mutant of Flat Rock wrote:what about yards with wyes in them?
GLC's Cadillac (Selma) Yard has a wye at the east end.
CN's Pontiac (Johnson) Yard has a wye at the north end and used to have one at the south end too.
CN's Durand Yard has a wye by using the legs of its connecting tracks (Chicago Wye, Port Huron Wye and High Line Wye).
CN's Port Huron Yard had a wye at the west end but they may have removed the west leg.
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...
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...
AARR wrote:CN's Port Huron Yard had a wye at the west end but they may have removed the west leg.
It's still there, although they moved the entire wye to the east for the new Michigan Road overpass project. Among other things they use the wye for the Santa train (or have in the past) before it leaves for Flat Rock.
For Patrick, here's what the west end of the ex-PH&D yard looks like in Port Huron, or at least what it looked like back in April. Lots of bumpers.
Attachments
West end of Port Huron yard, as seen from new Michigan Road overpass.
The west end of ludington yard has big piles of sand at the end of all 14 tracks to stop run away cars. I believe it looked a lot like the yard leads in wyoming, you had a working ladder, then one track that would bypass the ladder and take you into the middle track. It was set up so you could have a crew work 1-7 track and 9-14 and still enable a train to pull into 8 track and vice versa.
The old Nolan Yard, 8 Mile and Hoover, was not stub ended. There was a track to the west of the two mainlines that was a yard lead, and south of 8 Mile it split into 2 leads, one to the first 5 or 6 tracks, and the other went to the other 5 or 6 tracks.The far western most yard track WAS stub ended, and served as a team track. Grew up right by this yard, used to see D&TSL Geeps flying past on their way north, as well as getting rides on the Alco switchers that worked there.The south end of this yard came together in one LONG ladder track. Used to be ALOT of industry here, now the lumber transload is about the only thing left. South end has been re-configured and now there is only about 2 or 3 tracks left.
The old Nolan Yard, 8 Mile and Hoover, was not stub ended. There was a track to the west of the two mainlines that was a yard lead, and south of 8 Mile it split into 2 leads, one to the first 5 or 6 tracks, and the other went to the other 5 or 6 tracks.The far western most yard track WAS stub ended, and served as a team track. Grew up right by this yard, used to see D&TSL Geeps flying past on their way north, as well as getting rides on the Alco switchers that worked there.The south end of this yard came together in one LONG ladder track. Used to be ALOT of industry here, now the lumber transload is about the only thing left. South end has been re-configured and now there is only about 2 or 3 tracks left.
To add a bit about Nolan yard, it went through several re-configurations during its active lifespan. Tracks charts from the 1940's and early 50's show at least 9 tracks crossing 8 Mile and melding directly into Gillen yard on the north side of 8 Mile and expanding again. Simplification of the layouts of both yards was a slow process that actually began in the immediate post War years as business slowly diminished and some work was being moved to the much larger East yard to the south. As late as 1948, East, Nolan and Gillen yards were being switched by multiple jobs around the clock. Today, but a few tracks left at each as the skeletal remains of a once mighty marshalling system, although grapevine talk continues from CN employees regarding an expanded intermodal facility at East yard if Moterm ever busts at the seams. Seems to be an intriguing location with Interstate highways and multiple CN subdivisions all converging there...
I also grew up near Nolan Yard and spent many childhood days exploring the area in the early 70's. At that time there were a total of 4 tracks that crossed 8 Mile in 2 separate crossings. The east crossing was the mainline, which was double tracked at that time (up to 9 Mile Rd.), with a 3rd yard track that was also part of the east crossing, if I remember correctly. The double track now begins just south of 8 Mile and is single track north of there. The west crossing, now gone, was a single track. There were always lots of boxcars stored on the yard tracks both south and north of 8 Mile. There were many spur tracks off the mainline, but even then most were no longer used. I do remember locals working a few of them, one industry was Paragon Steel south of 8 Mile. The main activity in Nolan Yard at that time was south of 8 Mile, where there was a yard office, really a shack, but I remember seeing black GT switchers there frequently, #7014, 7016 come to mind. North of 8 Mile were many spurs with many abandoned by then. The team track joeyuboats refers to was used in fall for selling wine grapes off boxcars set off there - literally sold right off the boxcar. Further north was Bliss & Laughlin Steel (or Jones & Laughlin, I always got them confused; the other was next to the Penn Central / Conrail tracks further west on 8 Mile between Mound and Sherwood Rd). It was right in the middle of Gillen Yard, with tracks on both sides. The easternmost tracks next to the mainline usually just had stored boxcars. There was a west track that all the spurs connected to; it merged back with the mainline near 9 Mile Rd. There was also a spur which ran due west about 1/4 mile, it crossed Hoover. I saw it switched once. The Barnum & Bailey Circus train would park on one of the tracks by the steel mill when it was in town. Happy memories.
The New Hollow Yard in Lansing had bumping posts when first built. They didn't last very long and were replaced by dirt when they failed under duress. One failed quite dramatically when an 89 foot frame flat went through it and up the bank at the end with the end hanging over the parking lot at the top. The night crew that preformed this stunt when going off duty in the morning saying "Oh, by the way, the car at the end of #5 is on the ground." "A fortune awaits the rail that invents a track that will hold just one more car!"
