Ethanol Trains to Revere

Here is some info about the MOTIVA – Railcar Rack Expansion Providence construction details ect.
http://www.railroadconstruction.com/eth ... providence

I for one thank you for providing the photo. Global's plan includes a track similar to that one shown.
Over in Albany NY south of Kenwood yard track panels are being installed into the evening adding more spots for this product.

At 2:15 today the OCS has dropped their passengers at Chelsea Station and is enroute to the East Boston Branch. The MEC 314 has appeared on the OOS Service track and will take the train back to Bston with no stops.
Then will highball up the Western Route towards Lawrence.
This revised schedule puts everything 45 minutes ahead of what was planned.
This way there should be no interference with the afternoon rush hour traffice from Boston.

Don LeJeune

Being 45 minutes early from the scheduled times and places for the arrival of the OCS on the E. Boston Branch---- It didn't happen. In fact it blew right through Ayer going east through bedroom communities. The visit to the branch didn't take place either, instead the train stayed on the Eastern Route at Wonderland, then the MEC 314 tied on to the passenger car and pulled them west towards Boston.
This all taking place before 2:30. A nice day for a train ride at best !


Don LeJeune

So, they took all the execs to Wonderland Interlocking, and then they train immediately returned to back to E Deerfield???

Having not followed this thread closely, boy was I surprised when I'm sitting at Chelsea (taking unrelated pictures) and all the sudden a couple F-units come roaring along! Arrival at Chelsea was about 1:40 or so. They were quite concerned about security - two uniforms plus someone (cop? private officer?) in plainclothes with a badge and gun. They had no problems with me standing on the platform taking pictures, though.

I'll answer both of the last two posts. No, the OCS train went back to Waterville Maine, not East Deerfield, where it's kept under shelter until the Railroad executives decide to use it once again.
The OCS train was very early dropping their passengers off at Chelsea Station which then they were hearded into a bus for a ride over to the Lee Burbank Highway.


Don

OCS at Chelsea http://photos.nerail.org/s/?p=200340

DJLDRUMS wrote:I'll answer both of the last two posts. No, the OCS train went back to Waterville Maine, not East Deerfield, where it's kept under shelter until the Railroad executives decide to use it once again.
The OCS train was very early dropping their passengers off at Chelsea Station which then they were hearded into a bus for a ride over to the Lee Burbank Highway.

Looking at Google Maps, if the OCS was travelling back to Maine, wouldn't it have had to have passed the East Boston Branch switch as it headed NE? Could they not have disembarked the passengers there, they take a quick walk south (depending on ground conditions, I guess), and get picked up by the bus on Railroad St? Or did the bus (and dignataries) even make it to the EBB in the first place?

25 years ago they could have, if the Eastern right of way as still in service/intact. As it stands they would need to reverse to either the Western (Haverhill line) or the NH Division (Lowell line) and then use the Wildcat.

I think that is what they did. Perhaps they judged the rail conditions weren't worth the risk on the EBB when they could walk there.

The dignitaries were bussed from Chelsea Station over to the E.B.B. to see the geographical layout and what needs to be done, then went over to Global Petrolium.
In order to walk the tracks along the r o w / roadbed one would need to be wearing rubber boots that go 6" above their ankles as the ground water that's stagnant there has no place to run off to. In some spots the railheads are under water.
Most people don't even have a clue about this part of the branch and what needs to be done to get it back in shape. I doubt that a dangerous load would go over rails and ties that are sunk in the mud for fear of cars and engines going on the ground.
If you look at the area by way of Google Earth or other search methods you'll see that the roadbed is not very wide.
At this rate and pace it's not very likely that this project will get underway any time soon.
Yesterday with the exception of some good photos the OCS was early very early getting to Chelsea and waisted no time staying around on the Eastern Route.
That's a fact, 25 years ago it would have kept going on the Eastern Route right into NH and Maine on it's way to Waterville.
LA-1's MEC 314 based out of Lawrence had the double duty yesterday doing it's own work, coming to Boston with it's train dropped it's cars for Everett (scrap) and bones (covered hopper cars for Rousselot in Peabody). Pulled the OCS back down towards Tower A then toed on to their cars and went to Salem then Peabody. LA-2 was supposed to recrew them.

Don LeJeune

DJLDRUMS wrote:At this rate and pace it's not very likely that this project will get underway any time soon.

Sounds likes it's a Long Island-style rail project - announce something, maybe do a little prep work, fartz around and fartz around for ages (years), then finally get it done within a short period of time (*) because construction methods are actually pretty quick once you get started - it's the financial and approvals which take seem to take forever.

While all this fartzing around waiting is happening, does anyone know if they have done any surveying, soil samples, engineering designs etc; which if they haven't been done will need to be - sounds like the area has significant drainage issues so you need to deal with that, retention systems for unloading the tank-cars (ethanol leaking into the topsoil and hence the estuary is probably not a big issue, but still has to be dealt with), support foundations depth, sea walls (somebody mentioned hay bales...really? Maybe hay bales overlaying a firm rip-rap shoreline) and so on.

*For a true Long Island style rail project, you need to get to about 80-90% done, and then fartz around for no obvious reason for awhile longer before finally finishing - i.e. the Calverton Branch

But lately we have to give credit to NS/PAS/PAR for all the work that has been done all around their railroads (from Mechanicville to the Connecticut River to Brunswick, ME) and this short little branch can be rebuilt very quickly with their eyes closed.

wish i could have seen it! why did they have the f units in tow? are they not in working order?

tom18287 wrote:wish i could have seen it! why did they have the f units in tow? are they not in working order?

Tom, it went unassisted to Revere and then the Guilford engine was added to the rear to pull it back towards Boston.

I note in several pictures of the event that they reversed direction at the "new' NECCO plant in Revere. I remember the old twisty rail line in Cambridge that ran for many blocks from the Grand Junction right into their original building. Ironically, this new plant was built right next to the tracks and would be an easy siding away from rail service but never has had it.