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Guess this confirms the “signal suspension” talk that L303 had with the Dispatcher earlier this morning for the Sunfield signals mp CH111.0

Andy24 wrote: ↑

Wed Nov 01, 2023 11:01 pm

Guess this confirms the “signal suspension” talk that L303 had with the Dispatcher earlier this morning for the Sunfield signals mp CH111.0

Does this mean new signals are going to be put up?

Andy24 wrote: ↑

Wed Nov 01, 2023 11:01 pm

Guess this confirms the “signal suspension” talk that L303 had with the Dispatcher earlier this morning for the Sunfield signals mp CH111.0

It's been confirmed since the storms a couple of months ago.

New Verizon dish near EE South Lyon.

sparrow24 wrote: ↑

Thu Nov 02, 2023 5:03 pm

New Verizon dish near EE South Lyon.

I can't remember if I had mentioned that EE Brighton has a new dish as well, I observed this three weeks ago give or take. The WE does not.
In addition, I wonder if the intermediates near Grand Ledge were removed when they started TWCD as opposed to more recently.

sparrow24 wrote: ↑

Thu Nov 02, 2023 5:03 pm

IMG_6566.jpeg
New Verizon dish near EE South Lyon.

That's so you can dial into Spectrum and watch TV while sitting waiting for a meet. Are you ready for some FOOTBALL!?

MikeB89 wrote: ↑

Thu Nov 02, 2023 3:02 am

Andy24 wrote: ↑

Wed Nov 01, 2023 11:01 pm

Guess this confirms the “signal suspension” talk that L303 had with the Dispatcher earlier this morning for the Sunfield signals mp CH111.0

Does this mean new signals are going to be put up?

I would imagine so since they didn't get permission to deactivate them, only a suspension. The storms a few months ago just started the process prematurely it appears.

SD80MAC wrote: ↑

Mon Oct 30, 2023 11:13 am

I have a feeling they will keep Grand Ledge manual rather than install power switches. It's not like there are many meets that occur there to begin with.

So then you'd only have Lake Odessa and Trowbridge as your nearby sidings? Seems like you'd need something in between. Lengthen one or both... there needs to be at least one really big siding east and west of Ensel.

If you ask me, ripping out Sunfield was a mistake. A siding in the middle of no where that should've been lengthened and automated would've been of a great use. Do any of the sidings on the Plymouth Sub exceed 10,000 feet? The new CEO wants to bring more traffic up this way, and most trains today exceed that length regularly. So if you have a pair of trains at 11,000 or 12,000 feet you going to make them wait just to clear the entire railroad to move them?

You'll have Lake Odessa and the double track in Lansing (Ensel-North Lansing). Could still make a meet at Grand Ledge, power switches aren't required for that. The line is never going to be busy enough to where something is going to take a serious delay waiting for a train to traverse the 20 miles between Lake O and GL.

I say they double track the entire line and bring Cp back and re install the searchlights

kd_1014 wrote: ↑

Sat Nov 04, 2023 11:15 am

I say they double track the entire line and bring Cp back and re install the searchlights

Werd!

MQT1223 wrote: ↑

Fri Nov 03, 2023 6:07 pm

So then you'd only have Lake Odessa and Trowbridge as your nearby sidings?...Do any of the sidings on the Plymouth Sub exceed 10,000 feet?

The only 10,000' double track is between Plymouth and Beck Road, Ensel and Trowbridge are the next largest. Many of the sidings west of Ensel are less than 6,000'. In addition, the single track between WE Grand Ledge and EE Lake Odessa works out to 21.3 miles per the timetable. I am curious about where you heard that the new CEO wants to send more our way, I'm trying not to get my hopes up as there is always a rumor.

Meets typically occur east of Ensel and the local work west of there is done at night by L304. I suppose that could be the reason L303 and L302 go on duty at such different times, to keep traffic light west of Ensel. I wonder if the switch indicator is just for the elevator, Webberville has an interlocked switch with a dwarf facing the plant. Have we considered that they don't intend to re-signal the area? Given the light traffic and the current TWCD operations, I could see CSX deciding to run the area as dark territory from now on, though that idea conflicts with the theoretical construction work we are seeing.

I'll take this time to add that there IS a satellite dish at WE Brighton up on the hill instead of atop the bungalow, it was not in my pictures from October 24th so it must've been installed in the last week or so.

The new satellite dishes at the old CTC locations seem to suggest that they're retiring the codeline in favor of satellite communications with the backoffice, but potentially keeping the signal system itself the same. Theoretically it's just changing the method of communication, with some components re-routing the code and indication data accordingly. Makes sense given that the damage was largely to the wires, not to the signals themselves.

Ensel to Plymouth makes a lot more sense to not rip out, since it is actually CTC, making for easy meets among the trains that do run. Meanwhile, it has been nearly 20 years since Sunfield or Grand Ledge were used for routine meets, especially due to their limited length and lack of power switches, so the loss of the ABS is hardly an impact to operations. What's more, the track speed out that way doesn't require signals per the FRA, so no impact there either. Therefore, it would make more sense to potentially remove the signals entirely, if the FRA approves their request to do so - granted I do not know if they have done this or not.

The only hang up for retiring the signals is that CsX tried to do that when PTC was the buzz word a few years ago. The FRA denied their request to remove an active system from operation. Now, with it being severely damaged and not feasible to repair, maybe another situation. However, if they were doing that, I don't Believe they would be systematically removing signals, they would petition to remove from service and turn the heads or bag them. The work going on in Grand Ledge certainly appears that something is going to include new signals. Conduit has been installed to appropriately where new signals will be east of the switch at the west end of the siding, so a switch relay for the ADM lead switch would be installed to protect the OS. We shall have to see what happens.

pudgy wrote: ↑

Mon Nov 06, 2023 12:51 pm

The only hang up for retiring the signals is that CsX tried to do that when PTC was the buzz word a few years ago. The FRA denied their request to remove an active system from operation. Now, with it being severely damaged and not feasible to repair, maybe another situation. However, if they were doing that, I don't Believe they would be systematically removing signals, they would petition to remove from service and turn the heads or bag them. The work going on in Grand Ledge certainly appears that something is going to include new signals. Conduit has been installed to appropriately where new signals will be east of the switch at the west end of the siding, so a switch relay for the ADM lead switch would be installed to protect the OS. We shall have to see what happens.

CP X-500

LansingRailFan wrote: ↑

Mon Nov 06, 2023 8:13 pm

pudgy wrote: ↑

Mon Nov 06, 2023 12:51 pm

The only hang up for retiring the signals is that CsX tried to do that when PTC was the buzz word a few years ago. The FRA denied their request to remove an active system from operation. Now, with it being severely damaged and not feasible to repair, maybe another situation. However, if they were doing that, I don't Believe they would be systematically removing signals, they would petition to remove from service and turn the heads or bag them. The work going on in Grand Ledge certainly appears that something is going to include new signals. Conduit has been installed to appropriately where new signals will be east of the switch at the west end of the siding, so a switch relay for the ADM lead switch would be installed to protect the OS. We shall have to see what happens.

CP X-500

If CP comes back, we will need a lot more conductors in GR and they’ve only hired a handful in the last year or so, and half of those didn’t make it.

Acquaintance of mine from lake Odessa is currently trying to become a conductor. Waiting to get a date to head to Georgia according to his parents. I tried to warn them about the lifestyle but he wants to do it anyway.

MQT1223 wrote: ↑

Fri Nov 03, 2023 6:07 pm

The new CEO wants to bring more traffic up this way...

Oh?

amessmann wrote: ↑

Sat Nov 04, 2023 7:04 pm

MQT1223 wrote: ↑

Fri Nov 03, 2023 6:07 pm

So then you'd only have Lake Odessa and Trowbridge as your nearby sidings?...Do any of the sidings on the Plymouth Sub exceed 10,000 feet?

I wonder if the switch indicator is just for the elevator, Webberville has an interlocked switch with a dwarf facing the plant.

We never even acknowledge that dwarf signal. Once we have permission to open up on the main line, that signal is meaningless to us. Sometimes it gives us a slow approach, sometimes it gives us stop, sometimes it never even comes to life.

CSXT8390 wrote: ↑

Tue Nov 14, 2023 7:49 am

amessmann wrote: ↑

Sat Nov 04, 2023 7:04 pm

MQT1223 wrote: ↑

Fri Nov 03, 2023 6:07 pm

So then you'd only have Lake Odessa and Trowbridge as your nearby sidings?...Do any of the sidings on the Plymouth Sub exceed 10,000 feet?

I wonder if the switch indicator is just for the elevator, Webberville has an interlocked switch with a dwarf facing the plant.

We never even acknowledge that dwarf signal. Once we have permission to open up on the main line, that signal is meaningless to us. Sometimes it gives us a slow approach, sometimes it gives us stop, sometimes it never even comes to life.

Same with the dwarf at Ann Pere off of the interchange, basically just a block occupancy indicator.