Lackawanna Cutoff Passenger Service Restoration

As the originator of this 'epic', I must say I am surprised politics has been down played. But then, you all have your 'where's cruiser' topic around here for that kind of chatter.

While who in NJ will be leading the victory rally and who will be reading a concession speech are foregone, gotta say the underdog did get in a good campaign line in her only reported TV ad:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M0mOMQqzo6k" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

I posted the following on 12/7/04 here....

Somewhere within these multiple Cut-Off threads is the report of NJT's public meetings last Summer in Sussex and E.Stroudsburg where they made a horrible factual case in projected ridership #'s and # of cars/traffic being removed from I-80 should this project go forward.

It was appallingly pathetic....so much so that several folks got the didtinct impression that NJT purposely low-balled the projections to derail interest as well as what little momentum this project has had on both sides of the Delaware River.

Couple this with the recent retirement of Morris County tansportation chief Frank Reilly - THE driving force in keeping the rebirth of the Cut-Off alive for the last 20-odd years - and the outlook looks anything but promising for train service between Hoboken and Scranton.

Geez, that was 1 month short of 9 YEARS AGO

I note a few who posted back then are sadly no longer with us. I now know the closest I'll ever get to seeing trains again on the Cut-Off is the present deadline of ALP44's and Arrows....ironically sitting on expensive welded heavy rail atop concrete ties. That is a very pricey deadline !

TSTOM wrote:I posted the following on 12/7/04 here....

Somewhere within these multiple Cut-Off threads is the report of NJT's public meetings last Summer in Sussex and E.Stroudsburg where they made a horrible factual case in projected ridership #'s and # of cars/traffic being removed from I-80 should this project go forward.

It was appallingly pathetic....so much so that several folks got the didtinct impression that NJT purposely low-balled the projections to derail interest as well as what little momentum this project has had on both sides of the Delaware River.

Couple this with the recent retirement of Morris County tansportation chief Frank Reilly - THE driving force in keeping the rebirth of the Cut-Off alive for the last 20-odd years - and the outlook looks anything but promising for train service between Hoboken and Scranton.

Geez, that was 1 month short of 9 YEARS AGO

I note a few who posted back then are sadly no longer with us. I now know the closest I'll ever get to seeing trains again on the Cut-Off is the present deadline of ALP44's and Arrows....ironically sitting on expensive welded heavy rail atop concrete ties. That is a very pricey deadline !

Like I said, the 44's are there so the track doesn't fly away overnight (see wiki bit on mayor that dug up runway amid efforts to save a closing airport) or get stolen for scrap.

25Hz wrote:

TSTOM wrote:I posted the following on 12/7/04 here....

Somewhere within these multiple Cut-Off threads is the report of NJT's public meetings last Summer in Sussex and E.Stroudsburg where they made a horrible factual case in projected ridership #'s and # of cars/traffic being removed from I-80 should this project go forward.

It was appallingly pathetic....so much so that several folks got the didtinct impression that NJT purposely low-balled the projections to derail interest as well as what little momentum this project has had on both sides of the Delaware River.

Couple this with the recent retirement of Morris County tansportation chief Frank Reilly - THE driving force in keeping the rebirth of the Cut-Off alive for the last 20-odd years - and the outlook looks anything but promising for train service between Hoboken and Scranton.

Geez, that was 1 month short of 9 YEARS AGO

I note a few who posted back then are sadly no longer with us. I now know the closest I'll ever get to seeing trains again on the Cut-Off is the present deadline of ALP44's and Arrows....ironically sitting on expensive welded heavy rail atop concrete ties. That is a very pricey deadline !

Like I said, the 44's are there so the track doesn't fly away overnight (see wiki bit on mayor that dug up runway amid efforts to save a closing airport) or get stolen for scrap.

I was always under the impression that if one was to bring RR property into a scrap yard w/o the miles of required paperwork, the Scrap Dealer would kindly say, "i'll be right with you." and phone the local authorities. Is this not the case?

Mr. Hertz, I presume you are addressing the 2003 'Midnight Bulldozing' of KCGX, Chicago Meigs Field, by Mayor 'Richard The Second':

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meigs_Field" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Finally an off-rail note; Richard the Second, like father Richard the First, could have easily been Mayor-For-Life, but with Chicago's First Lady becoming seriously ill, the 'meat a cookin' on a scandal or two, and the loss of the 2016 Olympics, the job ceased to be fun and he said 'enough is enough'.

nyswfan wrote:

25Hz wrote:

TSTOM wrote:I posted the following on 12/7/04 here....

Somewhere within these multiple Cut-Off threads is the report of NJT's public meetings last Summer in Sussex and E.Stroudsburg where they made a horrible factual case in projected ridership #'s and # of cars/traffic being removed from I-80 should this project go forward.

It was appallingly pathetic....so much so that several folks got the didtinct impression that NJT purposely low-balled the projections to derail interest as well as what little momentum this project has had on both sides of the Delaware River.

Couple this with the recent retirement of Morris County tansportation chief Frank Reilly - THE driving force in keeping the rebirth of the Cut-Off alive for the last 20-odd years - and the outlook looks anything but promising for train service between Hoboken and Scranton.

Geez, that was 1 month short of 9 YEARS AGO

I note a few who posted back then are sadly no longer with us. I now know the closest I'll ever get to seeing trains again on the Cut-Off is the present deadline of ALP44's and Arrows....ironically sitting on expensive welded heavy rail atop concrete ties. That is a very pricey deadline !

Like I said, the 44's are there so the track doesn't fly away overnight (see wiki bit on mayor that dug up runway amid efforts to save a closing airport) or get stolen for scrap.

I was always under the impression that if one was to bring RR property into a scrap yard w/o the miles of required paperwork, the Scrap Dealer would kindly say, "i'll be right with you." and phone the local authorities. Is this not the case?

Unfortunately there are some Scrap Yard dealers that do not follow the law and scrappers are pretty good at hiding Railroad material with other scrap. I know of scrappers hiding tie plates, spikes, bolts and joint bars in cars they were scrapping to add weight to the vehicle. They would put the RR stuff under that other metal so it would not be seen.

And then there's alwasy the Cape May Seashore Lines scrap story.

http://www.pressofatlanticcity.com/news ... 963f4.html

NYS&W142Fan wrote: Unfortunately there are some Scrap Yard dealers that do not follow the law and scrappers are pretty good at hiding Railroad material with other scrap. I know of scrappers hiding tie plates, spikes, bolts and joint bars in cars they were scrapping to add weight to the vehicle. They would put the RR stuff under that other metal so it would not be seen.

Bingo. It's happened to me. About ten years ago I had a load of fish plates and clips delivered (rail fittings) and they were left outside in a Chicago suburb. In the morning they were long gone. I have no doubt they were melted down a few days later and someone had a nice dinner on my nickel(s).

Tadman wrote:

NYS&W142Fan wrote: Unfortunately there are some Scrap Yard dealers that do not follow the law and scrappers are pretty good at hiding Railroad material with other scrap. I know of scrappers hiding tie plates, spikes, bolts and joint bars in cars they were scrapping to add weight to the vehicle. They would put the RR stuff under that other metal so it would not be seen.

Bingo. It's happened to me. About ten years ago I had a load of fish plates and clips delivered (rail fittings) and they were left outside in a Chicago suburb. In the morning they were long gone. I have no doubt they were melted down a few days later and someone had a nice dinner on my nickel(s).

@ $0.15 /lb seems like a lot of work and risk for very little return. You would need a ton of it (literally) to start seeing any real cash.

NYSWFAN, it doesn't take much to add up. If it wasn't worth much they wouldn't try to steal it. But with people out of work due to the way things are, anything is a help, even a few cents.

nyswfan wrote:@ $0.15 /lb seems like a lot of work and risk for very little return. You would need a ton of it (literally) to start seeing any real cash.

That's what they get - the picture below is a common sight in most major metro areas. They drive around looking for old furniture and appliances. It's generally a good thing because the city doesn't have to haul it away, and it feeds people that would otherwise be on the state's support system. That said, some are less scrupulous than others. I've had patio chairs and BBQ grill lids disappear over the years, as well as the aforementioned barrel of fishplates for rail joints.

I'd think there's a big difference between grabbing a barrel of fish plates and unbolting 20 or so plates off of a few hundred feet of rail.

Does anybody, 25Hz even, have any way to verify that NJT parked the locomotives to try to deter scavengers from carting off the railroad? That sounds far fetched to me considering all the cases I know where stored rolling stock gets vandalized. That's a lot of tantalizing copper you're putting at risk supposedly trying to protect less valuable steel. And isn't the railroad getting restored with continuous welded rail? That's what I thought and TSTOM says. There are not many organizations that can manage to steal quarter mile pieces of rail, and I can't imagine any individuals who can.

Has anybody checked on those 44's? Maybe they could be carted away by now, too!

Not to dragt hings off topic, but maybe it would be a good idea to start a preservation movement for the 44s, petition Transit to save one or two.

beanbag wrote:Not to dragt hings off topic, but maybe it would be a good idea to start a preservation movement for the 44s, petition Transit to save one or two.

But I thought they set them out on the cutoff to prepare for sending them to Steamtown in Scranton
And enough with this '44' garbage. They're not E-44's. Do your fingers hurt from needing to type ALP-44?