan,
David Black, Stephen A. Mayotte (NC News), Bill Henry, John
Joyce, Charles J. Sullivan, Mike Simonds, Dave Engman, Tom
Simonds, David Wright, John P. Krattinger, Jerry in Boston, and
others! Apologies to anyone who was missed!
Know anything about recent events on Springfield Terminal Railway
or any other exB&M rail line? See anything out of the ordinary?
Then, send your reports to Rumors & Sightings on and around
Springfield Terminal for inclusion in the next issue! All
contributions, comments, corrections, and suggestions for
improvement should be sent to Peter Terwilliger, editor, at
terw...@STYAHOO.iii.net or by fax at 508-568-3735. Try to
include the number and roadname where possible - we can do the
rest. If you see unsafe conditions, please contact the
Springfield Terminal Police at 1-800-955-9217. Remember to
respect railroad property and do not trespass!
Rumors & Sightings on and around Springfield Terminal is an all
volunteer newsletter concerning happenings on ST and/or any of
the many exB&M lines. Rumors & Sightings on and around
Springfield Terminal is posted on MISC.TRANSPORT.RAIL.AMERICAS
and the RAILROAD LIST approximately every two weeks.
Additionally, hardcopy versions are available at Shepaug Railroad
Company in the old NY,NH,&H railroad station at 24 Columbia
Street in Leominster, MA and at the Acton Model Railroad Center
at 562 Massachusetts Avenue near the exFitchburg Division
crossing with MA Route 111 in West Acton, MA. Rumors & Sightings
on and around Springfield Terminal is supported by contributors,
both on and off the Internet.
_Standard Disclaimer_
Rumors & Sightings on and around Springfield Terminal is in no
way associated with the Springfield Terminal Railway Corporation,
Guilford Rail Systems, or any other railroad or financial
interests. Rumors & Sightings is a compilation of contributions
that reflect what is seen and heard from time to time on and
about Springfield Terminal Railway by interested railfans. All
content should be further verified.
_Copyright_
This issue and/or the material herein may be reproduced at will,
however, credit _must_ be acknowledged.
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