Railroad Forums 

Discussion relating to the operations of MTA MetroNorth Railroad including west of Hudson operations and discussion of CtDOT sponsored rail operations such as Shore Line East and the Springfield to New Haven Hartford Line

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 #1487715  by njtmnrrbuff
 
Let me guess, this brand new interlocking will enable express trains that stop at Fordham to switch on to the middle tracks afterwards when heading points northeast?
 #1487717  by DutchRailnut
 
yup or new haven trains making Fordham inbound to get around a local harlem train making woodlawn williams bridge or botanical gardens .
 #1487818  by DutchRailnut
 
nope your reading to much into it.
 #1487843  by Noel Weaver
 
I remember the interlocking at BG from my early days firing. The crossovers were not used very much and at the end the tower was only open one trick a day Monday through Friday. The railroad did not have nearly the density of traffic back in the 60's that it has today so I think it can be a useful addition. Seems to me when they demolished the tower itself they lifted it up with a crane and moved it away from the tracks before they actually did the job. Does anybody else remember this?
Noel Weaver
 #1487846  by DutchRailnut
 
darn Noel you think we are that old :-)
 #1487868  by njtmnrrbuff
 
I don't think too many people would be very happy if more trains to New Haven stopped at Fordham. It adds some time to the schedule plus they are often very crowded after leaving Grand Central Terminal and 125th St.
 #1487922  by ExCon90
 
njt/mnrrbuff wrote:I don't think too many people would be very happy if more trains to New Haven stopped at Fordham. It adds some time to the schedule plus they are often very crowded after leaving Grand Central Terminal and 125th St.
It also cuts line capacity when one express crossing over ties up both tracks 1 and 3, or 2 and 4, including time needed to slow down and accelerate before and after the actual stop. You see the same thing at MetroPark and Trenton.
 #1487936  by njtmnrrbuff
 
ExCon90, that is very true and a good example of that is the majority of NJT's 3900 series trains skipping MetroPark and New Brunswick. For them to make those stops, they would have to cross over to the outer tracks and that can cost those passengers a few minutes. I don't think Amtrak appreciates it when NJT trains have to constantly cross from the outer to the inner tracks on the NEC. Plus, they are often very crowded to begin with as many NYC commuters live down in Mercer County . Plus, people living across the Delaware River in towns in Lower Bucks County who work in NYC or want to go to NYC to sightsee contribute to the crowds on those super express 3900 series trains.