Southern Tier - West of Binghamton

UP #1996 aka the SP heritage unit came to Elmira on NS 310 today. She has already made a trip to Sayre and back on local H10.

The SP unit is leading local H17 this afternoon. UP #1996 was spotted heading east in Elmira a short time ago.

The SP unit was on local H12 this afternoon, and was spotted returning to Elmira shortly after 5 PM.

The SP unit is in Sayre with local H12, and should return to Elmira this afternoon.

NS 286 normally runs from Shelbyville, KY to Fostoria, OH. For tonight only, it is being extended to Mechanicville, NY. The crew change at Buffalo was scheduled for 7:30 PM. This is an auto rack train. It does not replace NS 28N on the Southern Tier Mainline, which is also running tonight. According to a couple of reliable sources, there will also be a westbound counterpart (also one time only) for NS 286 in a day or two.

NS 66N (ethanol train) was spotted at Conneaut, OH a couple of hours ago, so there is a good chance it will run on the Tier this afternoon.

Going... going... gone! The SP unit left Elmira on NS 309 before dawn. The train was spotted at Horseheads around 5:50 AM, so railfans on the west end of the Tier should be able to see UP #1996 in daylight. The SP unit is not leading.

MOW is the theme for the Tier this spring. A string of MOW "critters" were parked on the siding in downtown Addison on Saturday. NS 37T had a long string of empty CWR flats when I saw the train at Horseheads yesterday, and a work train (symbol unknown) went east from Elmira today.

Matt Langworthy wrote:MOW is the theme for the Tier this spring. A string of MOW "critters" were parked on the siding in downtown Addison on Saturday. NS 37T had a long string of empty CWR flats when I saw the train at Horseheads yesterday, and a work train (symbol unknown) went east from Elmira today.

A bit OT to this thread but NS is also supposed to be doing a fair amount of rehab on the ex-CP track, although I'm not sure exactly where. Excerpt from the NS press release re: completion of D&H acquisition:

Track crews from NS are scheduled to perform routine maintenance in the corridor, and NS plans in 2016 to add new ties and resurface 40 miles of track and install 14 miles of new curved rail.

The GoRail unit is trailing on NS 23K this evening. Based on normal NS operating operating patterns, #6963 will probably operate on the Tier in daylight tomorrow.

There are no coal trains running on the Tier at the present time. NS has rerouted 532 and 533 via the Pittsburgh Line/Sunbury Line/D&H South. Meanwhile, 524 and 525 have been abolished because Milliken is idle, and also had a recent fire.

"A bit OT to this thread but NS is also supposed to be doing a fair amount of rehab on the ex-CP track, although I'm not sure exactly where."

No trains to tie up the track now, so they may as well do trackwork! Pfftt....

No trains??? Aside from a local that was abolished, the D&H has the same train symbols now as it did when NS took over back in September.

... which is down nearly 50% from what it was under D&H a few years ago, and ditto for the Tier compared with a few years back.

Not literally -NO Trains-, but you get the picture. It's a still a pretty sorry state of affairs and not much traffic moving. And even that local (which was really more of a "junk manifest" than a true, lowly little local) was what, 20-25% of the total moves on the railroad at that point, so even that is not an insignificant further reduction.

I don't believe the 258 and 259 were replaced either.