Adirondack Scenic Railroad (ADIX) Discussion - 2013

Note the photo of 8223 tagged as Otter Creek should be Otter LAKE.

Photo looks southward at the south end of the Otter Lake passing track which 8223 is occupying.

Great photos !!

Foul Play Suspected in Train Damage
Lake Placid-Saranac Lake train inoperable until further notice


http://www.adirondackdailyenterprise.co ... 39427.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Well, that's really sad.

At least the ADIX probably knows where to start asking questions.....

Everybody has their judgment day!

Charlie

I hope the perps are caught and convicted. I also won't be surprised if there is a conspiracy behind the foul play. Grrr...

Which locomotive was vandalized?

To do something that specific it would seem to me would require a little more than the average knowledge of locomotive control, at least based on how the story implies the problem.

GP9 6076. It is the only locomotive currently in Lake Placid. This effectively ends the operations on the north end for this season. Despicable. Many of us have our theories of who is to blame. I'm sure that someone is at least "in the loop" and I wouldn't surprise me if the people responsible support the movement to remove the tracks.

This is very scary stuff. One can only hope that this is an isolated incident, and that there isn't hidden sabotage to the tracks or other equipment as well.

The ADIX should push for the NYSBCI or FBI to lead the investigation. Lake Placid is a small good old boy town. Local LE will probably be ineffective. This was a very calculated act of sabotage.With so many cameras placed everywhere these days there has to be clues somewhere as to who was in the area on the day the crime was committed. I sincerely hope that the perp(s) are caught, convicted, and the RR sues for damages.

On another note, I was in Tupper Lake this past weekend and ARTA has paid for a full color roadside billboard "Help Bring the Rail Trail to Tupper Lake!". These folks really do have deep pockets.

Another survey debating the history of the railroad:

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/THDT7T3

This one was only recently discovered in railroad circles, but ARTA has know about it for awhile so the anti-rail (I will no longer refer to them as pro-trail as that is clearly not their goal) have a head start.

MOD NOTE: link provided earlier in thread; please provide only a brief, fair-use quote. Post edited.

Foul play suspected in train damage
Lake Placid-Saranac Lake train inoperable until further notice

October 14, 2013
By SHAUN KITTLE - Staff Writer ,Adirondack Daily Enterprise

LAKE PLACID - The Adirondack Scenic Railroad locomotive that runs between Lake Placid and Saranac Lake was heavily damaged sometime last week.

The railroad crew discovered something was wrong when the train failed to pass a routine safety inspection before going into service Wednesday. The train was deemed inoperable and tickets were refunded, but it took a few days for the crew to discover the source of the problem: a yet-to-be-determined number of wires inside the train's electrical cabinet were pulled out, cut and placed back into the cabinet, according to David Link, director of volunteers at the Adirondack Scenic Railroad.

No damage was detectable from outside the train.

Link has worked in the mechanical department of freight railroads for 37 years. He said the train was rewired eight years ago, and added that severing the wires could have also compromised the train's electric generator.

Posted quote from the Adirondack Scenic Railroad press release:

LAKE PLACID- The Adirondack Scenic Railroad is offering a $10,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person or persons involved in the act of sabotage to the Adirondack Scenic Railroad’s locomotive stationed in Lake Placid. The Adirondack Scenic Railroad GP9 No. 6076 was vandalized sometime between October 5 and 9, the locomotive was parked with its train at the Lake Placid station. Railroad volunteers discovered damage to the locomotive when they attempted to start it.

The Adirondack Scenic Railroad is a tourist railroad operates on 67 miles of restored track out of Utica, Thendara (Old Forge), Saranac Lake and Lake Placid and is a nonprofit organization working to restore rail service between Utica and Lake Placid. Bethan Maher, Executive Director says, “Unfortunately, due to the extent of the damage it is likely that we will not be able to operate out of Lake Placid for the remainder of our season. Total lost revenue will exceed $45,000.”

Railroad officials estimate damage to the locomotive, which is leased and rewired eight years ago could cost between $25,000 and $50,000. Officials say, “This was a deliberate and calculated effort to render the equipment inoperable, and more importantly, to disguise it so it wouldn’t be immediately obvious to the operator.”

The Lake Placid Police Department is investigating and the Federal Railroad Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board may become involved as public safety could have been endangered.

There have been previous acts of vandalism against the railroad which is embroiled in a lengthy controversy regarding the rail corridor’s future. A local group wants the railroad removed so the right-of-way can be used for snowmobiling, hiking, and other outdoor activities.

Please contact the Lake Placid Police Department with any information in this case at 518-523-3306.

--


Bethan Maher
Executive Director
Adirondack Scenic Railroad
321 Main Street
Utica, NY 13501
(315) 724-0700

This really is despicable and I hope that they find the person or people that did this.

Let's remember this is the second time an Adirondack Scenic locomotive has been sabotaged. I think it's time to call in the feds and bust some folks for violating RICO statutes.

traingeek8223 wrote:Another survey debating the history of the railroad:

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/THDT7T3

This one was only recently discovered in railroad circles, but ARTA has know about it for awhile so the anti-rail (I will no longer refer to them as pro-trail as that is clearly not their goal) have a head start.

I responded including the idea that pulling the tracks will result in Forever Wild reversion. Time to stuff the ballot box.

umtrr-author wrote: I responded including the idea that pulling the tracks will result in Forever Wild reversion. Time to stuff the ballot box.

Some in the snowmobile community already understand that. The rest need to figure it out.