Bellevue humpyard

[redside20]

While were on the subject of railyards and block swap yards i read in the paper awhile back (Bellevue Gazette) that NS was going add on or extend a part of the Bellevue railyard. Can any anyone who is close to a proven source here confirm this?

[redside20]

Well i got my answer on the Columbus yahoo railfan group about the expansion. It seems that rail and other material supplying the Bellevue Yard expansion will come from Buckeye Yard. The word is that a quarter of the yard tracks will be pulled up and the hump will be demolished. Now this will leave another quarter of the yard for the CSX intermodal yard expansion and the future of the rest of the yard is up in the air. Maybe it will come back at a flat switch yard, storage yard, multimodal facility, transflo...maybe even tear the remaining tracks out...who knows the possibilities are endless.
In Bellevue, i read that the interlocking at the Mini Plant will be altered, yard tracks added and the expansion of 40 tracks in the bowl where cars are classified.

[strugglin]

Bring Buckeye Yard back so trains will actually run on the Buckeye Line by my house! The line hasn't seen a train in over 3 months now!

[cbehr91]

Bring Buckeye Yard back so trains will actually run on the Buckeye Line by my house! The line hasn't seen a train in over 3 months now!

Don't count on it. Even though nothing has been officially said about Buckeye's future (other than it continues to be mothballed), I think the writing is on the wall. If you think about it, it really doesn't fit with NS plan anyway. Its original purpose was to a.) combine a dozen or more area yards that were all under one railroad's ownership by 1968, and b.) so the newly created Penn Central could alleviate pressure on the older and not as efficient Sharonville Yard.

I do, however, see an opportunity for CSX to expand their van yard and take control of CP-Buckeye, so they don't have to call NS for permission every time they need to pass through the plant, whether it be switching, doubling, or heading out to the main. I'm not sure how the North Baltimore yard affects this possible expansion, however, (and I'll probably get lambasted for saying this) a connection at Galatea would really help.

[MSchwiebert]

Well if the EPA can get out of the way, there'll be a connection in the southwest quadrant @ Galatea by the end of June. I don't think the EPA/wetlands situation is a show stopper, but it may delay completion of the project.

[Y@]

however, (and I'll probably get lambasted for saying this) a connection at Galatea would really help.

Lambasted? Not hardly.

[midland sub]

Penn Central built Buckeye for 2 reasons. Most important was as you said to consolidate the mess that Columbus was with the PPR and NYC seperate yard operations. I know an old PRR brakeman that started out back in 1964 working at the old Yard A rider hump and Yard B in Columbus (roughly where I-670 is located between High St to the N&W overpass). In his words "I don't know how we ever put out a solid train everyday in that mess." Buckeye was the saving grace for Penn Central for Avon and the mess in St Louis. Back then the traffic was still east-west heavy. PC dumped a bunch on money @ Sharon to take the pressure off of the old PRR Undercliff yard. The Southern-PC train took the business out of Sharon and moved it to Buckeye is what you're thinking of. The CSX merger and the building Queensgate and the recessions of the early 1970s and especially 1981-'82 helped kill most of the Cincy gateway traffic and the need for Sharonville. At the same time Conrail was very efficent at killing off local traffic in Cincy and Columbus. If you don't already have a copy of A Sampling of Penn Central, then I would advise getting one.

CSX started working on expanding the van yard @ Buckeye last year.

Bring Buckeye Yard back so trains will actually run on the Buckeye Line by my house! The line hasn't seen a train in over 3 months now!

Don't count on it. Even though nothing has been officially said about Buckeye's future (other than it continues to be mothballed), I think the writing is on the wall. If you think about it, it really doesn't fit with NS plan anyway. Its original purpose was to a.) combine a dozen or more area yards that were all under one railroad's ownership by 1968, and b.) so the newly created Penn Central could alleviate pressure on the older and not as efficient Sharonville Yard.

I do, however, see an opportunity for CSX to expand their van yard and take control of CP-Buckeye, so they don't have to call NS for permission every time they need to pass through the plant, whether it be switching, doubling, or heading out to the main. I'm not sure how the North Baltimore yard affects this possible expansion, however, (and I'll probably get lambasted for saying this) a connection at Galatea would really help.

[CSXQ122]

They're starting the preliminary work on the undercutting of CP-138, they just need to do it for one bridge (Front street I think) It's on the ORDC website. Q122 is suppose to start running via the Buckeye Line again when it's done and Q123 might start going that way as well. And who knows maybe after North Baltimore is fully up and running and the connection at galatea is done, and CP-138 is fixed, maybe they'll be another van train or two to head down the Buckeye Line, one can hope right.
Q122 out

[bdconrail29]

Buckeye made sense for Conrail as well, and I can understand why NS didn't really need it. Conrail had a lot of other places to the west to forward traffic to Conway, Buffalo, and Selkirk. I did feel bad when it went away though.

CSXQ122, glad to see they are working on that out at 138.

As far as expanding Belleuve humpyard, I guess I really don't understand the traffic patterns in/out of Bellevue and a good reason is that NS changes symbols and car forwarding so much, it is tough to learn.

I also heard from an NS employee (on the 21T/20R pool) that NS is 99% sure they are going to put a connection in at CP 242 on the SW corner to get traffic off the bottle-necked Bellevue-Oak Harbor line. Hope so.

[redside20]

Which CP 242 is this? and what traffic will be routed where?

[lakeshoredave]

242 is just west of sandusky, ohio on the ns chicago line, ex cr mainline.

[redside20]

242 is just west of sandusky, ohio on the ns chicago line, ex cr mainline.

Oh yes..thats where the waterlevel crosses the pennsy which the latter goes to the coal docks. What are they going to do about the street that parallels the tracks from Venice Road to the interlocking? Huron Street i believe its called.

[strugglin]

They're starting the preliminary work on the undercutting of CP-138, they just need to do it for one bridge (Front street I think) It's on the ORDC website. Q122 is suppose to start running via the Buckeye Line again when it's done and Q123 might start going that way as well. And who knows maybe after North Baltimore is fully up and running and the connection at galatea is done, and CP-138 is fixed, maybe they'll be another van train or two to head down the Buckeye Line, one can hope right.
Q122 out

I've been waiting for them to start work down there since this was announced last year, but haven't seen anything yet, I stop down there around once a week. I'm not really sure how much work could possibly be involved in lowering a section of track 18 inches under a bridge. There used to be a CSX intermodal train that would run on the Buckeye Line from time to time, even after NS closed the yard, but it was always single stack. I haven't seen that train in like 2 years now though. I'd have to scroll back through the CMH report, but the last move on Buckeye Line I saw was some BNSF engines that went light power to the yard one night, that had to be 6 months ago now. The rails have been rusted brown since then.

[cbehr91]

They're starting the preliminary work on the undercutting of CP-138, they just need to do it for one bridge (Front street I think) It's on the ORDC website. Q122 is suppose to start running via the Buckeye Line again when it's done and Q123 might start going that way as well. And who knows maybe after North Baltimore is fully up and running and the connection at galatea is done, and CP-138 is fixed, maybe they'll be another van train or two to head down the Buckeye Line, one can hope right.
Q122 out

I've been waiting for them to start work down there since this was announced last year, but haven't seen anything yet, I stop down there around once a week. I'm not really sure how much work could possibly be involved in lowering a section of track 18 inches under a bridge. There used to be a CSX intermodal train that would run on the Buckeye Line from time to time, even after NS closed the yard, but it was always single stack. I haven't seen that train in like 2 years now though. I'd have to scroll back through the CMH report, but the last move on Buckeye Line I saw was some BNSF engines that went light power to the yard one night, that had to be 6 months ago now. The rails have been rusted brown since then.

In the past when Q122/123 had single stacks they would run the Burt Line. There was one time last fall when I was eating lunch in my car and I had my scanner on and I heard Q123 come down the Burt Line (I think I posted it to COHRailfan). That was the last time I heard either train run over the Burt Line.

And was the engine move you saw consist of actual BNSF units or were they leasers in BNSF paint?

I have also heard fairly substantiated rumors that CSX is close to selling that line for the obvious reasons. But if they are under-cutting at CP-138, maybe they have already reconsidered.

[CSXQ122]

Q122 would run over the Buckeye line everyday except Monday. It would have double stacks but a low and a high container, you can't have two high containers together, that's the problem. Last time it ran that way was probably close to a year ago. Heck I remember in the days of Q167 (before it became Q123) you could go the Scottslawn, the Buckeye Line (North side) or Dayton District (South side). You never knew which way you were going unless you had high cars in your train. From what it looks like they've been working on moving electrical cables at 138. It'll be nice to run that way again, shorter trips As far as selling the line, that was going to happen probably about 7-8 years ago, there was a 1 week period we couldn't run over the Burt line because the deal was going through, but then it fell apart thankfully, I like that piece of railroad. That line has alot of history, heck Lincoln's funeral train went over that route. The Burt line is a nice short cut for all the export/import coal from Baltimore, it keeps those trains from going through Willard and then south at Fostoria, which is obviously overloaded with trains as it is.
Q122 out

[PowellWye]

Q122, are they just just going to undercut to improve clearances under High and Front for moves to and from the Buckeye Line or are the also going to lower the tracks through the Nationwide "tunnel" on the Dayton District side?

[CSXQ122]

From what I read and have seen so far it's only going to be for the Buckeye Line side.
Q122 out

[lakeshoredave]

that was an incredibly small intermodal yard csx had there in 2009. it would make sense to enlarge it if they are adding a new train with the new north baltimore yard opening up.

[strugglin]

And was the engine move you saw consist of actual BNSF units or were they leasers in BNSF paint?

I had to look back in the CMH report to find that post, and it was 10/1/10, and they were not leasers. 3 newer widecabs, leader was BNSF 700 in Warbonnet, the other 2 were pumpkins I did not get the numbers on. I figured it was probably a power move to go out on a train destined for Avon Yard so those engines could get back home.

Ironically enough, today I saw a CSX empty autorack train on the Buckeye Line destined for storage, I just posted the info & pictures in the CMH report.

[redside20]

Per reports on another board, the process to revamp Bellevue terminal has begun. And it starts with the Sandusky lead being removed to the tie in at Center Street so you can kiss the Pennsy Signal goodbye. Word has it that a new lead with a handthrow switch has been installed into the redside lead .