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  • Delaware Coast Line Railway

  • Discussion pertaining to all railroading subjects, past and present, in Delaware, Maryland, Virginia and Washington, D.C.
Discussion pertaining to all railroading subjects, past and present, in Delaware, Maryland, Virginia and Washington, D.C.

Moderator: therock

 #1361087  by RailVet
 
Shortly after election day in late 2004 the DCL operated a chartered passenger train from Lewes to Georgetown and return. A red hat ladies group had chartered the train and opened up ticket sales to the general public to help cover the cost of the charter. Passenger cars were, I believe, some demotored ex-RDCs owned by a third party. Interestingly enough, the seats were just regular chairs and were not bolted down. In any case, the train didn't move fast enough to make much difference anyway. Lot of festivities were planned that day in Georgetown but the day turned out to be a big bust. A light rain started to fall as the train left Lewes and by the time it arrived in Georgetown it had turned into a torrential downpour. So much for parades, speeches, etc.!

When not in use (and they never seemed to be in use), the cars were stored on tracks on the east side of the Georgetown airport industrial park, and they can be seen behind this Alco,

http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPi ... id=2358739" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

which has since been scrapped:

http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPi ... id=3953429" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

This car was also on the line:

http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPi ... id=1834079" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

I think its owner was John H. Marino, who passed away this summer. Google Earth images show no traces of these cars in recent years, however. Does anyone know the fates of Marino's car and the stainless steel cars used on that chartered trip in late 2004?
 #1361194  by RailVet
 
Partially answered my own question. Today I found DCLR 100 sitting near the enginehouse, but there's no trace of the stainless steel coaches.
 #1380937  by RailVet
 
In November 2004, shortly after the election, the DCL ran a chartered passenger excursion from Lewes to Georgetown, DE, and return. It was chartered by a Red Hat Ladies group which opened participation in trip to the public. Motive power was a big ex-Conrail GE unit and passengers rode in what I believe were several de-motored RDCs. In Georgetown there were to be speeches, a parade, lots of vendor stands, etc., but the event was washed out due to torrential rains.

The passenger cars reportedly belonged to a third party, not the DCL, and were parked near the enginehouse. At some point they departed the line. Does anyone know what happened to them?
 #1391116  by Teutobergerwald
 
Headed to the Lewes area on vacation next week. Anybody know what day I might catch DCL making the run to SPI Pharma? Thanks.
 #1402781  by RailVet
 
Swing bridge over canal closed for repair

Unexpected settlement of a pier on the Lewes-Rehoboth Canal bridge has forced officials to postpone repairs at the Route 9/Cool Springs Road railroad crossing. Work was scheduled to begin Friday, Sept. 30.

Barry Benton, Delaware Department of Transportation's chief bridge engineer, said over the past few months settlement of a pier at the hand-cranked bridge has created an unsafe condition, forcing immediate closure of the 100-year-old structure. He said because of the complexity of the project and the required permitting, it could take as long as three years to repair the bridge. “There is significant settling of about 7 to 8 inches; this is not a short-term fix,” Benton said. “Pieces of timber have also split.”

The rest of the story:
http://www.capegazette.com/article/swin ... air/116980" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
 #1403711  by Teutobergerwald
 
The state will spend the money to keep trucks off Rte. 9 and to keep the branch viable so other potential customers will sign on with DCL, again, to keep trucks off Coastal Highway and Rte. 9.
 #1434247  by Teutobergerwald
 
The current view of the DCL's Ellendale-Milton line on Google Earth, dated April 9, 2017, show's the DCL's Also T-6 switching the propane customer outside of Milton- two tankcars with a boxcar in between, no caboose, as they use on the Lewes run.
 #1453575  by RailVet
 
DCLR ran a Toys-for-Tots train on Saturday, Nov 4 using a locomotive and the newly-refurbished caboose (typically used as a spacer car) from Georgetown to the library in Lewes and back. Following the train were 15 track cars. This was the second year for a Toys-for-Tots train over the route and now the last, as the easternmost 8 miles are being abandoned with the demise of the swing bridge over the canal in Lewes.

Three tank cars were rail-marooned at SPI Pharma in Lewes when the swing bridge was declared unsafe last summer. A few days before the Toys-for-Tots run, they were loaded onto large trucks and transported to a point just south of the bridge where they were put back on the tracks. On Friday, December 15 the DCLR made its last run to Lewes to pick up the three cars and bring them to the interchange in Georgetown, DE. The last train departed from Lewes at 9:33 a.m. This is the last revenue train, and while it's possible there may be one or two "fun runs" before the track starts to come up next year, it's not likely.

At one time SPI Pharma was the only customer on the line, but now the railroad has others on the 13 miles it is retaining, and even with the loss of 40 cars annually from SPI Pharma, carloads are up by 60 cars this year over last. More customers are likely to locate along the DCLR in the future, both on this line as well as the short route between Ellendale and a point just west of Milton.
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