NOW

When does the Northern Ohio & Western operate? (operates on the old PRR line SE of Toledo)
Is there any set schedule?
I heard that they mainly operate in Woodville, OH and only make runs to Walbridge as needed.

Ryan

As far as I know, the NOW operates as needed. Most of the time, that's daily Mon.-Fri., but the times that they are operating each day vary. I've caught them in Tiffin, Maple Grove, Gibsonburg and Helena, Ohio on various days at different times. I grew up in a town not far from Tiffin as well as having an older brother working at a college there, so I have been there many times.

I've never been able to find them in the same place at the same time from day to day, so it's just a guessing game for the most part.

I don't believe that the NOW runs into Walbridge. Last I knew, they interchanged all traffic with CSX in Tiffin, with the rare cars interchanged in Woodville. There is a siding on the west side of Tiffin along the ex-B&O where cars are parked. NOW runs from it's switch onto the B&O near downtown Tiffin out to the siding to pull the cars back to their trackage. Usually, I've found them doing that move in the morning.

There is also a junction with the NS in Maple Grove that has a wye track connecting to their Fostoria-Bellevue line. Usually a handful of cars can be found sitting on the wye track and small siding there. I haven't caught them actually interchanging there with NS, but I have seen them setting out cars on the wye track there. Interesting little junction there, right next to the road with a good sized area to pull off and check it out.

If I had to suggest a time and place to catch them, I'd say start in Tiffin in the morning. If the power isn't there, you can just travel the line north and eventually you'll run into them somewhere between there and south of Woodville.

Best of luck catching this interesting little shortline.

I visited Tiffin on Thursday and caught two different units there. The former Kansas Central unit was drained and dead but there was a Hudson Bay Railway unit idling on the main.

The 4497 that's pictured was reported by a friend to be working as a loadout switcher in West Virginia a few weeks ago. Anyone know how it got down there? Leased through OmniTrax? Sold outright?

Thanks for the update. That picture was taken almost two years ago, and it's been awhile since I've seen that unit down in Tiffin. I just love that paint scheme and the American flags that are on that loco.

OmniTrax tends to shift their motive power between its railroads all the time, which is why you see the Kansas unit working on the NOW. I'm not sure if they lease units out or not, but it could be that the former NOW unit was sold. I've noticed that some of the OmniTrax roads have been getting "new" power and perhaps we are just seeing a shift among the different roads (passing the "older" power down the ladder and getting rid of motive power that can be replaced). That's just a guess on my part.

But if 4497 is indeed gone, I'm glad I got the photos of it that I did.

Hello,

The NOW has an interesting way of interchanging cars with CSX. The Q397 (Willard to Wallbridge) drops off cars on Keller's siding which is the siding that was mentioned earlier in a posting that is west of the NOW/CSX connection in Tiffin. Usually there is one to as many as 8 cars dropped off there on a daily basis. The NOW doesn't run ouy there everyday to pick up the cars. My guess would be about two to three times a week, possibly one time depending on how many cars they have and demand. When the cars are empty or loaded and need to be interchanged with CSX, the NOW runs them up to Woodville and places them on the main south of US 20 by the LaFarge? plant there. There is a siding track that they can run around the train on there. NOW does no switching at Marin Marrietta, CSX still does all that and is the only reason they still run trains into Woodville. The H710 is the daily job that runs from Stanley yard to Woodville and runs Mon-Fri. They bring down cars for Martin Marrietta, pull the interchange cars from the NOW, switch out Martin Marrietta and go back to Stanley.

As far as the interchange with NS at Walnut Grove, I have seen the NS pick-up and place cars for the NOW in the connection but don't know what kind of schedule they have. I have also seen the NOW on their conncection into the big limestone plant there in Walnut Grove pulling out loaded covered hoppers but again, I have no idea on schedules.

Also, CSX owns the tracks from Wallbridge to Tiffin and the little part of the Carrouther's Sub that goes south at Heidleberg College, they just lease it OMNI Trax.

I don't believe that the NOW runs into Walbridge. Last I knew, they interchanged all traffic with CSX in Tiffin, with the rare cars interchanged in Woodville.

Thanks for correcting me. What was so big about these tracks that Conrail left them dual tracked (at least from Walbridge to just before Woodville) up untill (bad memory) about '97 when it was reduced to single tracked.
Feel free to correct me again