Category: General Post

High Iron Travel in conjunction with AAPRCO, Friends of 4449, and the Steam Railroading Institute is offering a unique steam railroading experience: a trip behind ex-SP 4449 from Portland, OR to Minneapolis, MN and return.

Here is the schedule.

Eastbound – Train will be daylight running only.

July 3:Portland to Spokane (BNSF)

July 4: Spokane to Whitefish

July 5: Whitefish to Havre

July 6: Layover day in Havre

July 7: Havre to Minot

July 8: Minot to Fargo

July 9: Layover day in Fargo

July 10: Fargo to Minneapolis.

July 12: Caritas will then proceed to Chicago on Amtrak #8.

Fare: $5,450 per double occupancy and includes all meals except lunch and dinner on the two layover days. Accommodations en route.  If we have sufficient interest we’ll take the Cimarron River and provide roomette accommodations for a $500 surcharge.

Westbound – Train will be daylight running only.

Oct. 13:  Minneapolis to Fargo (BNSF)

Oct. 14:     Fargo to Minot

Oct. 15:  layover day in Minot

Oct. 16:    Minot to Havre

Oct. 17:  Havre to Whitwfish

Oct. 18:      Layover day Whitefish

Oct. 19:   Whitefish to Pasco

Oct. 20:      Pasco to Portland (ex NP Stampede Pass route)

Fare: $5,450 per per double occupancy and includes all meals except lunch and dinner on the two layover days. Accommodations en route.  If we have sufficient interest we’ll take the Cimarron River and provide roomette accommodations for a $500 surcharge. A deposit of $1000 will hold your space.

High Iron Travel Corp.

P.O. Box 37

Waunakee, WI 53597

(608)-285-5489

www.highirontravel.com

With the current economic problems facing our businesses it is encouraging to see some rail action at one of Christian County’s automotive parts suppliers. On Tuesday afternoon, March 10, 2009 I caught CSX J723 – the Guthrie Road Switcher – was at the north end of the Casky double track preparing to back into the Dana spur with a dozen flats used to ship auto frames to several plants including the Corvette plant in Bowing Green. There are several loaded flats in the plant area and I assume that some of these will be heading back to Guthrie with J723.

CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. – A train derailed behind Bridgestore Metalpha on International Boulevard in Montgomery County Wednesday morning (March 25, 2009).

Details have been sketchy, but it has been confirmed that approximately 15 rail cars, three empty tankers and 12 box cars were involved. The train belonged to the RJ Corman Railroad Group. All roads have been re-opened.

There were no injuries or spills, and officials think the clean-up will be done by 7 p.m. Wednesday.

Below is a video Member Ron Stubblefield found that we thought you’d all enjoy.

Southbound Ringling Bros. Barnum&Bailey Circus Train At South Casky on CSX’s Henderson Sub

A bit before 11 AM on Tuesday, December 2 I got a call from Bill Thomas advising me that a southbound circus train just passed through Madisonville headed my way and could I possible get a couple of shots as it passed through Hopkinsville.  I grabbed a jacket and my trust Pentax and headed for South Casky.  South Casky offers a good unobstructed view of the tracks and allows shots of a good portion of a passing train.  The South Casky signal was green for a southbound movement so I pulled off the road and waited.  The scanner was pretty quiet but a bit before noon, 11:55 to be exact a headligh appeared to the north and, sure enough, it was the circus train.  A pair of CSX units were on the point and the consist included some 20 to 30 passenger and baggage cars and maye 20 to 25 flats with trucks, containers, wagons and such.  The cars were silver with Ringling Bros. Barnum&Bailey in red on the car sides.  A pretty impressive lashup.  The train ID is CSX P910-01  with 61 cars,  Chicago to Orlando Chuck Hinrichs

photos by Chuck Hinrichs  December 2, 2008  South Casky

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Louisville’s light-rail movement faded about four years ago, but traditional train service may be getting a fresh look, the Courier-Journal reports. Elected officials from Jefferson, Hardin and Meade counties are among 100 passengers who plan to take a leisurely three-hour, round-trip train ride between Louisville and Cecilia, Ky., just west of Elizabethtown, tomorrow.

Mass transit supporters view the trip on the Paducah & Louisville Railway, which runs roughly along Dixie Highway and through Fort Knox, as the first step toward establishing a passenger rail system between Louisville and the growing Army post.

“My hope is that we can build some critical mass in terms of support and possibly do some sort of analysis of what it would cost to put commuter (rail) cars on that line,” said Jim King, president of
Louisville’s Metro Council.

The Transit Authority of River City and council members have been discussing commuter rail for months. Tomorrow’s excursion is intended to draw attention to the possibility of passenger service and start gauging whether local leaders want to go forward.

If they do, the next step would be a study outlining the costs — and feasibility — of the project.

While the demonstration trip is scheduled to take 90 minutes one way at 35 mph, actual commuter trains could reach speeds up to 60 mph, said A.V. “Tony” Reck, the railway’s president and CEO. The trip takes 45 minutes to an hour by car.

“We certainly have an interest in expanding rail,” said Barry Barker, TARC’s executive director. He estimates it would cost $50 million to $75 million to create a commuter rail line, with operating costs of at least $4 million annually. Under Barker’s scenario, a commuter rail line would cost substantially less than the city’s light-rail project, which was suspended in 2004 with a price tag of $661 million.

Before that, the city’s experience with passenger rail in recent years was with an Amtrak train connecting Louisville and Chicago. The Louisville-Indianapolis leg of the route took five hours because poor track conditions meant the train couldn’t exceed 30 mph.

The route was discontinued in 2003 after four years amid low ridership.

Tomorrow’s demonstration run is the brainchild of two groups — the nonprofit Coalition for the Advancement of Regional Transportation and the Kentucky-Indiana Rail Advocates — and has the financial backing of local governments.

(This is a portion of an item which appeared Nov. 7, 2008, in the Courier-Journal.)

– Submitted by Chuck Hinrichs

The much-anticipated arrival of E8 796 is celebrated as R.J. Corman crews move the car body from CSX’s main line to it’s home on an adjacent track where it will house a museum display in Bowling Green, KY. (Photo submitted by Bill Grady, Louisville, KY)

A federal class-action lawsuit filed after a train derailment in Bullitt County in January 2007 has been settled for $3 million, according to court records. The Courier-Journal in Louisville reports that of the 17,000 people eligible for claims, none can receive more than $10,000.

The CSX train was carrying chemicals considered hazardous and some residents near the crash went to the hospital complaining of breathing problems. The fiery derailment sent a plume of smoke up over the site and CSX had to excavate contaminated soil from the site.

U.S. District Court Judge Thomas Russell tentatively approved the settlement on Aug. 28. The newspaper reports that a Web site has been authorized by the court to detail the settlement.
Attorneys for the plaintiffs declined to comment on the settlement. – Submitted by Chuck Hinrichs

Jacksonville, Fla. – October 3, 2008 – CSX Corporation (NYSE: CSX) today announced that it achieved the best score among Class One freight railroads in the Carbon Disclosure Project’s (CDP) 2008 Report and third best in the overall Transports and Logistics category.

CDP is a not-for-profit organization representing the interests of 385 mostly-institutional investors with more than $57 trillion in assets under management. CDP’s role is to, “act as an intermediary between shareholders and corporations on all climate change related issues, providing primary climate change data from the world’s largest corporations, to the global market place.”

CSX’s Climate Leadership Index score was compiled by aggregating its weighted answers in a CDP questionnaire split into four sections covering: risks and opportunities; emissions accounting; performance against targets; and governance.

“CSX is committed to providing a high level of transparency and disclosure to investors and other interested parties concerning the company’s long-term environmental strategy and climate related risks,” said Oscar Munoz, CSX Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. “CSX provides the most environmentally friendly way to meet the nation’s demand for freight transportation and is committed to continuing to provide value for both our customers and shareholders while taking meaningful steps to address the important concerns of climate change.”