Grand Rapids & Western 1984
Acquired ex-GTW Grand Haven Sub from Penn Junction to Spring Lake.
Started out with ex-GTW S2
This has never been a busy segment.
Interchanged with GTW at Penn Jct.
Operations was typically once a week.
Constructed engine house in Coopersville.
Served about 5 customers with Rycenga Lumber in Spring Lake being largest. Other customers inlcuded a few places that received a dozen or so cars annually of fertilizer and a small lumber yard in Marne.
In 1990 acquired Walker to Ravenna from CMGN. CMGN would push our cars out past Van Logistics spur and we'd push cars from Marne to same spot for CMGN. This added another small lumber yard in Walker and the elevator in Ravenna. Ravenna Feed and Grain expanded their operations and was our largest customer receiving/shipping about 90-120 cars annually including the ability to load 15 car blocks at a time.
Picked up ex-GTW SW1200 (early road switcher version) in early 1990's and scrapped S2.
2007 acquired Grand Rapids to Walker from GRE. At the time it had no customers but we picked up a construction contractor to receive quick lime from the ex-St. Mary's cement terminal just west of Grand Rapids.
Current service is 1-3x per week. Ravenna has expanded several times and now receives/ships 150-200 cars annually. The lumber yard in Walker was acquired by new owners in early 2000's and now receive about 100-120 cars annually (1-3 per week). The ex-St. Mary's terminal west of Grand Rapids receives about 80-120 cars annually (mostly during construction season) of quick lime. The segment from Penn Jct. to Spring Lake remains low volume with Rycenga Lumber still receiving 1-3 cars per month (during the great economy of the 1990's RL was receiving nearly a car a week). There's also small customers in Marne and Nunica.
Interchange is with GRE in Grand Rapids which severly limits potential new traffic opportunities do to cost of GRE handling our cars inbetween CSX/NS. Plus, we've been out bid and out manuevered by MQT in landing some new business.
However, we don't quit trying to pick up new customers and there are several plants along the line from Walker to Spring Lake that are candidates.
Acquired ex-CN (nee GTW) GP9r and sold SW1200.
Updated 12/4/09
Grand Rapids & Western
Grand Rapids & Western
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...
Re: Grand Rapids & Western
Updated 5/6/12
Operations on this line is suspended as all customers went to truck. Last remaining customer in Walker (Standard Lumber) was turned over to Coopersville and Marne as it receives far less cars than the 120 it was projected to get.
Operations on this line is suspended as all customers went to truck. Last remaining customer in Walker (Standard Lumber) was turned over to Coopersville and Marne as it receives far less cars than the 120 it was projected to get.
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...
Re: Grand Rapids & Western
Good news, this line is reopened.
We took over all freight operations and C&M handles excursions.
Power is SW1200.
Customers include the old cement terminal in Grand Rapids which is now a distributer for construction lime that receives a couple 2-3 car blocks per week during the road construction season, the lumber yard in Walker gets a few cars per month, but the good news is the elevator in Ravenna became a distributer for feed and now gets approximately 6-9 cars per week of feed ingedients. They also get a small block of 3-5 cars of fertilizer every couple months. They also ship small blocks of corn (5-9 cars) every few weeks to CSX that goes to ethanol plants on their line.
We reopened a short segment of track that extended to just outside Muskegon to service a plastics plant that gets a 2-3 car block of plastic pellets every other week.
We took over all freight operations and C&M handles excursions.
Power is SW1200.
Customers include the old cement terminal in Grand Rapids which is now a distributer for construction lime that receives a couple 2-3 car blocks per week during the road construction season, the lumber yard in Walker gets a few cars per month, but the good news is the elevator in Ravenna became a distributer for feed and now gets approximately 6-9 cars per week of feed ingedients. They also get a small block of 3-5 cars of fertilizer every couple months. They also ship small blocks of corn (5-9 cars) every few weeks to CSX that goes to ethanol plants on their line.
We reopened a short segment of track that extended to just outside Muskegon to service a plastics plant that gets a 2-3 car block of plastic pellets every other week.
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...