Great Lakes and Ohio River Railroad

[AARR]

It seems like you have a good system to keep track of everything. You have a lot going on. It's fun to read especially the MI stuff because I am familiar with those areas.

[chapmaja]

GLOR / GLOX Locomotive Roster.
GLOR – Great Lakes and Ohio River Railroad
GLOX – Great Lakes and Ohio Locomotive Leasing

Active Roster – 118 units

#5 MP15AC Formerly HLCX #1400
#6 MP15AC Formerly HLCX #1401
#50 GP9 Former #24
#51 GP9 Former #1471
#52 GP9 Former #2
#53 GP9 Former #1759
#54 GP9 Former #1758
#75 SD20 Former IHB #2925
#76 SD20 Former IHB #2922
#100 GP30M Former #80 Rebuilt 2013
#105 GP30M Former #2252 Rebuilt 2015
#106 GP30M Former #86 Rebuilt Again 2015
#107 GP30M-2X Former #557 Rebuilt in 2015 Experiment with -2 Electronics
#108 GP30M-2X Former #557 Rebuilt in 2015 Experiment with -2 Electronics
#150 SD9M Former NS #56 Purchased from NS. Refurbished at NRE -
#151 SD9M Former NS #51 Purchased from NS. Refurbished at NRE
#152 SD9M Former NS #55 Purchased from NS. Refurbished at NRE
#385 GP35-2 Rebuilt to -2 Electronics 2016 Retains original AA #.
#387 GP35-2 Rebuilt to -2 Electronics 2016 Retains original AA #.
#390 GP35 Retains AA Orange Paint Scheme. Retains original AA #.
#391 GP35 Painted in Operation Lifesaver Paint Retains original AA #.
#392 GP35 Painted in AA Wabash Paint Scheme Retains original AA #.
#393 GP35 Painted in “Ferry in the Fog” Scheme Retains original AA #.
#394 GP35 Painted in 2nd TSBY Scheme Retains original AA #.
#395 GP35 Formerly WAMX 3531
#396 GP35M Formerly WAMX 3534
#402 GP40 Former #4008
#403 GP40 Former #4023
#404 GP40 Former #4024
#408 GP40 Former #4036
#409 GP40 Former CSCD #6637
#410 GP40-2LW Former #9712
#411 GP40-2W Former GLOR 2038, Former WAMX 4009
#412 GP40-2W Former GLOR 2039, Former WAMX 4017
#500 GP50 Former #5000
#501 GP50 Former #5001
#502 GP50 Former #5002
#503 GP50 Former #5003
#504 GP50 Former #5004
#508 GP50 Former #5008
#513 GP50 Former #5013
#514 GP50 Former #5014
#601 GP60 Former #7149 ITCS Equipped for Amtrak Line Use
#601 GP60 Former #7150 ITCS Equipped for Amtrak Line Use
#701 SD35 Former MRL 701
#702 SD35 Former MRL 702
#705 SD35 Former MRL 705
#800 SD38-2 Former UPY#800
#801 SD38-2 Former PRLX #209 DM&IR Paint Scheme
#814 SD38-2 Former UPY #814
#905 GP30M Retained NKP # and NKP Paint scheme Rebuilt in 2014
#906 GP30M Retained NKP # and NKP Paint scheme Rebuilt in 2014
#1226 25-Tonner Retains TSBY # and paint scheme. Owosso Shop Switcher.
#2000 GP38M-2 Former #4802 Rebuilt in 2016
#2001 GP38M-2 Former #5080 Rebuilt in 2016
#2002 GP38M-2 Former #7771 Rebuilt in 2016
#2003 GP38M-2 Former #7791 Rebuilt in 2017
#2004 GP38M-2 Former #7802 Rebuilt in 2017
#2005 GP38M-2 Former #3852 Rebuilt in 2017
#2006 GP38AC-2 Former #8802 Painted in CMGN Paint Scheme, Rebuilt 2017
#2007 GP38AC-2 Former #8804 Painted in HESR Paint Scheme, Rebuilt 2017
#2008 GP38-2 Former GMTX #2635
#2009 GP38-2 Former GMTX #2648
#2010 GP38-2 Former GMTX #2652
#2011 GP38-2 Former GMTX #2676
#2013 GP38-2 Former GMTX #2675
#2014 GP38M-2 Former #201 Rebuilt 2017
#2015 GP38M-2 Former #202 Rebuilt 2018
#2016 GP38M-2 Former #203 Rebuilt 2018
#2017 GP38M-2 Former #204 Rebuilt 2018
#2018 GP38M-2 Former #2014 Rebuilt 2018
#2019 GP38-2 Former #399 Former LLPX GP38-2 2336
#2022 GP38-2 Former #396 Former LLPX GP38-2 2325
#2023 GP38-2 Former #395 Former LLPX GP38-2 2325
#2024 GP38-2 Former GMTX #2187
#2025 GP38-2 Former # 3880
#2026 GP38-2 Former # 3881
#2027 GP38-2 Former # 3882
#2028 GP38-2 Former # 3883
#2029 GP38-2 Former # 3884
#2030 GP38-2 Former # 3885
#2031 GP38-2 Former # 3886
#2032 GP38-2 Former # 3887
#2034 GP38-2 Former # 3889
#2035 GP38-2 Former LLPX #2602
#2036 GP38-2 Former LLPX #2611
#2200 GP39-2 Former #2368
#2201 GP39-2 Former #2373
#4000 SD40-2 Former #4082 ITCS Equipped for Amtrak Line Use
#4001 SD40-2 Former #4083 ITCS Equipped for Amtrak Line Use
#4002 SD40-2 Former #4084 ITCS Equipped for Amtrak Line Use
#4003 SD40-2 Former #4085 ITCS Equipped for Amtrak Line Use
#4004 SD40-2 Former NREX #5587
#4005 SD40-2 Former NREX#5678
#4006 SD40-2 Former CEFX#3092
#4009 SD40-2 Former CP #5924
#4010 SD40-2 Former ICE #6217
#4012 SD40-2F Former CP #9000 ITCS Equipped for Amtrak Line Use
#4013 SD40-2F Former CP #9005 ITCS Equipped for Amtrak Line Use
#4014 SD40-2F Former CP #9010 ITCS Equipped for Amtrak Line Use
#4015 SD40T-2 Former #4070
#4016 SD40T-2 Former # 4071
#4017 SD40T-2 Former #4072
#4018 SD40-2 Former WAMX 4124
#4019 SD40-2 Former WAMX 4125
#4020 SD40M-2 Former WAMX 4189
#4021 SD40M-2 Former WAMX 4190
#4022 SD40-2 Former WAMX 4206
#4023 SD40M-2 Former WAMX 4209
#4024 SD40M-2 Former WAMX 4225
#4500 SD45T-2 Former CEFX #9362
#4501 SD45T-2 Former CEFX #9392
#4502 SD45T-2 Former CEFX #9400
#4503 SD45T-2 Former NREX#9300
#4504 SD45R Former #9500
#5000 SD50 Former NREX #5070
#6000 SD60 Former NS #6510



GLOX Roster -36 units
Leased Locomotives for Industrial / Shortline Use. May be Leased back to GLOR. All units retain GLOR Paint Scheme with GLOX Reporting Marks under the cab window unless otherwise indicated.

#1 SW1200 Formerly #73
#2 SW1200 Formerly #998
#3 SW1200 Formerly #999
#4 SW1500 Formerly #2342
#55 GP9 Former #1755
#56 GP9 Former #1760
#57 GP9u Former CP #1549
#58 GP9u Former CP #1571
#59 GP9u Former CP #1596
#60 GP9R Former RPLX 4617
#101 GP30M Former #81 Rebuilt 2014
#102 GP30M Former #82 Rebuilt 2014
#103 GP30M Former #83 Rebuilt 2014
#405 GP40 Former #4030
#406 GP40 Former #4032
#407 GP40 Former #4034
#505 GP50 Former #5005
#1977 NW2 Painted in TSBY Black and Yellow Paint Scheme Retained # (Leased to Lear Corp)
#2012 GP38-2 Former GMTX #2663
#2020 GP38-2 Former #398 Former LLPX GP38-2 2331
#2021 GP38-2 Former #397 Former LLPX GP38-2 2327
#2033 GP38-2 Former # 3888
#2037 GP38-3 Former CEFX #6671
#4007 SD40-2 Former CSX #8106
#4008 SD40-2 Former STLH #5593
#4011 SD40-2 Former ICE #6369
#8903 U23BR Retained # Rebuilt 2012 Retained CMGN Paint Scheme
#8904 U23BR Retained # Rebuilt 2012
#8905 U23BR Retained # Rebuilt 2012
#9000 C30-7 Former #5175 HESR Heritage Scheme
#9001 C30-7 Former #5086
#9100 B30-7 Former 5492
#9150 B30-7AB Former 2001
#9151 B30-7AB Former 2002
#9152 B30-7AB Former 4065
#9200 B39-8E Former NREX #8520


All SD70 / SD70M Units are property of GLOX but are on long term lease to GLOR. These units do no wear GLOX reporting marks. – 13 units
#7000 SD70 Former NS 2556
#7001 SD70 Former NS 5069
#7002 SD70 Former NS 2580
#7003 SD70 Former NS 2552
#7004 SD70 Former NS 2573
#7005 SD70 Former NS 2571
#7006 SD70 Former NS 2579
#7007 SD70M Former NS 2798
#7008 SD70M Former NS 2642
#7009 SD70M Former NS 2627
#7010 SD70M Former NS 2638
#7011 SD70M Former NS2797
#7012 SD70M Former NS 2799 Wears NYSW inspired paint scheme



Stored Serviceable – 2 units
#47 GP7 Formerly Ohi-Rail #47 Kept former D&TSL # and paint scheme.
#401 GP40 Former CN #6401 Purchased 2011 DT&I Heritage Scheme

[chapmaja]

Current Locomotive Servicing Facilities.

The main locomotive servicing facility for the GLOR is in Lima, Oh, using the site of the former Lima Locomotive Works.

The railroad maintains secondary locomotive serving facilities in Bay City, Owosso, Grand Rapids, Erie Yard, Lima, Fort Wayne, and Norwood Yard.

[chapmaja]

January 2022 Update:

The Defiance Subdivision's improvements have been ongoing. A substantial portion of this line has been upgraded to Class 1 standards. While this is still a slow moving line, one substantial rail move has been established as a result. The GLOR has been running all rail cement runs from the cement plant in Paulding, Oh to the distribution center as the site of the former Dundee Cement plant. Cement is being handled in 15 car blocks. The routing for this traffic is DEF-1, the Defiance to Woodburn local, which serves the plant, taking the cars to Defiance. DEF-2, the Defiance to Liberty Center local will drop the cars for pickup by DEL-1, which brings the cars to the Delta yard. DRF then takes the cars for Diann, where they are dropped in the interchange tracks for pickup by AA-2 which will deliver them to the customer in Dundee. To service this routing, GLOR has purchased 90 cement hoppers, which will be run in 15 car blocks. The cement plant is producing 3 15 car cuts per week for the Dundee distributuion center. The 90 cars allows for a 2 week cycling of cars. There has been discussion about running these as 45 car "unit trains" but the GLOR management feels that at this time the current track condition of the line is not sufficient to allow of the heavier and longer trains on the line.

Also in Dundee, Aggregate Industries, which operates the former cement plant quarry and has not previously been a rail customer has engaged in discussions with the GLOR about providing rail service. The location next to the rail infrastructure at the cement plant makes this a very real possibility. Time will tell if this will come to pass, as currently the tracks surrounding the former cement plant are only being used for car storage and the small cuts of cars into the facility as mentioned above.

Effective on February 1st, 2022, GLOR will be taking over freight operations from NS on the State of Michigan owned Michigan line between Ann Arbor and Kalamazoo. NS will retain freight operational rights over the line from Dearborn to Ann Arbor and west of Kalamazoo.

To facilitate this change, the GLOR is adding several trains to their operational list.

BCR-1 Battle Creek West Local - Will service customers between Battle Creek and Kalamazoo including Canadian National interchange in Battle Creek.
BCR-2 Battle Creek East Local - Will Service customers between Battle Creek and Jackson.
JA-1: Jackson Local - Will service customers from Jackson east to Chelsea and as far west as Albion as needed.
JA-2: Jackson Yard Switcher - Jackson Yard switcher, will build trains JATO, JAKZ, JA-1, and JLA and break down trains TOJA, JA-1, LJA and KZJA.
JAKZ: Jackson to Kalamazoo - Jackson to Kalamazoo through freight. Sets out cars in Battle Creek as needed.
KZJA: Kalamazoo to Jackson - Kalamazoo to Jackson through freight. Sets out cars in Battle Creek as needed.

Train JATO will continue to operate all traffic from Jackson to Toledo and TOJA will continue to operate Toledo to Jackson. There will be slight operational changes to these trains. Previously these trains were running to and from Airline Yard with a stop in Erie Yard. The new routing will see both trains terminate in Erie Yard. The interchange in Ann Arbor will be reactivate with JATO dropping cars for NS off in the Ann Arbor interchange siding on its way to Toledo (cars destined for Wayne or Detroit). TOJA will pick up cars from NS in the Ann Arbor interchange track as it heads west. NS bound cars from the Jackson area which normally would have been delivered to Airline Yard will now be picked up by NS local B65 which is the Airline to GLOR interchange train already operating.

There has also been some discussion about the Definance Subdivison being extended from Woodburn to Fort Wayne, with GLOR picking up several customers in the Woodburn and Fort Wayne areas. The sticking point in the discussion is trackage rights from the Defiance Subdivision to GLOR's Western Division Fort Wayne Yard and the exact location of the interchange point.

There has also been a slight adjustment to operations around Grand Rapids. Previously BGR and GRB were operating between the North Ann St Yard and Bladwin. Effective January 1st, 2022, these trains will now operate to Hughart Yard on the south side of Grand Rapids. They will set out and pick up traffic for the GR-1 local and DM/MD trains in Ann St Yard (Old). GR-3 will still operate as the transfer train between Hughart, Ann St, and Wyoming Terminal, as well as serving customers on the west side trackage.

In mid-2021, Consumers Energy began a project of replacing a significant number of power poles throughout their operational area, including in Lenawee County. As a result they required an influx of power poles. The GLOR's Adrian Subdivision has reinstalled the siding to Consumer's Energy's Adrian facility for unloading power poles shipped in by rail. While this will not be a major customer for the railroad, it is another small customer who will help keep the branch line running.

The line has also picked up a significant volume of traffic from Jackson Iron and Metal's Adrian Division. While previously a customer, the volume has significantly increased in recent times. Many of the loads are coming out in AIMX cars. These cars are taken to Flat Rock, where CN forwards them to American Iron and Metal.

Other customers on the Adrian Branch in Adrian include W2Fuels, and Plastic Omnium. Along with the elevator and ethanol plant in Blissfield this portion of the line provides a steady flow of traffic, but thing that would make the railroad a killing. Nothing has changed on the Clinton Branch from previous reports. Customer volumes are still steady. 5 customers are still receiving service along the like, Wacker Chemical, Tecumseh Baking Products, Next Resins, Michigan Pallet and Tri County Hardwoods.

The Adrian Subdivision is still home to two different toursit lines as well. The SMRS runs their trains from Clinton south to Raisin Center, while Blisffield Dinner Train Services runs a dinner train from Blissfield to Adrian.

[chapmaja]

GLOR's increase traffic volumes have caused some irriation within a certain city along the rail line. The City of Ann Arbor has attempted to fine the GLOR for blocking traffic crossings within the city for an extended period of time. The specific crossing in question that draws the most complaints is the crossing of Main St by the connection track between the GLOR's State of Michigan owned line and the GLOR's ex-Ann Arbor mainline through town. Additionally, the City of Ann Arbor has been joined in complaints by the University of Michigan due to slow moving trains passing through downtown Ann Arbor. The GLOR has counter these complaints by filing a Federal lawsuit against the City of Ann Arbor for violations of the Commerce Clause of the Constition. The basis for the GLOR's complaint is the city odrinance which limits trains within the City of Ann Arbor to a speed no greater than 10 mph.

Currently GLOR is running 6-10 trains per day through downtown Ann Arbor, but most of them are substantial length trains.

JATO and TOJA both run via the connector across Main St. These trains have been averaging approximately 50 cars per day in recent months, although the volume may decrease some due to the movement of traffic west from Jackson to Kalamazoo to be moved to Elkhart.

DT and TD, the Toledo to Durand trains have also been running with a significant length through downtown Ann Arbor, these trains have also been averaging around 50 cars per day.

AA-2 runs once each direction through downtown Ann Arbor, running from Osmer Yard south to Dundee and returning north.

Additionally, it has not been uncommon to have 1-4 units trains traverse the line through Ann Arbor on a given day, mostly consisting of grain trains, although the GLOR has also been running trash trains to TAWRE from Toledo to Thompsonville.

In response to this situation, GLOR has been looking at possible trackage rights from Erie Yard to Plymouth and westbound to AnnPere, where the trains would rejoin GLOR trackage. Several problems exist, as it would only remove 2 daily freight from the line (DT and TD), and would not impact the Main St. crossing. A second issue with this potential solution, pushed by the City of Ann Arbor, is the lack of a connection between the GLOR and CSX at AnnPere for movements westbound to northbound.

GLOR has no doubt they will prevail in a court of law over the City of Ann Arbor in this case, but is looking at possible solutions to the issue of trains slowly moving through Ann Arbor.

[chapmaja]

March, 2022 Update:

The GLOR's business presence as a reliable supplier of rail service to customers is paying off for the company, as are the connections they have made with other railroads and local communities. This has been proven over the last couple months as two major changes are being announced.

The first is that effective on June 1st, 2022, the Defiance Subdivisoon will be extended west to I469 in Fort Wayne. The GLOR will take over switching services for 3 customers located on the former Wabash Fifth District east of Fort Wayne. These customers, BF Goodrich in Woodburn, Kwik Loc Corperation and Westwood Lumber Sales in New Haven will provide substantial additional carloads to the GLOR's Defiance Subdivision. The customers like it because it provides them with additional connections to the national rail system. To facilitate this, GLOR has agreed to a 10 year lease, through May 31st, 2032 for the segment of the Fifth District between I469 in New Haven, In and Woodburn Rd in Woodburn, In. In addition, the GLOR has obtained trackage rights from I496 west into Norfolk Southerns East Wayne Yard and from I469 to the GLOR Fort Wayne Yard. All traffic from a leased segment customer destined for the GLOR's Fort Wayne Yard will be subject to an additional trackage rights surchange. Trackage rights access to the GLOR yard will be via the eastern connection. Operations of the line are expected to remain the same with DEF-1, based in Defiance handling all customers from Defiance to New Haven, while DEF-2 handles the traffic on the east end of the line. The agreement with Norfolk Southern currently does not allow for any through traffic from Fort Wayne to Liberty Center over the line. All traffic using the line must originate or terminate on the Defiance Subdivision. It is expected the GLOR's current Defiance Subdivision Power, normally consisting of GP9's will no longer be sufficient for use on the subdivision. It is expected the the GLOR will begin using GP30s and GP35s on the line It is unknown if the existing GP9 power will be relegated to the GLOX lease fleet, or it is will be transfered to other assignments on the line.


Additionally, the bigger news is that the approvals have been given for the reinstallation of the Baldwin to Clare segment. The approval for reinstallation of the trackage calls for a few somewhat unique stipulations to maintain the existing trail system. The GLOR will reinstall the trackage as well as provide a trail seperation fence as required between the existing trail and the completed ROW. The main customer on the line is expected to be Michigan Potash, however several other customers have committed to using rail service when the line is reinstalled. The construction of the line is expected to take 2 years and the hope is the line will be opened for service in March 2024.

The GLOR has also purchased two additional locomotives to add to their fleet. Both locomotives have been added to the GLOX fleet. The first is ex-DLCX #3127, which is an SD40M-2. It will be renumbered and repainted as GLOX #4025. The second unit, ex-DLCX GP40-2 #6410 is more familar to people in the area. It's number comes from the DT&I to GT renumbering upon GT's takeover of the DT&I. This unit will be repainted into a GT inspired blue and orange paint scheme and will retain the #6410.

[chapmaja]

April 2nd, 2022 Update:

There is going to be a change in how traffic from the Jeep plant in Toledo is handled. GLOR will still be handling all outbound traffic from the plant, but now GLOR will be handing some of the traffic to the IHB in Blue Island, while other traffic is still being handed off to NS. It appears that two new autorack trains will be running each direction. ARBTU will be running empty autoracks between Blue Island, down the GLOR's Western Division to Lima, up the DT&I Subdivision to Diann before heading south on the Northern Division to Ottawa Yard. ARBTB will follow the same routing. ARTBU and ARTBB will follow a reverse routing between Toledo and Blue Island. One train each direction will be handed off or come from Union Pacific, while the second is a BNSF train. It has not been announced if these trains will use run through power from UP and BNSF, of if the power will be GLOR power on these trains.

(It would be cool to see these trains run via the Defiance Subdivision between Liberty Center and Fort Wayne, but the track conditions are not suitable for hauling these trains, even if the lease agreements allowed it, which they don't).

The major sticking point in this movement is the junction at Diann. Currently EB trains will have to run across the diamond and back up though the NE Quad connecting track, before heading southbound into Toledo. WB trains would be forced to pull north into Dundee, back through the NE wye onto the mainline east of the diamond before continuing westbound.

The railroad is currently in the process of acquiring the property to build a connection in the SW quadrant, allowing for direct movement from the Northern Division to the Southern Division. Currently the SE quadrant wye, which at one time was the primary wye track in use, allowing for DT&I trains to access Toledo from Flat Rock is unused. No trains have regularly used this line since CN stopped running trains over the line. This track is still inspected regularly and kept in service. CN still has trackage rights over the line between Flat Rock and Lang Yard, but they are not currently in active use.

Other news, which was not previously reported, but will have an impact on the GLOR is Purina's pet food plant that is being built in Williamsburg Township, alongside the Peavine Subdivision. The location is alongside the GLOR's Peavine Subdivision, and most Nestle Purina plants do use rail service, but it is unknown at this time how much rail service the plant will use. The estimated opening time was announced as mid-2022, however that time has been pushed back significantly and now it appears the plant will not open until late 2023 or early 2024. The Peavine Subdivision does technically connect with the rest of the GLOR system via trackage rights over NS from Clare Yard to , however at this time all traffic is being interchanged to NS in Clare Yard. There is growing concern that the increased Peavine Subdivision volume, plus increased volume at NS's transload outside Clare Yard will cause a problem for the railroad. It is unknown at this time, how the interchange may change between the GLOR and NS if and when volumes increase on the line.

[chapmaja]

May 1st, 2022:

Nothing major to report on the railroad. The grading for the replaced Clare to Bladwin section is being completed slowly. Three crews are involved in the grading project. One has started in Baldwin, one in Clare, and one has started near the Michigan Potash's loading siding. The first step of the project is to grade the land adjacent to the trail, which is where the new rail line will be installed. Some areas will require the trail to be relocated slightly off its current path. Once grading of the trail and the railbed is completed, the fence will be installed. Several locations on the line will require installation of a new bridge. The new birdges will be pedestrian bridges, with the railroad retaining the previous railroad bridge for rail use.

Additionally, the railroad suffered its first significant incident of the last decade. On April 22nd, a tractor trailer carrying steel coils got stuck on a crossing outside Jackson. Train JAL, lead by GLOR #410, a GP40-2LW (formerly 9712), and followed by GLOR #500, a GP50, struck the loaded trailer. #410 suffered extensive damage in the accident, and will likely be sent to the scrap heap. #500 derailed and tipped on its side, but did not appear to suffer serious structural damage, although several body panals were damaged and the rear steps on the engineers side were ripped off. The crew, thankfully was able to bail from the locomotive prior to impact and were clear of the scene. The crew suffered minor injuries, but both will be able to make a full recovery. Both locomotives derailed, as well as 6 loaded steel coil cars enroute to Holt. The remainder of the train stayed upright and no hazarous materials were released and there was no fire reported.

The GLOR has attempted to regain some traffic to the traverse city area. Several carloads of apples were shipped from Washington to Go Go Squeeze in Grawn. These shipments however did not go as planned and it appears unlikely any additional inbound trainloads will be unlikely. The issue appears to be poor loading at the origination point, which caused the load to shift enroute.

It does appear that Yuma sand pit will resume operations, as work as been completed on the site to assure the loading equipment is in proper working order. Currently the GLOR has 50 sand hoppers in storage at Yuma, however, based on customer projections, it appears and additional 100 cars will need to be procured. These will likely be leased back from the GLOR's leasing branch, GLOX, which currently has 106 sand hoppers outstanding on lease of the total rostered 156 cars.

[chapmaja]

June 1st, 2022 Update:

GLOR has been operating a tank car transload out of Saginaw Yard in Lansing. These tank cars can either go to CN in Lansing orto Jackson to be forwarded on from Jackson to other interchange partners.

Operations begin today on the extended Defiance Subdivision. A change was made to the operations on the subdivision. DEF-1, which had been running from Defiance to Woodburn and return will now originate at the GLOR Fort Wayne Yard, run via trackage rights to the NS Fort Wayne East Yard, pick up their interchange traffic from NS, head east on the Defiance Sub towards Defiance, working the Ag Plus elevator if needed, as well as LafargeHolcim and Systech before arriving in Defiance. After switching the Defiance Yard they return westbound to service Ag Plus' fertilizer location, BF Goodrich, Kwik-Lok, and Westwood Lumber Sales before returning to the Fort Wayne Yards. The crew has to be careful with how they organize the train upon entering NS trackage, so they may spend time at the BF Goodrich branch, switching their train so it is properly organized for the entry into NS trackage. Power for the first day on the extended DEF-1 will be GP30M's #100 and #105. The GP30M's will provide the power needed for the trip while still being light enough locomotives to not create significant wear on the still being rehabilitated railroad.

Power on the eastern end of the Defiance Subsdivision, which could still be first generation GP's, will also be upgraded. Currently GP30M-2X #107 and GP35M #396 are powering the DEF-2. The previous units to operate the line, GP9's #50, 52, 53, 54 have been transfered to the locomotive shop in Lima for inspection and disposition.

One other bit of customer news. The Traverse City Branch may be getting an additional customer. A propane transload is being built on the very end of the line in Williamsburg. Approval has been received so now the buildout of the facility can commence. It is expected the facility will open in time for the winter season, as the tracks are in place. GLOR will be providing rehablitation to the line from current end of active trackage beyond Amerhart to the end of the line. Operations to the transload will be as follows. GLOR train TC-1 will bring the cars into the facility on the western most track, cross Old Highway 72, drop the cars at the unloading bay, pull forward, to the end of the line just shy of Williamsburg Rd before backing out on the eastern track and heading back east. It is estimated that this will produce roughly 50 carloads per year of traffic, brought in 5 car batches.

Also on the GLOR, there is work being conducted to rehabilitate the siding off the TC branch near the power substation off N. Aero Park Ct. . This property will be developed for use as a team track. The last use of the track is unknow, other than for MOW equipment storage.

Current power for train TC1 has been GP35's #390 (AA Orange Scheme) and #393 (Ferry in the Fog Scheme). These units are well suited for the volume of traffic the TC branch provides. Power is stored by the depot in TC. GLOR constructed a fences engine storage facility on the siding after some "artists" decided to as some decorations to the equipment. The "artists" were caught and instead of charges being filed, they worked out and agreement to help build the storage area fencing as well as clean their work off the locomotives.

[chapmaja]

The City of Ann Arbor and GLOR, as well as MDOT, who is a party to this issue as both the owner of the Amtrak Line and due to the proximity of the M-14 interchange, have agreed to a slight operational change which should limit the impact of trains crossing the connection. The City of Ann Arbor has, pending approval from the FRA, agreed to increase the speed of trains through Ann Arbor from 10 to 20 mph. GLOR has agreed to operate their trains as close as possible to the 20 mph through Ann Arbor. MDOT has agreed to fund an extension of the approach track of the mainline from just west of Lake Shore Drive back to just east of the Huron River crossing. GLOR has also agreed to adjust their operations of JATO slightly. JATO, when heading towards Toledo, regularly has to make a setout in the siding at Ann Arbor for NS to pick up. Generally, the train has stopped just west of the connector switch, pulled the cut off the train, headed east to just past the east end of the siding, backed into the siding (east of of the siding is just east of the Gandy Dancer). Once the drop is complete, the pull forward and back up to their train, coupling up before heading up the connector and south to Toledo. The operations will now call for the GLOR to stop in the vacinity of the Barton Dam, cut off the train, do their work, then reconnect and proceed east and south. This change, combined with the lessened grade of the new approach and the increased speed through Ann Arbor should allow the trains to have less impact on Main Street traffic.

Finally, a new project, which has been kept under wraps for several years is ready to be unveiled. For the first time in roughly 70 years, Football Specials will be running to Ann Arbor for Michigan Football Saturdays. GLOR will partner with the Steam Railroad Institute, State of Michigan and Amtrak for these trips. The first trip, which will operate on October 29th, 2022 will operate from GLOR's Saginaw Yard in Lansing with a stop at the Amtrak Station in Jackson before terminating at Ferry Yard in Ann Arbor. Passengers will disembark at 5:30pm, for a 7:30pm kickoff. The train will leave to return to Lansing 90 minutes after the conclusion of the Michigan vs Michigan State game. The package, including an on train pre-game meal, game tickets and train travel experience will be sold via the SRI's website. It is estimated that in the future additional versions of this train will be offered, although exact football specials will be determined in future years. The GLOR has attempted to work with Canadian National about running a train to Mihcigan State in 2023, however citing operational and liability concerns, CN has declined to be involved.

[AARR]

Impressive attention to details

[chapmaja]

Impressive attention to details

Thank you.

[chapmaja]

The GLOR will also be resuming another service which has been lost for several years in the fall of 2022.

2016 was the final year the sugar beet service was conducted. After 2016, the sugar beets were all transported by truck to the sugar plants. The current plan is for Sugar beets to be loaded into the ex-GMO hoppers, which are currently owned by the ICN and used for stone service, at multiple loading sites in the thumb and be delivered to two of the Michigan Sugar plants, Bay City and Sebawing. The Caro and Croswell plants at this time will not resume beet deliveries by rail, but will maintain outbound product service.

It is estimated that only a small fraction of the sugar beets refined will be brought in by rail, but the GLOR is working to increase that volume over the next few years. Depending on how the 2022 season goes, the GLOR may look at purchasing addition cars for use in this service. One possibility is to use old coal hoppers which are being removed from service due to the declining number of coal fired power plants.

[AARR]

For sale at scrap prices

which are currently owned by the ICN and used for stone service

[chapmaja]

For sale at scrap prices

which are currently owned by the ICN and used for stone service

I'm still back in 2022, give it time they may get purchased for slightly more than scrap prices (but not much more).

[AARR]

Oops, you are correct, back in 22 they were still in stone service for ICN.

For sale at scrap prices

which are currently owned by the ICN and used for stone service

I'm still back in 2022, give it time they may get purchased for slightly more than scrap prices (but not much more).

[chapmaja]

Summer, 2022: Several large projects are ongoing on the western side of the State of Michigan and require gravel. Given that these are government funded projects, State of Michigan policies provide preference to state based providers. As a result, the State of Michigan has requested that contractors acquire their gravel from Big Cut Gravel on the Mackinaw and Bay City Railroad. While trucking the gravel would be a much shorter trip, the size of the projects and the condition of the roads in Michigan has lead to multiple road commissions requesting that rail be the courier of choice for these shipments. As a result, starting late this summer, and continuing at least through the 2023 construction season, Big Cut Gravel will be shipping weekly 30 car cuts of gravel to a staging area outside Cadillac. These cars will be transfered to the LSRC, who will transfer them to the GLOR in Bay City, who will take them to Durand and then up the old Ann Arbor to Cadillac. Depending on how this operation goes, there is a possibility future projects could also use the product from Big Cut Gravel and use a similar rail routing.

These contract is seens as at least a temporary reprieve for Big Cut Gravel as it was expected to close at the conclusion of the summer 2022 season.

Additionally, there is talk of several counties getting together for a road salt distribution center in northern Michigan, likely in or near Traverse City. The GLOR is pushing hard to gain access to this business. The proposed supplier of this salt would be Detroit Salt Company. If the GLOR is able to get a contract to provide salt to this facility, the likely routing for these cars would be NS from Detroit to Milan where the cars would be interchanged to the GLOR for delivery in Traverse City. The exact location of this facility has yet to be determined.

Additionally, there have been discussions between the Grand Rapids Southeastern and Lime and Gypsum products about shipping products from their location in Turner, Michigan to the facility outside Vermontville. Initial discussions focused on a route of the LSRC to Plymouth and CSX to Grand Rapids where GRSE would deliver the products to the consumer. GLOR is trying to pursue the role of intermediate carrier for this product as well and is proposing a routing of Turner to Bay City or Saginaw via the Lake State, where the cars would be interchanged to the GLOR to Durand and then Grand Rapids, where they would be delivered to the GRSE and to the consumer. Time will tell what happens with this operation, but the GLOR is attempting to build not only new customers on their lines, but also new through rail service along the Durand to Grand Rapids segment of the line.

In other news, a pair of previous rail customers locations in Grand Rapids will have switches reinstalled in the coming weeks and their sidings refurbished. Brick Supply, 612 Crosby St NW will resume rail service. They will be receiving inbound brick at a rate of 1-2 carloads per month. The second customer will be Profile Films, located north of Ann St. They will receive direct shipments of plastic pellets and will have space on their spur to unload 4 cars at a time. The spur will use the same routing as a long removed spur to a former factory across Nason St NW.


Finally, on the Lake Michigan Subdivision, the GLOR is in talks to add a third customer siding to the line. Woodland Paving, located on Mill Creek Ave NW is a target customer to receive paving products inbound. They would be getting aggregates for use in their paving servces inbound.

There is also the potential for a new customer on the line between Grand Rapids and Muskegon. Grand Valley Concrete products has also expressed interest in expanding their operation. They would receive inbound supplies and possibly ship outbound finished outbound finished products. They are located just west of the Meijer distribution center in Walker.

GLOR's Sales team has been hard at work trying to drum up business for the railroad to avoid the loss of business as a result of customers closing. GLOR will be losing the contract they have had for many years to deliver western coal to the Karn 1 and 2 facilities in Exxessville in 2023. The current plan is for the last trains to run into Exxessville in roughly May 2023. The loss of the coal traffic is a blow to the railroad, but one that has not been expected, as the push for clean energy has lead to the closing of many other plants in recent years across the state.

In roster news, GLOX NW2 1977 has been sold to the MMGN and will be transfered after it is overhauled in Owosso this summer.

[chapmaja]

Summer 2022 Update:

Expansion has been the name of the game for the GLOR recently. Three major expansion projects have been in the works this summer.

The reactivation of tracks in Durand has been completed. New ties and ballast have been laid and the tracks on the southwest side (coaling tower) side of the yard to allow for the ractiviation of 6 tracks for use in the yard. These additional tracks will allow better utlization of the yard space which is seeing an increased volume of traffic. The current plan is for CN to use these tracks as the interchange tracks. The tracks will be designated for CN to drop cars off, while an additional 3 tracks will be used for cars spotted for CN pickup from the yard.

The second project is the expansion the Delta Yard and the building of the car repair facility. The land has been purchased and grading is in progress for the car reapir facility. This facility will be located on the east side of the GLOR's mainline and will be accessed from the GLOR's yard on the west side of by running next to the NS mainline. The Delta Yard has also been undergoing expansion and rehabilitation. The existing 4 tracks have been extended west to a point just short of country route 10. In addition, a 5th track has been installed between the yard and the NS mainline. This track will serve as the the runaround track for the yard and will be the extension that runs under the mainline to the car reapir facility.

The third project is expansion of the Cadillac Yards. In Selma Yard, the yard lead track will be extended by approximately 4000 feet to the west, creating a double track from the yard to approximately the location of the Cadillac Renewable Energy plant. In North Yard, 3 additional tracks, approximately 1000 feet in length will be added with switches at both ended. Gradding for these tracks has been completed. The current plan is for the southbound train CP to be able to bring his train to a stop north of the yard and block his train in those three tracks for train CAOW to run southbound. The remaining tracks in the yard will be available for northbound OWCA and location trains to use for organization and blocking purposes.

A fourth project, the building of a SW quadrant wye at Diann will be graded this this fall with the connector either going into service late this fall or in the Spring of 2023. The grading of the SW Wye at Diann will create an arrangement at Diann as follows.

NW Quad - Switch from main to wye lead 1700 feet west of diamond. 2nd wye switch 1200 feet west of diamond. Tracks curve north approximately 575 feet west of diamond. Inner wye switch to NB main 530 feet north of diamond. Outer track switch approximately 830 feet north of diamond.

NE Quad - 1600 feet east of diamond. 2nd wye switch 1250 feet east of diamond. Curve starts 1025 feet east of diamond. Inner wye track connects to NB main 1000 feet from diamond. Outer wye track connects to NB main 1250 feet north of diamond.

SE Quad wye track - currently OOS - connects to main 580 feet east of diamond and connects to main 650 feet south of diamond.

New SW Quad wye track will connect to SB main 1500 feet south of the diamond and will connect to the WB main 1300 feet west of the diamond. The speed limit on the wye will be 10 mph as there will be a private crossing for the land owner who GLOR has acquired the easement from to access his property inside the wye.

The Diann "Yard" consists of two sidings, on the west side of the N/S Mainline. The ladder yard consists of an outer track 2300 feet long and the inner track 2100 feet long. The southern lead is 100 feet north of the NW quadrant wye switch, while the northern lead is 575 feet south of Dixon Rd.

The addition of this wye will eliminate the backup moves needed by the autorack trains. The current backup moves required to use NE wye often blocks both Gloff and Irish roads for an extended period of east of the diamond and it is not uncommon for the trains to require NB movement all the way to M-50 in Dundee, something the community is not happy about.

[chapmaja]

Fall 2022 Update: Grading is complete and track laying is nearly complete at the new SW wye at Diann. Signal work is nearly complete as well. Weather dependent, the wye track should be operational by the beginning of winter.

Construction is beginning on a siding for another new customer in the Toledo area. Toledo Steel Supply, located on Lavoy Rd will be getting a siding to their facility. They are the areas leading supplier of plate steel. This siding will from the connection track used by SB trains to access Erie Yard. In addition, the GLOR is establishing a team track transload facility on the same property as the connection track.

In Delta, property grading has been completed and the construction of the GLOR railcar repair facility is getting started. Track work inside the buildings will be completed once the building framing is completed. Exterior track work is expected to begin in the spring with the connection track under the GLOR mainline being completed just prior to the facility opening.

In Cadillac, the work at North Yard is complete. Grading work was completed on the extension to Selma Yard, however the road commission is waiting until Spring 2023 to close Leeson Ave for crossing construction, so the project will be on hold until then.

The sand pit at Yuma has completed renovations on their equipment and it is expected that they will begin service in the Spring of 2023. GLOX has recalled the leased fleet of hoppers and will be using those cars to provide the sand service from Yuma.

A second sand mining operation is looking at possibly opening alongside the line in Wexford Township, northwest of Mesick. If this opens the GLOR/GLOX will need to purchase additional cars for the operation.

In other sand related news, Sargent Sand in Ludington will begin transloading sand onto the GLOR in Ludington again in the spring of 2023. The sand pit, which formerly was accessed by the Ludington Northern, had been shipping sand loads to the Muskegon area or Grand Rapids previously. The GLOR's steady record of performance has convinced the company to begin transloading sand in Ludington. Cars for this operation will be diverted from those being loaded in Grand Rapids and Muskegon, although GLOR/GLOX may include additional cars in their desired purchase for the Wexford Township facility. The sand transload site, which will be located east of Ludington, off US10 will also provide access for several other potential customers who have expressed interest in a possible transload facility.

On the southern end of the line, there is no significant change in the Purina facility in Batavia. It is still under construction with no firm opening date set.

There is also a "new" customer being added to the line in Grawn. At the very end of the line is a propane distributor. This location has asked for rail to be reinstalled into their facility for the winter propane season. Crews have already begun work on the spur as well as the "main" beyond the end of the spur. Given the location of the facility, train TC1 will operate in a push pull manner to this location, with the lead unit cutting off and pulling ahead on the main, while the trailing unit then handles the switching of the sput before the train heads back east. The customer has indicated the current plan is to get 4 to 5 5 car blocks of propane to be unloaded at the facility. While not a busy customer, this will be additional service the TC area rails are lacking.

With the opening of two new propane distributors, things will be looking slightly better in the TC area. The following businesses are expected to be rail service customers on the TC branch. Grawn Propane, GoGo Squeeze, Beacon Recycling, Amerhart, Williamsburg Propane. There is also the possibility of a road salt transload as well, but the railroad has not gotten confirmation of this at this time.

[chapmaja]

November 2022 Update: DOW has recently announced they will be changing contract switching companies at their Midland facility. GLOR will take over as the contract switching provider for the complext effective January 1st, 2023. The operations will still be considered as part of the railroad operations, rather than as a separate switching entity. Power for the switching operation will be MP15AC's #5 and #6, as well as SW1500 GLOX #4. GLOX #1, and SW1200, will remain stored in Bay City as a backup unit for the switching service. This switchers will replace the current Railserve switchers operating under contract within the facility. The crews will be designation as DOW-1, DOW-2 and DOW-3 for the first, second and third shift switching operations.

Rail service to the facility will remain the same, with both GLOR and Lake State providing rail service to the facility.

In other news,

The opening date for Purina has still not been announced, but track work on the facility has yet to begin, so it will likely be at least a year before any additional service begins on the line.

The railroad will also begin a rebuild program on its now aging fleet of of GP40's, GP38-2's and SD40-2's. The first three locomotives to hit the Lima shops will be GLOX GP40's #405, #406 and #407.

The Football Special Train went off without any major hitches. The train arrived in Ann Arbor's Ferry Yard slightly behind schedule, at 6:03 pm. This delay was caused by a very late running Amtrak train taking priority over the line (due to a car train grade crossing incident), forcing the GLOR Football Special (symbol FB-1 to AA and FB-2 back to Lansing) to be delayed in Jackson. The return trip did run into an interesting delay as well. As the train was leaving Ferry Yard, they were informed that dispatchers had cleared JATO beyond the Chelsea siding, meaning there was no place for a meet to occur. Instead of backing the train back to Ferry Yard, the GLOR crew took the train north of the interchange track switch, parked the train on the bridge over the Huron River and passengers got to have a scenic view of Argo dam and Argo pond. The reason for pulling onto the bridge rather than backing into AA was deemed as safety. There were concerns that the number of post-game celebrators may be around the track and may be slightly impaired enough to pose a safety hazard.

The Diann connector track is nearing completion, with signal working being completed around the middle of the month and the track expected to open soon after.

Operations on the Defiance Subdivision have been better than expected, with the traffic volume slightly higher than expected. NS, which has been known to have difficulty clearing their mainlines for incoming traffic, has been very good at providing DEF-1 clearance into the yard and clearance out of the yard to begin their day.

The previously mentioned SE quadrant connector at Diann, which had not seen traffic in years, since CN pulled their trackage rights train off the line may begin getting service again as well. CN is considering moving the interchange point for some traffic from the GLOR in Toledo to Flat Rock, at least temporarily. As a result, on December 1st, a new train pair, TFR and FRT will begin running. Train TFR will run from Ottawa Yard in Toledo, making a pickup at Erie Yard in Erie, before heading to Flat Rock. The same crew is expected to make the return trip as well as train FRT.

In Traverse City, both propane customers have begun getting shipments. The Thursday 10-27-2022 TC-1 Train may have been a recent time record. TC-1 pulled into TC with 4 carloads of propane for Grawn propane, a 5 car cut of propane for Williamsburg, 5 additional cars for Beacon, 2 boxcars for loading at Go Go Squeeze and 2 centerbeams for Amerihart. The length of the train required the crew to make some uncommon switching moves once they arrived in TC as they had to run both directions in a push pull format. TC-1 did not make its normal post-workday run to Walton Jct, meaning there wil be a SB Friday run with at least the three loads pulled from Go Go Squeeze and the two pulled from Beacon. Also, the Aero Park Team track is available and GLOR has been marketing it to local businesses without sucess yet. The spur has room for unloading 3 60 foot railcars.

The Brookville Subdivision has seen some changes for the good and not so good in recent years. The good is that Melvin Stone / Valley Asphalt has built a loop track off the Brookville Subdivision in Harrison, Oh. This makes three active customers on the Brookville Subdivision, and by far the largest. The bad news is the most recent inspection of the Brookville subdivision noted additional washouts of the line. Parts of the line were in such poor condition that the only inspction that could be completed was a walking inspection as equipment was in danger of derailing. The only customer on the line, Owens Corning in Brookville had inquired about restarting rail service in the future, however the GLOR has indicated it would be cost prohibitive to reactivate the line.

The GLOR sales team has been in contact with a couple potential shippers for the Blue Ash Subdivision, but as of now nothing is announcable.