CSX Boston and Albany Line

[Rockingham Racer]

https://groups.io/g/csx-boston-line/topics

https://wiki.radioreference.com/index.p ... kshire_Sub

Not alll the info in the wiki is accurate, but I believe the radio channel info is. It is now the NC dispatcher that controls the movements between Worcester and just east of Syracuse.

[QB 52.32]

With many of our supply chains spasming, resulting in carrier congestion during these last 6 weeks of Covid-19 re-opening and changed consumer demand, interesting to watch how it is playing out on the B&A with intermodal volume in the traditional Fall peak range and a bump-up in Mini Landbridge containers moving direct from ports to receivers because of the need-for-speed and/or to avoid maxed-out west coast port transloading capacity.

After a few or more late arrivals in June/July, the first inbound intermodal train carrying Chicago traffic, Q008, has been pushed back a few hours earlier for the run over the B&A during the past few weeks. Lots of highly-rated traffic on this train with critical service requirements: good to see CSX respond.

[roberttosh]

Are there still 3 daily Intermodal trains in each direction?

[QB 52.32]

2 Eastbound, 3 Westbound (with one also handling carload traffic hubbed through Worcester).

[QB 52.32]

With CSX's CEO optimistic about prospects for growth within the e-commerce retail sector and winning Amazon's business away from NS this year, the B&A during the past couple of weeks has begun to see Amazon traffic in their own 53-foot domestic containers moving inbound into New England, joining the ranks of North Jersey and Baltimore in the railroad's Northeast/Mid-Atlantic region.

[roberttosh]

Is the cutback from 3 to 2 daily EB intermodals temporary (i.e. covid related) or permanent? Thx.

[QB 52.32]

With B&A intermodal volume around traditional peak since July, driven by Covid-related consumer demand shift to e-commerce as well as supply chain re-stocking after the shutdown, appears this will be permanent. The north/eastbound traffic for New England, hubbed at Syracuse, is being folded in with the first-sailing traffic out of Chicago as well as traffic from Indy/St Louis.

[QB 52.32]

During the past week JB Hunt Intermodal traffic on the B&A jumped while dropping over on NS/PAS with some resemblance to last winter's Hoosac Tunnel closure. May be driven by this volume peak begun in July and expected to last into October, straining carrier capacity. Using CSX allows Hunt better equipment utilization with their faster service in the Chicago-New England lane to the tune of ~1/3 fewer boxes needed to handle the same business.

[cd2434]

Spent the day out by the tracks in Chester on Saturday getting some video. Managed to catch two Eastbounds and a Westbound. A nice day to be out, the leaves are still very colorful and scenic. Wasn't the most interesting day traffic-wise, was hoping to see the military train that was in Worcester last I heard. Anyone have any updates on that?

Also, I caught the CSX "handpaint" scheme unit (CSX 940) leading one of the Eastbounds. Apparently, the service doors were replaced but were not painted to match the rest of the unit. Someone evidently decided to try their hand at painting the CSX logo and did a very poor job. It's shown in my video below, or you can check out RRPictureArchives: http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPi ... id=5343778

Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1IFOG30C3Fs

[roberttosh]

Does CSX run both Q204 and Q264 daily to Brookfield? Thanks.

[QB 52.32]

1 dedicated pair of auto rack trains running to/from E. Brookfield with additional racks some days also forwarded to Springfield on Q424 ala PSR for the local to bring out there.

[roberttosh]

Is CSX back to running 3 Intermodal trains a day each way to and from Worcester? I thought I heard somewhere that they reestablished the previously annulled EB.

[QB 52.32]

There continues to be 3 westbound intermodal trains out of Worcester, though with one also handling carload traffic, and 2 eastbound intermodal trains though with up to a dozen additional UPS-only east and westbound intermodal trains since November.

[roberttosh]

It will be interesting to see what CSX does with their scheduling as more and more MSW shippers come on line as well as the expected increase in traffic off the former Pan Am. There are days now when the recently put in service Republic facility at Springfield is shipping 15 cars of MSW and when other shippers start moving similar amounts of MSW traffic I just don’t see how they can squeeze it all onto the existing scheduled trains.

[NHV 669]

The one I saw on 12/24 via the Westfield cam was 165 cars, guessing at least 30-40 of those were empty trash gons returning.