Railroad Forums 

  • Article regarding the Chester Branch

  • Discussion about the M&E, RVRR and SIRR lines of New Jersey, and also the Maine Eastern operation in Maine. Official web site can be found here: www.merail.com.
Discussion about the M&E, RVRR and SIRR lines of New Jersey, and also the Maine Eastern operation in Maine. Official web site can be found here: www.merail.com.

Moderators: GOLDEN-ARM, cjl330, mikec

 #868338  by R36 Combine Coach
 
Of County Concete's locations, only Kenvil and Morristown are on a rail line. East Orange would have been on the Erie's Orange Branch, but the tracks are gone by this point.
 #868349  by SemperFidelis
 
I would think that M&E would be able to provide a truck competitive rate, provided the service is allowed by their agreements with NS for use of the Boonton Line and the M&E. M&E is the kind of company that seeks out business and something like that, a simple back and forth between their lines, would be perfect.

I think there'd be an issue of handling, though. The material would have to be loaded at the quarry, trucked the short distance to the plant, unloaded, reloaded onto a railcar and then shipped. I don't know if there's a way to make that profitable for such a short distance.
 #868423  by cjvrr
 
Sorry for the lack of input but the talk is to run between the County Concrete facility on Railroad Avenue and Morristown. It would remove 30+ trucks from the roads each day. However as with anything rail related it all comes down to costs.

The one good item is County Concrete and M&E both worked to push the County to get the former main track moved over to make a siding for County Concrete. At least County Concrete is interested in rail service so that may open the door for other opportuntites for their facility.

A new turnout is also being installed into the Petillo property (on Dell Avenue). Mr. Petillo hasn't expressed much interest in the need for a turnout but the County felt it wise to include it as this is another large (currently vacant) parcel that could benefit from some type of rail access.
 #868477  by blockline4180
 
cjvrr wrote:Sorry for the lack of input but the talk is to run between the County Concrete facility on Railroad Avenue and Morristown. It would remove 30+ trucks from the roads each day. However as with anything rail related it all comes down to costs.

The one good item is County Concrete and M&E both worked to push the County to get the former main track moved over to make a siding for County Concrete. At least County Concrete is interested in rail service so that may open the door for other opportuntites for their facility.

Good to hear, thanks!! In the end, let us hope the price is right! I do think the M&E has their work cut out for them though going up against the Truckers Unions. :P :wink:
 #868561  by SemperFidelis
 
Provided no one ends up losing their job there shouldn't be a problem. Even so, and I say this as a pretty strong union supporter, a company has a right to switch modes of transport provided the switch is done for legitimate reasons (price etc.).
 #868975  by X4401
 
I believe the old Kenvil Newcrete site is next to the petillo property aka "Old lock joint pipe property" but I could be wrong. Petillo has a fenced in area with tons of excavators and work site trailers under lock, however he may own the land on the other side of the old CNJ line that used to cross at the ferromonte diamond (which is now a switch) or it may belong to someone else. I cant say with confidence where the tax map boundry is and who owns it, especially now that all the kenvil newcrete buildings have been demolished down to steel frames.
 #871311  by SemperFidelis
 
The Lock Joint Pipe Company was over in Wharton, in the area now occupied by a Pepsi beverage distributor and a senior citizens' home. The company was a customer of the CNJ (through its Mount Hope Mineral RR) and the DL&W/E-L and sat in a rather large area surrounded on all sides by connecting tracks.

Perhaps they had a location over in Kenvil, too. I'm not all that familiar with the history of the area. I do know that NIMBYs (who built houses next to a concrete plant) complained so much that my old Sakrete Plant in Kenvil now sits, totally abandoned. That place supported about 50 or 60 really good union jobs: hard work in exchange for good money.

In the old days (when things sometimes made a little more sense than now) it probably would have made sense for Lock Joint Pipe's finished product manufacturing area along the CNJ and DL&W in Wharton to be connected to a raw materials production area at the quarry along the CNJ and DL&W in Kenvil. Also, further down both lines were other lakes that were dredged for construction sand. It wouldn't have been a very long haul by any means, but way back then railroads had a business model whereby they hauled a company's freight in exchange for money.
 #871587  by cjvrr
 
R36,

That is the site. I had been told years ago that had been lock-joint. I apologize for the error.

That is now called the "Petillo" site as he is the current owner. He also owns the property formerly occupied by the CNJ on that west side of Dell Avenue.
 #873770  by bvesbc
 
Kaback9 wrote:
SecaucusJunction wrote:I really hope these customers actually come online. I'm still waiting for the M&E to have ANY movement on the Stourbridge Line that was rebuilt a few years back. I'm not sure they should be the ones running this operation.
They have been interchanging cars with the NYS&W lately, not sure whats in them but they looked like scrap gons.
Stourbridge Line, Rebuilt? since when??
 #874135  by joe k
 
Stopped over to inspect the work site at Berkshire Valley Rd near West Dewey. RR Construction has Berkshire CLOSED with the crossing being rebuilt. They had dug down about 2 - 3' below street level putting stone and conduits across the road. It looks like all the rail, ties and ballast have been upgraded looking south towards Route 10 with only Tamping left to do........on the North side of the work site RRC is digging down and getting ready to place ties, stone and new rail towards Lake Junction, rail looks to be 130 Lb? Nice improvment to this old line...........
Interesting: Only about 150' north of Berkshire Valley Road crossing the old Hercules Powder spur crossed Berkshire Valley too, the rails are in place on either side of the road with rails removed from the street here. 8" Trees grow between the rails so it looks like about 40 years since this line saw rail activity...........anyone know last time there was service to the Ka-Boom Factory??
 #874334  by cjvrr
 
Joe,

Were you there around 1pm? I saw someone walking down to the crossing from the north side while I was there with the Feds and NJDOT. They came up to perform an inspection. They are happy with the work so far.

In any case, yes the Berkshire Valley Road crossing as well as the track to a point 500' east of the crossing will be replaced by this Wednesday (11/24). M&E needs the track back in service on Monday the 29th.

Also east of that crossing two new turnouts will be installed for the eventual construction of a run around track. A run around track had existing in that location but rails were pulled from it 20+ years ago. One of those turnouts is going in this week. The County will need to obtain NJDEP permits to re-install the track on that siding. We felt it prudent to install the turnouts now. The siding will allow M&E some greater flexibility in getting around cars and elminate the need to push cars to Holland or to the High Bridge Branch.

With an additional two week work window Railroad Construction should be able to complete track replacement to Lake Junction. Then it is just a matter of installing ballast, and dressing the entire line. Some sections, such as at County Concrete are complete save for the installation of the rail clips.

Track near Horseshoe Lake was removed about two weeks ago. That area has been graded for the new track. Work in that area is being performed as filler between the work windows.
 #874648  by cjvrr
 
I have uploaded some new progress photos taken on November 18, 2010. Compare the before and after shots at Holland to see how much different it looks.

http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/archiv ... 712&Page=2


Some very old and very small tie plates were also turned up. These had to predate the 1905 rail on the line as the spike hole distances are too narrow to fit under that rail.
 #874807  by joe k
 
Yes cjvrr........that be me around 1PM Tuesday. My son has a carting / roll off dumpster business (American Carting) and parks his trucks in the yard just before the "Hole In The Wall" 1/4 mile north of where the work is going on.

I saw all the VIP's inspecting the line............

It would ALSO be nice to get rail service customer(s) back into the former Hurcules Property...............dont need anymore Condo's or McMansions

Time to get industry back into this state.........

Have a great Turkey Day
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