Daytime NYSW trains between Binghamton and Syracuse?

Hello,

Anyone have an idea of when I might catch a daylight movement on this line? (Binghamton - Syracuse or v.v.)

Thanks,
Dave

Tuesday. Thursday Saturday for northbound in the a.m.
Afternoons except sat for southbounds, Sundays the road train runs to binghamton. Locals can run anytime during the daytime

Happy Monday every one, hope everyone had a pleasant Fathers day, I just happened to catch a south bound near Jamesville beach on Saturday between 12:00 and 1:00 in the afternoon. I was fishing with my 7 year old and was not expecting any train activity and to my surprise this was an interesting place to catch one. I love the sound of trains actually working and at this location you can hear the train screaming uphill all the way from rock cut road, to where I was located, echoing through the valley.

nysw136 wrote:Tuesday. Thursday Saturday for northbound in the a.m.
Afternoons except sat for southbounds, Sundays the road train runs to binghamton. Locals can run anytime during the daytime

Is "the road train" on Sunday different than any other train?
if so, how?
thanks,
Scot

Presumably a road train does little or no work enroute, because it's difficult to do so with a long train.

Hello,

I finally caught a NYSW train. I was heading to Syracuse Airport to do some airplane photography when I spotted a southbound train alongside I-81 in south Syracuse. So I exited, turned around, and went after it. I was able to overtake it three times to get some shots in Jamesville and Lafayette before it finally got away near Tully. I had a ton of fun! By the way, someone asked me why the siding in the first photo is super-elevated. Anybody know? Also, does anybody know the history of the elaborate NYSW stone arch bridge that says "Oakwood" in Syracuse? It's right next to I-81. Was it part of a station?

Here are two NYSW photos from that day:

http://photos.greatrails.net/s/?p=220397" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
http://photos.greatrails.net/s/?p=220255" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

By the way, it was the first time out for my new Pentax K-3. I paired it with a used Tamron 28-70 f/2.8 I got for $200. Seemed like a deal. What do you guys think? Incidentally, and off topic, I also tried out a used Tamron 28-300 I bought, but I'm not nearly happy with its first images at all. They came out real soft. That lens might be a mistake!

Thanks,

Dave Sommer
Ithaca

Nice photos Dave......and yes I think you got a good deal on the Pentax camera. Well done!

Charlie

The super elevated track is what is left of the double track DL&W line,now NYS&W, that was two tracks from Syracuse through Jamesville.

The bridge was the old entrance to Oakwood cemetery. The bridge is a steel bridge the stone arches are just a facade.

Charles

Around the end of October I had to go to Preble to pick up an auction buy and happened on a short southbound outlawed (apparently, it was stopped anyhow) at a crossing near the I-81 Preble exit.

charlie6017 wrote:Nice photos Dave......and yes I think you got a good deal on the Pentax camera. Well done!

Charlie

Thanks Charlie. For some reason the NYS&W really has my interest. Anyone recommend any books about it? Or videos? Or any good reference materials?

Dave

RSD15 wrote:The super elevated track is what is left of the double track DL&W line,now NYS&W, that was two tracks from Syracuse through Jamesville.

The bridge was the old entrance to Oakwood cemetery. The bridge is a steel bridge the stone arches are just a facade.

Charles

Thanks for the info, Charles! Where was the passenger station in Syracuse? Did it share the NYC station?

Dave

The DL&W did not share the NYC Station. They had their own station just south of Armory Square SW of corner of .W Jefferson and S Clinton St.

Station and it still stands.


269 west Jefferson St is the address on the building, and google maps gets this one right.

There are two stations at Armory Square, the DL&W station is at 225 west Jefferson and is now some type of offices. The station at 269 is the NYS&W /ONtrack station built for the Onondaga county shuttle service. At least part of that station is now used as office space since the end of the ONtrack shuttle.

269 W. Jefferson seems too big a building to have been built just for OnTrack. Looks like it might be older than 1994 too. Perhaps an existing building was renovated? JS

pumpers wrote:269 W. Jefferson seems too big a building to have been built just for OnTrack. Looks like it might be older than 1994 too. Perhaps an existing building was renovated? JS

No, the Susquehanna built it for OnTrack, fall foliage trips, and for the shuttles up to the dome. Only the top floor--track level-- was used as the station, and it is not that big an area. The RR wanted the old Lackawanna station next door, but could not get the owner to sell so they built the new station.