Street Running a Thing of the Past?

papawpimmy Jan 14, 2004

  1. friscobob

    friscobob Staff Member

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    The Portland & Western has street running on its former Oregon Electric line in Salem for over 1/2 to 3/4 of a mile, including working spurs. Speed limit for PNWR trains is about 10 MPH.

    Last time I was in Independence, OR, the ex-SP line operated by PNWR was also in the middle of the street, just west of downtown.
     
  2. wurlitzer153

    wurlitzer153 TrainBoard Member

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    As promised, Main Street in West Brownsville, PA:
    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]

    Here on Google Maps you can see where the tracks share Main Street.
     
  3. SecretWeapon

    SecretWeapon Passed away January 23, 2024 In Memoriam

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    Hey,
    Over here in Garfield,N.J.,the New York & Greenwood Lake RR runs down Monroe St. Between his yard & the interchange with NS(NJT's Bergen County Line).
     
  4. JCater

    JCater TrainBoard Member

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    THAT is totally AWESOME!!! I could railfan from my car or business if I lived there :D Very cool!! I am assuming the eight ton weight limit does not apply to the train LOL
    John
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Jun 25, 2007
  5. mtaylor

    mtaylor Staff Member TrainBoard Supporter

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    THAT IS JUST CRAZY!! But cool :). When were the photos taken? This Year?
     
  6. OC Engineer JD

    OC Engineer JD Staff Member TrainBoard Supporter

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  7. OC Engineer JD

    OC Engineer JD Staff Member TrainBoard Supporter

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  8. Hytec

    Hytec TrainBoard Member

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    Those are great videos, Jerry. Which town are you operating in when you cross the Coosa River?
     
  9. jagged ben

    jagged ben TrainBoard Member

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    There are still some places in the Bay Area where street running happens...

    1) The first, of course, is Jack London Square in Oakland.
    [​IMG]
    Railpictures search
    Google Map

    There are probably some other Oakland locations I'm not familiar with.

    2) Another is the Quint Street Spur in San Francisco. Until a few years ago I didn't realize there were still trains running on this. It runs through an industrial neighborhood (no houses, few retail business) which is probably the reason it survives. Trains come through twice a week or more.
    See attachment
    Google Map (you can see the track cut through an auto-wrecking yard)
    The spur leads to some industries by India Basin, as well as the grandiosely named San Francisco Intermodal Container Transfer Facility, which seems to be used mainly for loading scrap metal into beat up gondolas. (I've never seen a stack car come through.)
    Amazingly, some of the trains through here are 30 cars or more. Aside from the gondolas, there are tank cars and reefers.

    3) Occasionally Caltrain uses a spur on Townsend to do switching out of the 4th and King station.

    4) There is also the Carrol Ave spur, which still functioned a couple years ago when the Golden Gate Railroad Museum was forced to close and move its equipment. This spur is not regularly used, and is probably now in jeopardy.
    [​IMG]

    5) Also they are rebuilding a bridge over India Basin, and the work includes laying new track to connect the Quint spur to the track that still runs up Illinois street.
    Google Map (the new bridge goes to the right/east of the one you can see
    EDIT: I just did some research on this, and it seems that the Port of San Francisco has some delusions that they need rail access to a nearby container terminal, as if UP is going to send doublestacks up the Caltrain line. Oh well, some guys who sort of deserve it will get paid to put in the track.

    The Illinois spur was still serving a cement plant at about 16th St until a few years ago. When I was a kid, there was a cement plant on Harrison and 17th that was still served by rail; the plant location is now condos, and the track down Harrison (the original rail route into downtown SF) is gone. A couple years ago they built over the tunnel portal that led under Potrero Hill. The network of industry tracks that used to criss-cross the South of Market have been slowly disappearing and are almost gone.

    As gas prices continue to rise, I wonder how many will remember and regret the infrastructure that has been removed.
     

    Attached Files:

    Last edited by a moderator: Jun 26, 2007
  10. wurlitzer153

    wurlitzer153 TrainBoard Member

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    Just over a month ago. There is a large construction equipment show right up the hill from there that I go to twice a year. The National Pike Steam, Gas, and Horse Association is billed as 'the largest digging show in the US' http://www.nationalpike.com/

    And photos from my father's website: http://www.nesys.org/HCEA/Brownsville.html
     
  11. OC Engineer JD

    OC Engineer JD Staff Member TrainBoard Supporter

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  12. Old Reliable

    Old Reliable TrainBoard Member

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    New Albany, Indiana update

    The CSX line that street runs through town is still very active. I have been trying to get some pics to no avail, even though it's just a quarter mile from my house. I only see Indiana Railroad and Union Pacific trains on it. CSX switches the Pilsbury plant and runs the cuts over the line and across the bridge to Louisville, KY, but Indiana and UP are the only "mainline" trains. Almost forgot...The city government in New Albany is not happy with the CSX line being there. It is appearantly causing sewer problems and the city cannot themselves close the line or dig under the track. The Brooks, KY CSX wreck really has them worried, too. They want the line gone, but I sure don't.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Jun 26, 2007
  13. Mr. SP

    Mr. SP Passed away August 5, 2016 In Memoriam

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    Street Running Alive & Well

    Here in Rainier there is still street running six days a week. The track is in "A" Street from 2nd. St W to 6th St. E a distance of eight blocks. The line has traffic to a log sort and a wallboard plant in town. West of here is Clatskanie where there is a Simpson sawmill that ships out big lumber. The paper mill at Wauna recieves chemicals and clay by rail as well. West of wauna the track continues to Astoria. There is no service west of Wauna.
    Next year there are supposed to be unit grain trains to an alcohol plant at Clatskanie now under construction. The city of Rainier is all worried that the grain trains will maroon people on the river side of "A" Street.
    The trains will not stop and should clear town in five minutes or less.
     

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    Last edited by a moderator: Aug 10, 2007
  14. SteveM76

    SteveM76 TrainBoard Member

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    Those "UP trains" are CSX and we also run Q247 through there along with any reroutes from the Short Line. Noone has mentioned Owensboro, Ky yet. We run 25 mph down the street there and it is the main line between Louisville and Evansville.
     
  15. Hytec

    Hytec TrainBoard Member

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  16. SteamDonkey74

    SteamDonkey74 TrainBoard Supporter

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    It's Rainier, Oregon

    It's Rainier, Oregon. I was just out there attempting to take photos and realized after returning that my borrowed digital camera was on the wrong setting.
     
  17. OC Engineer JD

    OC Engineer JD Staff Member TrainBoard Supporter

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    The yard loaded with all the cars is NS Siskin Yard, and right next to that is ATN's Gadsden Yard. We Interchange with NS there, but NS mainly uses that yard for storage.
    If you follow the ATN line east, you will see at Ohatchee it crosses the Coosa again.:) Then past Ragland you can follow it as it winds it's way through the Mountains.
     
  18. Hytec

    Hytec TrainBoard Member

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    Thanks, Jerry. From a tourist stand-point, it looks like you go through some beautiful scenery and interesting locations....pity that it's your "job", and you can't just sit back and enjoy it. :teeth:
     
  19. BoxcabE50

    BoxcabE50 HOn30 & N Scales Staff Member TrainBoard Supporter

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    Is any Astoria trackage still in place?

    :D

    Boxcab E50
     
  20. stewarttrains98

    stewarttrains98 TrainBoard Member

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    Well I know that the CSX and NS still do street running in GA. The NS does so in Albany GA and both railroads do so in Augusta in order to cross a river.
     

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