Bennington Branch Revival?

This post was on the Guilford Yahoo group, not sure of its exact significance, but seems like something positive....

I heard tonight from the VRS engineer that the Guilford interchange is supposed to start on Monday. 5 day service out of Rutland to North Bennington then down the branch to Hoosick Jct. He says they will bring the B&M interchange to Eagle Bridge and run around the train and pick up their cars to return. Don't have any idea how Guilford plans on handling the interchange; we'll have to see.

He also says they are sprucing up the old North Bennington freight office with a fax and phone for the crews to use. Hey Don...maybe you can apply for your old job as the agent at NR. When I retire, I'll take my old job as the clerk there.

Definetely sounds extremely positive for the Vermont Railway on the line from Rutland south to N Bennington, which has been looking pretty shabby in recent years. Perhaps Amtrak will be next on this line?

And PAR related, sounds like another train through Hoosac, unless they'll tie it onto a thru train from the west. But I think the previous symbol BFPO has been running through.

Good for Bennington Branch ....Bad for Connecticut River Line. Will Guilford use both routes?

GP9 wrote:Good for Bennington Branch ....Bad for Connecticut River Line. Will Guilford use both routes?

Yes, I would think, since they still go north of Bellows Falls. This will be an interchange point with VRS, but whether it will replace BF or be in addition to it, I couldn't say.
This all is documented fact. It will happen soon. VRS has been running ballast trains over the branch and crews are working on the wye tracks at Hoosic Jct.

I remember watching VRS track crews with Amtrak equipment as they were doing ties and resurfacing of the west end of the wye at Hoosick Junction back in 2000 and 2001. Even the switch that split the wye had been rebuilt with like 136lb rail. Of course the switch onto PAR had been installed, Some of us were staking out potential photo spots North of the area. The Ethan Allen was supposed to be rerouted but it never happened. The "main" switch was yanked and then VTR stored boxcars on it for a while. All that "wasted money" is finally going to be utilized. At least until PAR finds a way to screw it up.

Is that interchange going to take place at Hoosic or Eagle Bridge? That quote in the first post is ambiguous...who's going to run around the cars at Eagle Bridge?

Dave Becker

pablo wrote:Is that interchange going to take place at Hoosic or Eagle Bridge? That quote in the first post is ambiguous...who's going to run around the cars at Eagle Bridge?

Dave Becker

I make it out as VRS will bring cars to Eagle Bridge, but as the source says, how PAR will do it isn't know at the moment. The source is a dispatcher for CP, by the way.
I hope this works out. It could be a problem if PAR doesn't move the cars as quickly as VRS brings them in.

What will happen is anyone guess. I bet in true ST fashion they will be figuring it out up to the day service begins. The Slurpy trains could be delivered to the junction, it could be left at North Bennington, who knows. I do know they have rebuilt the east leg of the wye, so they might not have to run around the train on double iron.

I remember one time years ago the interchange between the B & M and
the VTR took place at North Bennington. I remember one evening when
it took place and it was quite interesting.
I suspect that this would again be the logical place for such an operation
again today.
Noel Weaver

Noel, you're right about the interchange in North Bennington. When I was younger, I spent summers in Vermont, alternating between a great-aunt's house in Bennington itself and a camp in Arlington, midway between North Bennington and Manchester. We would often chase the trains we would hear going up and down the valley, and as we went to North Bennington for church, I am pretty sure that I remember the wye being used as an integral part of the interchange.

Hearing that the interchange may take place in Eagle Bridge interests me. Since the Battenkill Railroad (at least used to) interchange there, I know there is some sort of a network to excange cars. Does anyone have a track diagram (like a ZTS map) for Eagle Bridge? That layout might easily determine if there would be an interchange there or not, depending on the size of the traffic involved.

Dave Becker

If any interchange is at Eagle Bridge (I highly doubt it will), it would be on the main, not the Battenkill tracks. The Battenkill line splits off of the #1 Main at CPF448 and for a few hundred yards there is a runaround right there. They are always plugged with BK/CPR interchange. That's all there is for tracks.

pablo wrote:Noel, you're right about the interchange in North Bennington. When I was younger, I spent summers in Vermont, alternating between a great-aunt's house in Bennington itself and a camp in Arlington, midway between North Bennington and Manchester. We would often chase the trains we would hear going up and down the valley, and as we went to North Bennington for church, I am pretty sure that I remember the wye being used as an integral part of the interchange.

Hearing that the interchange may take place in Eagle Bridge interests me. Since the Battenkill Railroad (at least used to) interchange there, I know there is some sort of a network to excange cars. Does anyone have a track diagram (like a ZTS map) for Eagle Bridge? That layout might easily determine if there would be an interchange there or not, depending on the size of the traffic involved.

Dave Becker

Well, I didn't figure it would be on the Battenkill tracks. If the run-around is still plugged up, they'll have to build something else if they want to do it still at that location.

Any track diagrams for what Eagle Bridge used to look like?

Dave Becker

There is no room to build anything. Battenkill property on one side and a hill on the other. Like I said, if any interchange occurs there it will be on the main (traffic for CSX most likely). If's its eastbound like the slurrpy train i'm sure they will use the easy leg of the wye.

EDRJ was out of ED @ 445PM. It had the first 15 Omya's for VTR via the west end in its consist.

PAR sent a glorified RJ-1 up the North Bennington Branch last night as RJNB. It was powered by 512+310 with one load.