Paducah & Bowling Green RR

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The Paducah & Bowling Green (reporting marks PBGR) was a regional carrier that operated the former Bowling Green Southern mainline between the two namesake cities from 1973 to 1996. Due to its redundancy in the BGS system, the line was sold to a group out of Paducah and the P&BG was formed. As part of the sale, the group was given a collection of aging BGS EMD's, including three sets of A-B-A configured F7's. The purchase quickly became a success, as local traffic along the line boomed and some overhead traffic was gained. The operation also quickly became a hit with railfans far and wide thanks to their friendly staff and highly sought after collection of EMD's. A classy red, white and black scheme was applied to every engine by the end of 1974, and operations saw little change in the first 12 years of operation. This will focus on the P&BG as it was in 1983.

End to end, the P&BG operated roughly 140 miles of mainline, with two branchlines that were 13 and 21 miles long. The railroad maintained three main yards: Jackson Street Yard in Paducah, Afton Yard in Afton, and East Street Yard in Bowling Green. Afton was the midway point on the system, and was also where each of the road trains (with the exception of the end to end "Sprint Trains") would do work before turning back to either Paducah or Bowling Green. In all, the railroad operated four road trains and six locals for the majority of its existence. By 1983, most of the mainline was rated for 40 mph running, but stiff grades across the board would usually hold the road trains back from track speed. Below is a list and description of each of the regular road jobs on the system.

RS-1 - Paducah to Afton Turn
The RS-1 originated in Paducah with traffic for Afton and points in between. This job almost never varied, and the summertime was the prime time for chasing on the west end of the P&BG. The normal call time was 04:00 and the eastbound run to Afton would usually depart Jackson Street shortly after sunrise during the summer months. A normal eastbound run took about three hours. Upon arriving in Afton, the crew would break up their train and spend anywhere from three to six hours working in the yard. Every day, the afternoon crew would come on duty at 15:00 to take over for the morning crew. They would finish building the train for the return trip before departing for the return to Paducah. Typically, the train would depart Afton around 17:00 and arrive back in Paducah around 20:00. They would then switch out their train before tying up for the night.

RS-2 - Bowling Green to Afton Turn
The RS-2 originated in Bowling Green with traffic for Afton and points in between. This job ran on a consistent schedule as well, although chasing on the east end was more conducive to cloudy days. The morning crew went on duty at 07:00 and usually departed around 10:00. A normal run west took about two and a half hours. Once in Afton, the crew would switch out the train and build the new train for the return to Bowling Green. The evening crew would come on duty at 18:00 and take the train back to Bowling Green before switching it out and tying up for the night.

Eastbound/Westbound Sprints - Paducah to Bowling Green Freight
The sprints were usually night runs across the system to avoid interference from other jobs. The night crews were normally called at 00:01 and would depart soon after their arrival, as their trains were always assembled by one of the yard jobs. The sprint trains were usually fairly short, averaging between 30-40 cars, but nearly always rated three or four engines. They did not run non-stop, however, as each night they would meet in Afton and the crews would swap trains in order to return to their home terminals. This usually occurred between 03-04:00, and some nights the crews would walk over to the trackside diner that was open 24/7/365 for an early breakfast. Each train would normally arrive in Paducah or BG around 08-09:00.

P&BG Engine Roster as of 7/1/83
EMD GP7 #70
EMD GP7 #72
EMD GP7 #73
EMD GP9 #90
EMD GP9 #91
EMD F7 #100
EMD F7 #101
EMD F7 #103
EMD F7 #105
EMD F7B #110
EMD F7B #112
EMD F7B #113
EMD F7B #114
EMD GP20 #200
EMD SD24 #240
EMD SD24 #241
EMD SD40-2 #400
EMD SD40-2 #401
EMD SD40-2 #402
EMD SD45 #450
EMD SD45 #451