Western Michigan (WMIG)

Sub forum for Paper Railroads
User avatar
AARR
Ann Arbor RR Nerd
Posts: 37905
Joined: Wed Dec 22, 2004 7:39 pm
Location: Washington, MI

Western Michigan (WMIG)

Unread post by AARR »

I acquired this line from Pioneer just before they removed the track east of Hartford. So that is the good news. The bad news is the only customer, Hanson Logistics in Hartford, received one car of tomato paste and stopped service to Hartford in favor of their warehouse near Chicago. So now I have 15 miles of track and no customers. It was time to hustle.

With a single 55 year old GP7 as power I hustled a transload for East Jordan Plastics who just acquired a plant in South Haven. They receive 3-4 cars per month and transload on a team track right next to our interchange with CSX.

Next, a company that chips rubber located between Hartford and Lawrence. After a slow start they are currently shipping 3-4 cars per week.

Just west of Paw Paw Michigan Natural Storage, who before I took over received the last carload of business east of Hartford, resumed rail service receiving a carload of potatoes about every 4-weeks.

Coca Cola / Minute Maid west of Paw Paw finally decided to receive corn syrup by rail. This was a surprise to everyone because, even though other Coca Cola plants use rail service, this one was not willing to invest in the infrastructure due to short-term cost. However, a GM was recently assigned here whom had come from another plant that received rail service, understood the long-term cost savings and was willing to make the investment. After a bumpy start, which the GM had some serious regrets and threatened going back to trucks, we seem to have ironed out the issues with CSX and now receive 4-6 cars per week steadily keeping 2-weeks supply SIT at all times.

A local farmer who was tired of price fluctuations from local trucking companies partnered with us to deliver liquid feed. We built a short, two car spur for him east of Hartford. After successfully receiving several cars he persuaded other farmers to join him. At this time he gets 4-5 cars per month with a strong potential upside.

Knouse Foods, who like Coca Cola ships by rail at many other plants, but was exclusively using truck at its Paw Paw plant, was open to trying rail service again on a lane out east via CSX. Since their spur was gone and we would have to build across a major road to reinstall it, instead they are using one of the warehouse west of their plant to transload. Currently they are shipping about 2 cars a week. At first we used 2nd hand 57' refrigerated box cars but that was not giving them the economies of size to make this economically work. What they really need are those new large refrigerated box cars. But they are very expensive and cost prohibitive for a small shipper like KF.

This next customer shows why sometimes it is better to be lucky than be good. Hanson Logistics in Hartford had not received any rail traffic in years. They sold their building to an entrepreneur who named her company Lineage Logistics and she was open to resuming rail service. Lineage is receiving 2-4 cars per week of the large refrigerated box cars carrying tomato paste in one-ton totes. After the cars are empty we take them to Paw Paw for Knouse to load giving them the larger rail cars to get the economies of size they need to make rail service economical. CSX benefits by hauling loads in both directions (even though it is small volume).

That last customer is currently on a trial bases. We are delivering animal feed to Lawrence for transloading. Right now, it averages about 5-7 cars a week but has the potential to increase to 7-10. Transload business is always ripe for losing to other railroads and we do not have the relationship with this customer like we do the others so we have to handle their business promptly and hope for the best.

The GP7 soldiers on but I am in the market for new power. A couple switcher types would be a good fit. If the animal feed customer enters into a long term contract I might even consider something newer like SW1500's or MP1500's.

Operations is twice a week, Monday and Thursday, like a clock. The only passing siding is in Paw Paw so we go east switching all the eastbound customers then return west switching the westbound customers. When we arrive in Hartford we pull the engine into the Team track. We have to be diligent because when CSX arrives we have to be ready to move our engine out of the Team track right after CSX pulls the outbounds but before they setout the inbounds. CSX will usually give us 6-8 hours notice but their arrival time is not always timely so we just have to wait for them and be ready.

CSX right now is giving very good service but it goes up and down depending what their Jacksonville decision makers decide about the operations schedule out of Grand Rapids. The local CSX employees are good enough but if CSX decision makers cut local service they can not control that and sometimes service might change by 24-72 hours. Like I said above, we just have to be diligent.

Traffic is grown from literally 0 to currently forecasting around 1,250 carloads in 2022. At this time all is good but we always have to be ready for an unexpected road bump.
PatC created a monster, 'cause nobody wants to see Don Simon no more they want AARR I'm chopped liver, well if you want AARR this is what I'll give ya, bad humor mixed with irrelevant info that'll make you roll your eyes quicker than a ~Z~ banhammer...

GRHC
Railroadfan...fan
Posts: 1854
Joined: Wed Mar 02, 2022 9:32 am

Re: Western Michigan (WMIG)

Unread post by GRHC »

Back in the late 1980s my wife and I took the train from Paw Paw to Lawrence and back. The previous operator of the line the Kalamazoo Lakeshore and Chicago ran a tourist operation that seemed quite successful. I’m just wondering if there’s any plans to re-institute that service? I enjoyed the trip very much and would love to take it again.
Attachments
64195A51-0E4D-4A46-A524-47C55179BB4A.jpeg
64195A51-0E4D-4A46-A524-47C55179BB4A.jpeg (26.32 KiB) Viewed 11747 times
Last edited by GRHC on Sun Apr 03, 2022 9:11 am, edited 1 time in total.

User avatar
AARR
Ann Arbor RR Nerd
Posts: 37905
Joined: Wed Dec 22, 2004 7:39 pm
Location: Washington, MI

Re: Western Michigan (WMIG)

Unread post by AARR »

Thank you for posting the information. This is an important part of the lines history that I am not well-versed on so I am glad you did. Due to track capacity limitations WMIG will be freight only for the foreseeable future. But, if we lose freight traffic things could change.

I have a paper railroad that specializes in passenger type services (unpublished). It is the Mt. Clemens and Selfridge (MC&S). It runs from Mt. Clemens Depot to the end of the line in Selfridge, approximately 6 miles. We offer a variety of passenger trains including breakfast, lunch, dinner, comedy, murder mystery, Holiday Specials, Kid Specials, Special Specials :) , etc. FP9 1755 (undetermined heritage at this time) and ex-GTW GP9 4930 are painted in heritage colors and pull/push the trains. Around 2017 we picked up some freight business when the Selfridge KC135 refueling squadron was given an extension and additional responsibilities. The military decided that having a rail option (they already have pipeline and trucks) was critical. So periodically MC&S handles a handful of jet fuel tank cars.
GR H & C wrote:
Sun Apr 03, 2022 8:21 am
Back in the late 1980s my wife and I took the train from Paw Paw to Lawrence and back.
PatC created a monster, 'cause nobody wants to see Don Simon no more they want AARR I'm chopped liver, well if you want AARR this is what I'll give ya, bad humor mixed with irrelevant info that'll make you roll your eyes quicker than a ~Z~ banhammer...

GRHC
Railroadfan...fan
Posts: 1854
Joined: Wed Mar 02, 2022 9:32 am

Re: Western Michigan (WMIG)

Unread post by GRHC »

AARR wrote:
Sun Apr 03, 2022 9:11 am
Thank you for posting the information. This is an important part of the lines history that I am not well-versed on so I am glad you did. Due to track capacity limitations WMIG will be freight only for the foreseeable future. But, if we lose freight traffic things could change.

I have a paper railroad that specializes in passenger type services (unpublished). It is the Mt. Clemens and Selfridge (MC&S). It runs from Mt. Clemens Depot to the end of the line in Selfridge, approximately 6 miles. We offer a variety of passenger trains including breakfast, lunch, dinner, comedy, murder mystery, Holiday Specials, Kid Specials, Special Specials :) , etc. FP9 xxxx (undetermined heritage at this time) and ex-GTW GP9 4930 are painted in heritage colors and pull/push the trains. Around 2017 we picked up some freight business when the Selfridge KC135 refueling squadron was given an extension and additional responsibilities. The military decided that having a rail option (they already have pipeline and trucks) was critical. So periodically MC&S handles a handful of jet fuel tank cars.
GR H & C wrote:
Sun Apr 03, 2022 8:21 am
Back in the late 1980s my wife and I took the train from Paw Paw to Lawrence and back.
I was surprised that the line to South Haven was not saved considering there was a lumber company and some other industries in town as well as the line to the Palisades nuclear power plant. At one time the Kalamazoo Lakeshore and Chicago showed interest in purchasing the line.
The line was still intact from Hartford to South Haven at the time and I was talking to one of the crew that was working on the train and he said they would like to buy the line. The idea was to run trains from Paw Paw all the way to South Haven. However there was no diamond so the Kalamazoo Lakeshore and Chicago would have to enter onto the CSX main and then enter back onto the South Haven branch and CSX would have none of that.

The line was originally called the Kalamazoo Lakeshore and Chicago aka The Fruit Belt line before being purchased by the Pere Marquette. The reason why they had Chicago in the name of the railway was because of the boat connection from South Haven to Chicago. Originally there were plans to electrify the line but those plans never came to be.
Last edited by GRHC on Wed Apr 06, 2022 11:24 am, edited 2 times in total.

User avatar
AARR
Ann Arbor RR Nerd
Posts: 37905
Joined: Wed Dec 22, 2004 7:39 pm
Location: Washington, MI

Re: Western Michigan (WMIG)

Unread post by AARR »

Thank you for the good information GR H & C :) .

I have some bad news and some good news. First the bad. The animal feed transload in Lawrence will discontinue service. As I mentioned I did not have a relationship with the company. They did not communicate with me much and were all business. Turns out they were also shipping some cars to NS (where feed originates)-GDLK-MSO. They are choosing this route due to cheaper price because NS is giving a better rate for single haul. Even though I am disappointed I understand their reasoning.

Knouse Foods is also discontinuing rail service. Over the last three months on three occasions their cars, destined for NY, were lost in CSX's system and ended up in very strange places including FL, WI and GA. CSX's local crews in GR handled the cars just fine but the yard crews in Chicago misplaced them. One of the cars ended up at another canning plant for loading and no one realized it was a load until they opened the door (doesn't anyone look at the springs!). I worked hard to cultivate this customer and develop a relationship but with the lost cars and cost of cross-dock loading their product they feel it makes more economical sense to go truck/intermodal.

Now for some good news. Lineage Logistics will begin handling carrots and potatoes as well as tomato sauce. They expect carloads to reach up to 30 per month by June of this year.

Coca Cola near Paw Paw will be getting one of the lines from the now closed Detroit Plant. They are forecasting increasing corn syrup traffic from 18-25 per month to 22-30 starting around September.

Overall 2022's traffic will drop substantially but by years end we should be on track to handle about 1,000 cars annually.
PatC created a monster, 'cause nobody wants to see Don Simon no more they want AARR I'm chopped liver, well if you want AARR this is what I'll give ya, bad humor mixed with irrelevant info that'll make you roll your eyes quicker than a ~Z~ banhammer...

User avatar
SD80MAC
Ingersoll's Mr. Michigan
Posts: 10431
Joined: Thu Mar 10, 2005 4:59 pm
Location: Grand Rapids

Re: Western Michigan (WMIG)

Unread post by SD80MAC »

Boy this sounds vaguely familiar.
"Remember, 4 mph is a couple, 5's a collision!"
http://flickriver.com/photos/conrail680 ... teresting/
Image

User avatar
AARR
Ann Arbor RR Nerd
Posts: 37905
Joined: Wed Dec 22, 2004 7:39 pm
Location: Washington, MI

Re: Western Michigan (WMIG)

Unread post by AARR »

WMIG has acquired a pair of engines that are going into service June. They are:
GLLX 1397 MP15AC 1976 Ex-UPY 1397/UP 1397/MILW 442.
GLLX 1416 MP15AC 1976 Ex-UPY 1416/UP 1416/SOO 1515/MILW 449.

One of WMIG's investors acquired these engines at a very good price. So although they are a little bit more than what the line actually needs their lower cost justifies it.

The venerable GP7 was starting to have issues and needed to be replaced before it impacted the lines service.

Also note that Linear Logistics, east of Hartford, and WMIG have developed some backhaul business that can utilize the large refrigerated box cars that see their way here. Outbound loads of apples, cherries and potatoes (yes, it sounds weird but there will be both inbound and outbound potatoes) will soon be added. At this time inbound loads to Linear average around 2-4 per week but that is expected to jump as high as 30 a month sometime in June.
PatC created a monster, 'cause nobody wants to see Don Simon no more they want AARR I'm chopped liver, well if you want AARR this is what I'll give ya, bad humor mixed with irrelevant info that'll make you roll your eyes quicker than a ~Z~ banhammer...

User avatar
AARR
Ann Arbor RR Nerd
Posts: 37905
Joined: Wed Dec 22, 2004 7:39 pm
Location: Washington, MI

Re: Western Michigan (WMIG)

Unread post by AARR »

Both MP15AC's have been moved to a new short line, Hamilton Northeastern Railroad Co. The investor who brought them to WMIG has assisted in acquiring two more engines. While the MP15's were more than what the line called for, the SW1200's are a perfect fit.

Owner: Western Michigan 1512
Model: EMD SW1200 Built As: GTW 1512 (SW1200)
Serial Number: 25744 Order No: 4437
Frame Number: 4437-2 Built: 3/1960
Notes: Acquired from GLLX 2022
Other locos with this serial: GLLX 1512(SW1200) ABRX 1512(SW1200) MAL 1512(SW1200) CRLE 1512(SW1200) GTW 1512(SW1200)
Image

Owner: Western Michigan 1502
Model: EMD SW1200 Built As: GTW 1202 (SW1200)
Serial Number: 20415 Order No: 4270
Frame Number: 4270-3 Built: 6/1955
Notes: Acquired from RR&R 2022 (stored serviceable). Large break cylinders (early road switcher version).
Other locos with this serial: CV 1502(SW1200) GTW 1502(SW1200) GTW 1507(SW1200) GTW 1202(SW1200)
Image
PatC created a monster, 'cause nobody wants to see Don Simon no more they want AARR I'm chopped liver, well if you want AARR this is what I'll give ya, bad humor mixed with irrelevant info that'll make you roll your eyes quicker than a ~Z~ banhammer...

User avatar
AARR
Ann Arbor RR Nerd
Posts: 37905
Joined: Wed Dec 22, 2004 7:39 pm
Location: Washington, MI

Re: Western Michigan (WMIG)

Unread post by AARR »

As forecasted Lineage Logistics is receiving 5-7 cars of week of various produce from the west. About a third of those cars are back filled with various MI produce and sent back full to their western origins.

The local farmer who established a liquid animal feed transload east of Hartford is seeing business grow from 4-5 cars per month to 5-7 cars per month.

Operations continues to be twice a week, Monday and Thursday. CSX usually arrives later in the afternoon and WMIG's crew has to meet them at the interchange to exchange cars because there is no passing siding. The crews have to shuffle the cars back and forth to get the right cars on the right train going in the right direction. WMIG will then operate 1502 and 1512 in a push/pull set up switching whatever industries are required. Most days the finish their 12 hour shift across from Lineage Logistics and park there. There are times when they do not finish all their work in 12 hours so the next day have to dog-catch the train and wrap up the assignments before tying up.

Coca Cola is still on target to expand its operations in September and increase shipments from 18-25 per month to 22-30.

1502 (last remaining SW1200 with the original road truck/extra large brake cylinder) and 1512 are very reliable. 1502 is popular with railfans.

WMIG tries to be railfan friendly as long as their equipment and property is respected. One of the employees, who probably does not want to be named, is a widely known railroad photographer and respected for his overall knowledge of the railroad industry.
PatC created a monster, 'cause nobody wants to see Don Simon no more they want AARR I'm chopped liver, well if you want AARR this is what I'll give ya, bad humor mixed with irrelevant info that'll make you roll your eyes quicker than a ~Z~ banhammer...

User avatar
AARR
Ann Arbor RR Nerd
Posts: 37905
Joined: Wed Dec 22, 2004 7:39 pm
Location: Washington, MI

Re: Western Michigan (WMIG)

Unread post by AARR »

There are several updates to mention. The dynamics of their customers have been changing surprisingly quick:
• Lineage Logistics has lost several product lines due to customers preference of trucks but there are two customer who seem to want to use rail for the long haul. Lineage will continue to handle tomato paste for several western MI food processors. This usually averages 2-4 cars per week which is about double what the previous owner handled.
• Lineage appears to have landed a permanent customer in the Traverse City area who will receive apples from WA. They have a warehouse in WA and have a spur to their TC plant but needed additional space and covered up the spurs. Service will be on an as-needed basis but should average 4-10 cars a month.
• The Team track east of Hartford that handles liquid feed is growing. It started out receiving 4-5 cars per month but in August received six cars and will be receiving seven in September.
• The Coca-Cola/Minute Maid plant west of Paw Paw will receive a product line from the now closed Detroit plant. This was supposed to increase carloads of corn syrup from 4-6 cars per week to 5-7. However, Coca Cola announced that due to customer demand for products that do not contain corn syrup the product line will be made with other ingredients. The products that already are manufactured with corn syrup will remain (4-6 cars per week). Coca Cola is talking to WMIG about receiving non-corn syrup ingredients by rail.

Despite the ups and downs, WMIG is holding its own by managing its tight budgets and having everyone pitch in wherever they can.

Railfans are welcomed but please stay off the equipment and tracks. The train usually operates on Tuesday and Friday starting out around 8am near the Hartford interchange with CSX and finishing up its day meeting the CSX local from Grand Rapids later in the afternoon. A third day of operations happens if a hot car arrives and needs to be delivered the next day.

SW1200 1502, the last road switcher version that was built with large brake cylinders (rather than flexicoil tracks) is very popular with the railfans. It has been overhauled and is expected to remain on the roster for many years to come.
PatC created a monster, 'cause nobody wants to see Don Simon no more they want AARR I'm chopped liver, well if you want AARR this is what I'll give ya, bad humor mixed with irrelevant info that'll make you roll your eyes quicker than a ~Z~ banhammer...

User avatar
AARR
Ann Arbor RR Nerd
Posts: 37905
Joined: Wed Dec 22, 2004 7:39 pm
Location: Washington, MI

Re: Western Michigan (WMIG)

Unread post by AARR »

WMIG has entered into an agreement with Hamilton Hartford Group to sell WMIG effective 1/1/23. Despite a strong effort WMIG was not able to attain the 100 cars per mile per year average it takes to achieve profitability. And it didn’t have any other railroads it could bundle its administrative and operations costs with. HHG will be in a much better position to maintain and grow business.
PatC created a monster, 'cause nobody wants to see Don Simon no more they want AARR I'm chopped liver, well if you want AARR this is what I'll give ya, bad humor mixed with irrelevant info that'll make you roll your eyes quicker than a ~Z~ banhammer...

Post Reply