Saturday in Berea + Questions

Mike and I went to Berea on Saturday. We arrived at the depot at around 1 pm and stayed until about 9 pm. Here's what we saw with some questions to follow:

Train Symbol, Locomotive Paint, Type, Direction

At Bagley/Columbia Roads:

NS???---NS, NS, CN---Mixed---WB

At Bagley underpass:

CSX Q1..---CSX, CSX AC's---Double Stack---EB

Depot:

CSXQ3..---CSX, HLCX (black)---Mixed---EB
NS#262---NS, CR widecabs---~75 TriCrnRR---WB
NS927---NS D-9---MOW train---WB
CSXQ3..---BNSF (pumpkin), CSX---Mixed---WB
NS#261---NS, NS---~100 TriCrnRR---EB
NS43Q---CR-8, UP sd70, 60 Grain---WB
NS133---NS, NS, Southern #4610---Mixed---WB
CSXQ139---CSX (new paint)---25 Stack---WB
CSXQ1..---CSX 5000 (Diversity), CSX---Intermodal---EB
NS 20K---NS, NS, BN8007 (green, black)---Intermodal---EB
NS21Q---NS, NS, NS---Intermodal---WB
W&LE#???---CSX to NS---GATX (blue), W&LE gp35 high nose---Coke---EB
CSXQ3..---CSX, CSX---Mixed, Racks---EB
NS16N---NS, CR, NS---Mixed---EB
NS 20E---NS, NS, CR---Intermodal---EB
NS21Z---NS, NS -9's---Mail---WB
CSXQ165---CSX, CSX---Intermodal---WB
NS22K---CR, NS---Intermodal---EB
CSXQ248---CSX sd70, HLCX sd40, CSX, CSX---Racks---EB
CSXCoal---BNSF, BNSF (Both Executive)---108 GEAX, CEFX coal---WB
NS22W---NS, NS, NS---Intermodal---EB
CSXQ160---CSX, CSX---Intermodal---EB
CSXL161---CSX, CSX---Intermodal---WB
CSXCoal---UP 90-43, UP, UP---126 CGPX Coal---EB
CSXQ3..---CSX, HLCX (x-mpi), HLCX (x-KCS), CEFX---Mixed---WB
NS#133---NS, UP sd70's---Mixed---EB
NS16E---NS, NS, UP---Grain---EB
CSXQ156---CSX, CSX---Stack---EB
CSXQ290---CSX, HLCX, CSX---34 Racks---EB
NS14J---NS, NS---28 steel, 7 box, 3 coke---EB
CSXQ339---CSX, CSX---Mixed---WB
NS24M---NS, CR, CR---Intermodal (Mail)---EB
NS24Z---NS, NS, CR---Intermodal (Mail)---EB
CSXQ380---CSX, UP sd40---Mixed---EB
CSXQ386---CSX, BNSF (Executive)---Mixed---EB
NS29E---CSX---80 Racks---WB
CSXQ364---UP sd70, UP sd40, CEFX (pumpkin) sd40, HLCX (BN) sd40
---171 Mixed, 688 axles---EB---Stopped at Depot for 10 min. for...
CSXQ109---CSX, CSX, CSX---Mail---WB
CSXQ117---CSX, CSX---Mail---WB
NS65Z---NS sd70, NS sd70---65 Whitestone, 7 old stone hoppers---WB
CSXQ108---CSX, CSX---Stack---EB
CSXQ391---CSX, CR---Mixed---WB
NS17Q---NS, NS, WC, NS---20 Mixed
CSXQ110---CSX, CSX---Mail---EB
CSXQ1..---CSX, CSX---Stack---EB
NS82T---NS, NS (primer), rest of power unseen---Coal---EB

There were 48 trains in the 8 hours for an average of 6 per hour. Power included schemes from CSX, NS, Southern, HLCX (black, red/blue, green, BNSF), UP, BNSF, BN, CEFX, GATX, W&LE, WC, CN, CR, MPI, KCS, and a unit in Primer for a total of 19. There was a pretty good crowd on hand but small for a Saturday. Maybe Mike will find out how to post some of the pictures he took, there were some good ones. Stay tuned.

Questions:

1. There are old concrete signal bases in the ground in the grassy area west of the depot. When were the signals here removed?

2. Above, a Wheeling train crossed over from the CSX to NS mains. How often do trains cross over here?

3. A train called 14T called out "clear Bay Village." The train is Bellevue/ Buffalo. Is this route to the north still used as a bypass or are there customers still?

Thanks.

Matt,

Signals were removed when the Big Four side was single-tracked, mid-
1970's IIRC.

The W&LE has a daily roundtrip from Wellington. They use CSX
Wellington to BE, NS down to the KNOB at Linndale, and down the old Wheeling Belt to the Campbell Rd. Yard in the Flats. This routing
replaced the old W&LE entry into Cleveland via Harvard Tower.

The old NKP mainline still sees about 6 trains a day. No on-line
consignees between Avon and Cleveland. Buffalo traffic routed via
Berea runs through Rockport, Linndale, and the rebuilt Cloggville
Connection.

OK, thanks Mr. Lustig. Are these W&LE trains coke, as a few of the hoppers implied? It looked more like stone but that could have been the lighting.

matt,

It's coke for the ISG (ex-LTV) steel works in the Flats.

Next time you are in town, take a run down to the Independence Rd. area
in the Flats, as the ISG engine house (Cuyahoga Works RR) is near the road and there are several interesting trackage arrangements.

No convenient parking, and don't trespass!

Hey all.

While I can't post pictures, there was plenty of interesting power to be had, perhaps most notably the NS GP59 number 4610 painted in Soutnern heritage. After passing us, they throttled up and put on quite a smoke show!

Others of interest include the work train, which amounted to a bunch of white boxes with windows on flat cars. A really cool train to see!

Also, CSX AC6000 #5000, the Diversity in Motion locomotive raced west with an intermodal.

And of course, the W&LE train with the high nose GP-35 in faded black with white W&LE letters on the side.

On about the last train before we left and the sun set, an NS train with a WC SD-45? headed west.

These, along with the scattering of BNSF and UP units and some, if nothing else, colorful leaser units culminated in a really awesome (and my personal first) time to the depot at Berea.

Is the Wheeling train the only train that crosses over at Berea?

matt,

If operations are normal, only the W&LE uses the "Big Four" connection.

The connections were kept so that if there is a problem with Bridge No. 1, NS would be able to detour via the Short Line and the White Connection.
Likewise, if there was a problem on the Short Line between Collinwood and Berea, CSX would be able to detour via the Lakefront Line.

The connections may see some regular crossover traffic in the future as
there is a proposal to re-route some NS trains via the Short Line.

Hope this helps.

Has the Short Line been doubletracked to handle all those CSX trains.
Never mind. I got the answer in another post here. Sorry.

mike wrote:Also, CSX AC6000 #5000, the Diversity in Motion locomotive raced west with an intermodal.

I believe there are three units painted like that.