DIANN jct

[JustinB]

What are the best times to catch some action at DIANN

[redside20]

What are the best times to catch some action at DIANN

Pretty erratic throughout the day I'd say. If I were you, I'd go get some camping gear at Cabelas in nearby Dundee and pitch a tent in the adjacent woods near the diamond that's if you can get away with it. If you don't get the cops called on you by the local farmers for trespassing, you'll find that CN trains 384/385 run daily as they use the se connection from the Ann Arbor to the Flat Rock Sub and vice versa. 385 is usually a morning train through here because it's usually in Bellevue by noon. I believe 384 runs in the early morning hours. Also the chance of the seeing an Ann Arbor is pretty good and they run day or night as required. The I&0 runs three times a week and back from Flat Rock. Don't know about unit trains but the Ann Arbor does see the grain movements which can run at anytime. No idea if the IORY see any grain movement unless they start hauling wheat to that grain mill down near Cincy.

[GP30M4216]

I haven't lived in the area for a few years now, but this sounds accurate. Daily CN each way via the SE quadrant connector, the AA runs a roundtrip almost daily plus occasional unit train extras, and the I&O runs about 3 days a week, although which three days isn't always regular. CN usually runs during the day, northbound Annie is often in the evening, and I&O is usually daylight as well. If you go, let us know what you see!

Nathan

[Eric Berger]

Sounds about right. Seems like they have one that heads north through Carleton about 1000 or so; I usually hear him if I'm working in the area. I&O, it seems like, runs in the early afternoon when it comes.

Sure a far cry from previous years, where if you sat in Carleton for a couple of hours, you were guaranteed at least ONE movement on the CN tracks. Now, I very seldom see anything along there; almost all the action's on the CSX line.

[redside20]

Does anybody know the traffic levels that GT ran in the late 80s and most of the 90's on the Flat Rock Sub at Diann. And which Edison Plant were those coal trains shipped too in Michigan?

[AARR]

Does anybody know the traffic levels that GT ran in the late 80s and most of the 90's on the Flat Rock Sub at Diann. And which Edison Plant were those coal trains shipped too in Michigan?

Midland knows but I don't know if he checks anything other than the Ohio group.

[MSchwiebert]

I'm not certain what GT ran north of Diann back in the '80's & '90''s but south of there normally 6 trains a day, the NS run through train (1 in each direction), the piggyback train (1 in each direction) and the GT freight (1 in each direction).

Frankly I'm surprised that CN still runs anything that way, especially with having the former Shore Line, unless either Detroit operations make that difficult for the train in question, or there's a contractual obligation to use the Ann Arbor that dates from the DT&I days.

I was up there a few weeks ago, and after braving the unpaved roads of the immediate area, I noticed that there were 3 covered hoppers for interchange - surely an obscure routing if there ever was one.

Does anybody know the traffic levels that GT ran in the late 80s and most of the 90's on the Flat Rock Sub at Diann. And which Edison Plant were those coal trains shipped too in Michigan?

[Fred]

These days the CN operates trains 384 & 385 between Port Huron & Bellevue. They work at Flat Rock and run down the AA from Diann to Alexis & then NS (ex CR) to Oak Harbor and then ex W&LE to Bellevue.

[JStryker722]

These days the CN operates trains 384 & 385 between Port Huron & Bellevue. They work at Flat Rock and run down the AA from Diann to Alexis & then NS (ex CR) to Oak Harbor and then ex W&LE to Bellevue.

Does that train do all of CN's interchange with the W&LE??

[AARR]

These days the CN operates trains 384 & 385 between Port Huron & Bellevue. They work at Flat Rock and run down the AA from Diann to Alexis & then NS (ex CR) to Oak Harbor and then ex W&LE to Bellevue.

Does that train do all of CN's interchange with the W&LE??

I think W&LE interchanges with CN in Lang Yard. At least I've seen W&LE engines in Lang Yard so I'm guessing that's where they exchange cars. W&LE/CN take coke trains to Rouge part of the time (Rouge gets their coke from several other sources/different railroad routings).

If I'm correct cars for W&LE would arrive on the Toronto-Toledo train and the Toledo-Flat Rock turn.

[redside20]

Does that train do all of CN's interchange with the W&LE??

I was wondering if the other pair of Toledo-Toronto trains 382-383 perform work at Lang Yard on their way to and from Stanley Yard. I do believe Wheeling trains are built here from a CN local but does it come from Flat Rock? There was a L506 and a 246 that ran up the Annie to Diann and went to Flat Rock that way.