Pan Am Worcester Main Line

[jaymac]

Johnhenry-
P.13 has a number of posts about CSX wanting to cut back on how far east their power goes. Mebbe this is a low-cost approach.

[Trinnau]

CSX doesn't necessarily want to cut back, Pan Am does. CSX charges Pan Am for every hour Pan Am has their locomotives. That's cash out the door. Now that Pan Am has spent money to buy enough "reliable" power to handle what can be a monster train, it makes sense to swap at interchange instead of Lowell or Portland.

[Ironman]

johnhenry, this is now the regular move.

[johnhenry]

Recently I had observed how the engine swap was made westbound, with the train being dropped on the main east of the Burncoat crossing, PanAm engines going into the yard limits and swapping with waiting CSX power at the Greendale siding, and then getting a new form-d to head east back to the train, doing a brake test and roll by at Burncoat, and bringing the train down to New Bond (Shay) to park and wait for CSX to take it west.
One time I saw an east bound get pulled up with CSX power to the west end of Greendale, where the power was then swapped. This was a relatively short train however, as the distance between New Bond and the west end of Greendale is about 4000 ft. I wondered how they handled larger trains.
Yesterday I saw that CSX pulled up to New Bond and PanAm took over, leaving the train (which I am guessing was longer than 4000 ft) where is was while doing the power swap. Between getting situated in the CSX power, getting situated in the PanAm power, and doing all the moves and then pulling the train past New Bond, about 2 hours was used up. During the entire time, the P&W had it's northbound Gardner local stuck behind the train, and there was much complaining and "we won't let this happen again" radio conversation.

[rustyrails]

I notice the CSX power parked on the sighting in Greendale. Is there any schedule that the train goes across the causeway ( Wachussett Res.) from Burncoat main line so I can get some pics. Also, is there any active radio frequencies besides 160.52 & 161.16. I am in the Worcester area.

[neman2]

Probably just a typo but should be 161.52 not 160.52. The yard frequency of 161.40 may have some activity in the Worcester area, it is active around Ayer.

[johnhenry]

One train each way per day. Time varies a lot.
If you hear a form-D from the dispatcher (161.16) for MPX25 to Burncoat, you'll have an eastbound train by the reservoir in about 2 hours.
If you hear the opposite (Burncoat to MPX25) you'll have a westbound in about a half hour.
(If your lucky!)

[newpylong]

It would be the opposite of that. MPX25 to Burncoat is westbound.

[johnhenry]

Sorry about the compass dyslexia.

[johnhenry]

Witnessed a relatively short SEPO break the plow berms (from Christmas morning snow) at Gates Rd in Sterling this morning at 1100.
Power was CSX, so at least for today, power exchanges at Greendale did not take place.
I have seen very short POSE trains in the last few weeks.

[jaymac]

0539/12-29-2017, D-2 advised POSE of switch trouble at 286, which seems a bit late for POSE. No additional transmissions heard so dunno power ID or train length.
johnhenry, shoulda noticed unbroken berms at Temple Street/Rte. 140 crossing on 12-27, but was too intent on maintaining proper interval behind cruiser that seemed intent on going 5 MPH less than MAS.

[jaymac]

POSE on the ground per a series of 0550-and-later/01-24-2018 D-3 transmissions. Details are sketchy cuz transmissions -- depending on my location -- were generally broken. Mebbe 1 unit of power and 6 cars with varying amounts of axles were involved. Per a 0616 D-3 transmission, the car info would be taken off the Clinton reader, so probably they were at least a bit west of there. There was no acknowledgment of any crew problems, so they seem OK. D-3 advised that the fleet had been dispatched. Pre-0700 transmissions -- mebbe POSE-involved, mebbe not -- mentioned Dunks, and the only one I can think of is on 110 in Clinton west of the station. No activity was visible between the Oakdale OHB and the Temple Street/Rte. 140 crossing.

[jwhite07]

so probably they were at least a bit west of there

Newsbit forwarded from my wife shows the train stopped stretched across Burncoat Street (about a mile from where I live), so I'm thinking the referenced Dunks is the one on Route 12 behind (in front of?) the Greendale siding. Apparently they fell just short of completing their journey. Literally.

[jaymac]

Has to be. Tnx for the folo-up!

[johnhenry]

By 3pm today, they had pulled (with a CSX engine from Worcester) the CSX 149 leader onto good rail and down to the Greendale siding. An AY crew brought two engines from the east and took the OK rear cars back east to clear Burncoat st. Don't know if they left them in Clinton or took them all the way back to Ayer. The second engine, CSX 5424, and at least 5 cars are still sitting on the rolled outside rail, with the inside wheels on the ties. All this is in the "Summit" cut on the Worcester main where East Mountain st and West Boylston st cross on bridges. They also have a crane on rubber wheels down there.