CSX Activity in New England

[GP40MC1118]

CSX didn't sell those lines to Mass Coastal...they leased the freight operating rights. The track itself is going to the
state of Massachusetts. Understand that CSX & BCLR extended their lease of the Dartmouth Industrial Track and
BCLR & MC have another 1 year extension of the MP6 to Mid-City Scrap portion of the branch.

Notice CSX did not lease out Attleboro to Middleboro or up to Braintree. They still do a good business Middleboro
to Braintree on track the MBTA maintains. Don't think CSX will pull out of here or Readville until Beacon Park
falls and the state finds money to actually pull off the purchase of "east of Worcester"!

D

[cp8558]

CSX didn't sell those lines to Mass Coastal...they leased the freight operating rights.

D

From the Mass Coastal website:

HYANNIS, MA, NOVEMBER 25, 2009: Massachusetts Coastal Railroad (Mass Coastal), a subsidiary of Hyannis, MA headquartered Cape Rail, Inc., announced today that it has entered into agreements with Jacksonville, FL based CSX Transportation (CSXT) and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts regarding the purchase of CSXT freight rail operating rights on the New Bedford and Fall River rail lines, known as the "South Coast Lines."

The word purchase is used in the press release. Although the actual right-of-way will be owned by the state. May 14 is the start-up date.

Dave

[QB 52.32]

Lots of rumor and speculation about these eastern MA branchlines for over 10 years without anything happening. There's probably plenty of issues, including the requirements of running on the high-speed NE Corridor and over commuter rail lines and CSX's desire to make sure no competitors (like NS) gain access to this traffic, that complicate the situation. Recent reports from CSX employees indicated that they were told by management that CSX does want to sell off the lines in their entirety or piecemeal to different carriers. However, the current Senate committee STB re-authorization bill, as written today, eliminates "paper (interchange) barriers" that carriers have implemented in previous line sales to protect the traffic turned over to a short line or regional. So I have to wonder if that will put any larger sale of the bigger parts/all of this network on hold (permanently if paper barriers are eliminated?) until the legislation is finalized and passed. Sale of the Milford I.T. (Franklin I.T. with MBTA rights from Forge Park to Franklin Jct.?) to the G&U, like the sale of freight rights to Mass. Coastal which will occur in '10, seems possible irregardless because it avoids the bigger issues to a great degree and represents a small piece of the business of the overall network.

[csrrfan86]

Caught B721 this afternoon coming off the Grand Junction branch and heading to the New England Produce market in Chelsea. They had GP40-2 #6216 and #6210(??) with 5 reefers.

http://photos.nerail.org/s/?p=162842

[lirrelectrician]

Hello again,
The paper barriers is one reason why CSX sold the right to the Mass Coastal. It was speculated that the P&W would get them, but with the P&W having connections to other class 1s CSX could lose the traffic. Paper barriers also keep the CSO from interchanging with anyone except CSX. If CSX were to sell the rest of the Southeastern, MA lines I would expect the P&W to pick up at least the NEC from Rhode Island to Readville and maybe the rest of the Middleboro lines (Braintree and Attleboro). I do see the G&U getting Milford to Walpole and maybe even to Framingham. Of course these are my ideas .
Also does the Boston Herald (the siding near Back Bay station) still get rail service?
Thanks in advance
Mike Scholz-LIRR

[Tracer]

Lots of rumor and speculation about these eastern MA branchlines for over 10 years without anything happening. There's probably plenty of issues, including the requirements of running on the high-speed NE Corridor and over commuter rail lines and CSX's desire to make sure no competitors (like NS) gain access to this traffic, that complicate the situation. Recent reports from CSX employees indicated that they were told by management that CSX does want to sell off the lines in their entirety or piecemeal to different carriers. However, the current Senate committee STB re-authorization bill, as written today, eliminates "paper (interchange) barriers" that carriers have implemented in previous line sales to protect the traffic turned over to a short line or regional. So I have to wonder if that will put any larger sale of the bigger parts/all of this network on hold (permanently if paper barriers are eliminated?) until the legislation is finalized and passed. Sale of the Milford I.T. (Franklin I.T. with MBTA rights from Forge Park to Franklin Jct.?) to the G&U, like the sale of freight rights to Mass. Coastal which will occur in '10, seems possible irregardless because it avoids the bigger issues to a great degree and represents a small piece of the business of the overall network.

Hello again,
The paper barriers is one reason why CSX sold the right to the Mass Coastal. It was speculated that the P&W would get them, but with the P&W having connections to other class 1s CSX could lose the traffic. Paper barriers also keep the CSO from interchanging with anyone except CSX. If CSX were to sell the rest of the Southeastern, MA lines I would expect the P&W to pick up at least the NEC from Rhode Island to Readville and maybe the rest of the Middleboro lines (Braintree and Attleboro). I do see the G&U getting Milford to Walpole and maybe even to Framingham. Of course these are my ideas .
Also does the Boston Herald (the siding near Back Bay station) still get rail service?
Thanks in advance


Mike Scholz-LIRR

Can you guys elaborate a little more on what exactly a paper barrier is?

Thanks, T

[QB 52.32]

Can you guys elaborate a little more on what exactly a paper barrier is?

Thanks, T

It's an agreement that restricts where traffic can be interchanged irregardless of what physical connections or established interchanges exist. In this case, it would restrict someone who buys a line or freight rights owned by CSX from interchanging the traffic so that it would flow around CSX to one of their competitors, even if there is a physical connection or established interchange that would allow that kind of routing. For example, if the P&W were to pick up CSX's freight rights along the Corridor into Readville, a paper barrier agreement would require the P&W to route that traffic to/from CSX (at Worcester) and not allow them to shop the traffic over to the NS via PAS (Gardner), CN via the NECR (Willamantic) or CP via NECR/VTR (Willamantic). Basically, this kind of agreement allows a rail carrier to sell off the operations without giving up exclusive market access but can be viewed as an anti-competitive behavior that may become prohibited with railroad re-regulation legislation currently in Congress.

[QB 52.32]

The paper barriers is one reason why CSX sold the right to the Mass Coastal. It was speculated that the P&W would get them, but with the P&W having connections to other class 1s CSX could lose the traffic.

If CSX were to sell the rest of the Southeastern, MA lines I would expect the P&W to pick up at least the NEC from Rhode Island to Readville and maybe the rest of the Middleboro lines (Braintree and Attleboro).

It's the same issue for the traffic hubbed through Middleborough and Readville or along the Corridor, though on a much bigger scale than the rights to New Bedford and Fall River. While the P&W is a known quantity operating long-term on the Corridor, unless they are tied by a paper barrier agreement their presence would open up the possibility of traffic loss to CSX's competitors for the majority of business on this southeastern MA freight network.

Also does the Boston Herald (the siding near Back Bay station) still get rail service?

No. IIRC, that stopped about 5 or more years ago.

[roberttosh]

Maybe some official announcements coming soon from CSXT regarding the withdrawal from Boston and future plans for Westboro/Worcester.

[frrc]

Looks official here, from the article in the T&G. Worcester is planned to be the "freight hub" of New England...

http://www.telegram.com/article/2010021 ... 80752/1116

[QB 52.32]

Light on the details except what we had already heard from CSX's meeting with area employees and that Westborough, E Brookfield and W. Springfield are in the mix, too, along with E. Worcester. One error in the article stating that the overhead clearance work will extend as far east as Rt. 128 instead of I-495.

[frrc]

Light on the details except what we had already heard from CSX's meeting with area employees and that Westborough, E Brookfield and W. Springfield are in the mix, too, along with E. Worcester. One error in the article stating that the overhead clearance work will extend as far east as Rt. 128 instead of I-495.

Should be interesting how they handle the clearance work when they come to downtown Natick, I recall the track under one of the bridges downtown floods easily come rainy season. I did notice they've raised the bridge out in Warren on Rt 67,
but only 1(?) side was done.

[QB 52.32]

Thanks for posting the article, FRRC. The mistake was in reporting that the Commonwealth will be clearing as far east as Rt. 128...they will only be going as far as Westborough (I-495). Clearing an additional ~ 3.5 ' east of Framingham becomes astronomically expensive because of the many obstructions encountered and difficulty in clearing those obstructions, including the drainage situation you point out.

[QB 52.32]

More details in today's Worcester Telegram about the E. Worcester intermodal terminal expansion.

http://www.telegram.com/article/2010022 ... 00342/1116

According to the article the expansion will double the terminal's acreage, re-locate the gate, involve constructing an overpass over Franklin St. to join the existing terminal area with part of the expansion, and extend the terminal eastwardly to help keep CSX's trains from commuter interference.

[jaymac]

Ah, the irony should the Beacon Park engine house get relocated to where the B&A Worcester engine house was!
We'll see how much of a struggle it is to determine the routing for increased truck traffic.