Fun and games in Dist 2 - SEWA

Sunday I was coming out of a hardware store when my hand held went off, the Exeter detector announcing what I thought was Amtrak 691 right on time. I headed to the station to see who was on. Surprise, an Eastbound freight in 691's time slot. Second time I have seen this happen this month. D-2 was calling it SEWA. Is this something new? It was about to get real interesting. 691 arrived about ten minutes later and stuck around while D-2 played " who's on first" with SEWA. There was a lot of chatter back and forth, as they tried to sort things out. It seems there was also a westbound (NMED)too long for the Dover siding. D-2 had sent it down to Newmarket to hold at MP254. Meanwhile as I ran down to Rockingham to watch, SEWA was told to back up to 257. 691 came down the controlled siding, through the switch and backed in in front of SEWA, then NMED went west, 691 went east, and a few minutes later, SEWA followed. Not far behind was 693.

I hate to second-guess, but I guess the obvious question is why SEWA was allowed to run ahead of 691, especially if there was apparently going to have to be a meet between 691 and NMED at Rockingham.
Another question; is Pan Am caring less about maintaining the Downeaster schedules and/or more concerned about their own trains? Sort of looks that way.

Pardon my question, but what does SEWA represent? I get NMED but the other one seems odd.

Gerry6309 wrote:Pardon my question, but what does SEWA represent? I get NMED but the other one seems odd.

SElkirk-WAterville.

It is basically the reincarnation of SEPO/POSE (SElkirk-POrtland). But now that Portland is no longer a real switching hub, they renamed it.

The normal SEAY-AYSE job out of Worcester is now being called SEWA-WASE. They are taking the train usually to Westford or CPF-297 where it will will be picked up by (usually) the Lawrence local and then switched out in Lawrence. CSX still will not allow their power to go beyond Lowell.

The WASE usually sets off and often picks up in Lawrence and/or Lowell and then sets off the Barbers at CPF-309, the Willows or the Hill yard.

With PAR, it's virtually impossible to nail down what it is the norm. All you can do is say "usually".

As for why a freight was ran ahead of a Passenger train? It depends. Often it's issues with getting the train to fit somewhere. Sometimes it's a power issue. Wells is on a nasty grade and westbounds that are at or near tonnage ratings often cannot get out, especially in bad weather. Sometimes there is another meet that will be a conflict and sometimes, well, it's a dispatching "Whoops". Things happen. For the most part, PAR does a good job accomodating the DE.

Another possibility I hadn't considered was that SEWA stalled on the single iron between Plaistow and Newfields, or had some sort of normal freight train trouble. Isn't there a fairly decent grade eastbound around Newton Jct to Exeter too?

NV290 wrote:
SElkirk-WAterville.

Makes sense. I figured SE was Selkirk, but that's CSX, not a PAR terminal.

Thank you!

Exeter is at the top of a grade too, up hill both ways. They were going like hell went they went through there with 3 geeps. Prior to the detector going off, I hadn't heard any radio traffic indicating a problem on the hill in Plastow. As I said, this was the second time I have seen this happen in two weeks. Either PA/GRS is becoming more indifferent to Amtrak or it was indeed another "oops" . Judging from the confusion on the radio- I wish I had the recorder running, it sounded like Abbott and Costello- trying to find a place to put NMED, getting SEWA to STOP, then BACK UP, I'm leaning towards the latter.

Can anyone tell me what the scanner freq are for the Exeter and Wells detecters?

Thanks

Deckhand wrote:Can anyone tell me what the scanner freq are for the Exeter and Wells detecters?

161.160, which is also the dispatcher-to-train frequency for Districts 2, 3, and 4. Train-to-dispatcher is 161.520.

I was catching in and out from Dist 2 of 2 units being with out water...was it this train?

Ian MacMillan wrote:I was catching in and out from Dist 2 of 2 units being with out water...was it this train?

I had the radio's on all morning and didn't hear anything about low water, though I wouldn't be surprised. Just the confusion of getting 691 around SEWA and NMED. Are you sure it was the same day?