SLR in Portland

How often do they make it into Portland? Where is there a good source for schedules?


Thanks

Jason

Run this site for SLR info:
http://home.comcast.net/~petlick/SLR.HTM


Shows Train #513 "works to E.Deering as required".

Dick

Has been once a week.usually,but not always, in later part of work week. Covered hoppers of beans for B&M Baked Beans,and a rare care of "adult beverages" for Nappi Dictributors.

Probably,Hancock Lumber,in Yarmouth gets as many loads as the other 2,but with NO runaround track in Yarmouth,by the old station area,where Hancock is,on Main St. ,it means that they have to run 10 more miles to East Deering anyway as the switch points to Hancock are west facing.

Yet,the condition of these tracks(Danville Jct. to East Deering) are better than the bulk of Guilford's Rumford Branch,and of course thier 5-10 mph Hinckley and Madison Branches,which see trains daily.

Bud

There was a bean car on 231 sunday, Bud.

Yup,saw it on Sat. And MOW crew were shoveling out the switch to Hancock Lumber yesterday.

Once asked SLR "people" why they didn't use one of the passing sidings at Yarm. Jct. to run around train 513,and then shove cars down to Hancock(about 1 mile) so they wouldn't have to go all the way to E. Deering,if they had no cars for that location. Just too many grade crossings for a man to ride the car on the back up move,and potentially dangerous. So,methinks they wait until a load comes in for E.Deering,unless Hancock is in dire need,and knowing they SLR's superb customer service,they would deliver the car.

Some difference from a decade ago,when 513 was based at East Deering and the cement business and the oil transload facility there made for 10 car,or more,daily trains.

Bud

If they could just get the cement place opened back up.....we can only hope. Maybe another industry will locate there to get rail service.

They get bean cars there? I thought all the hoppers were for the cement place - gray round bodies with a red CN logo.
I also heard that Nappi doesn't get actual beverages, just the occasional load of new empty kegs.

Yes, B&M beans gets cylindrical covered hoppers of beans. Once in a while boxcars too.

The Hancock lumber cars used to be (3 years ago, when I still lived in Yarmoooth) those cool PC&F double door Southern Pacific cars.

When Independent still got cement, they did get most of it that I remember in the white and gray CN cars that look like tank cars.

The SLR is actually sitting on a potential gold mine, with Portland being a deep water port and all... However to get the bridge rebuilt, the Maine Narrow Gauge Railroad moved, all the buisinesses on the Water and the proper heights to serve the intermodal port would require a lot of $$$. One can still hope though

Actually, a few months (years) ago, safe handling in Lewiston suggested that they were investigating the possibility of handling barge loads of containers in East Deering. I have not seen anything since that news article. My guess is that the available site-maybe where the marina was built- disappeared. I'm suggesting that as the site because they wouldn't have to rebuild the bridge-unless to use it as part of a dock, and there wouldn't be any challanging the eastern prom view owners.

A beer & wine distributor would have no use for empty kegs, or anything empty for that matter...

A couple of things. First, one of the ideas MDOT is kicking around (or was at a chamber breakfast I went to two years ago) is rebuilding the bridge across the cove for the amtrak line to tie into the SLR main. The ROW the narrow guage guys run on has full length ties as a part of the agreement, IIRC, to run on it. For eventual restoration of full guage.

As for the existing SLR bridge, its SHALLOW there. They would need to do a lot of dredge work to do anything near it, other than the actual channel that runs under it in the middle. Back during the Julie N spill we had to get boom across there and it was about impossible because of the mud flats at low tide. Not sure where they could put a pier, or if they would get dredge permits to do it. Don't get me wrong, I would LOVE to see SLR get port access and operate a marine container facility. That would be sweet.

You guys really need to check out this story. It looks like all the action is on the Southside these days, or moving that way at least:

Henry B. V.F.P.T. ([email protected]) wanted you to read the following
story:

Cargo terminal rising again on waterfront

This story is available online at:
http://business.mainetoday.com/news/051 ... inal.shtml

Comments from Henry B. V.F.P.T.:
News ITEM On BIG G. <HB> <V.F.P.T.>



> This message is a service of MaineToday.com
> http://www.mainetoday.com

Unfortunately, that means they must deal with or through Guilfart, but since they have a direct connection AT Rigby things may not be as bad for them as with other locations.