NS Changes Chicago Line Dispatching Assignments

Norfolk Southern has changed the dispatcher districts on its Chicago line, an online report said.

Effective at 6:30 a.m. on Monday, NS abolished the Toledo East desk and redistributed dispatching duties between the Cleveland East desk and the Toledo Terminal desk.

Cleveland East now controls the Chicago Line between CP 194 (Berea) and CP 242 (Sandusky).

West of CP 242 is now controlled by the Toledo Terminal dispatcher.

The Toledo Terminal controls the Chicago Line as far west as CP 352 (Edgerton) where the Elkhart desk takes over.

However, the online report indicated that Toledo Terminal control may change to end at CP 320 (Wauseon)

In another Northeast Ohio rail news development, Amtrak’s eastbound Lake Shore Limited on Tuesday ferried a P42DC locomotive for CTrail, a commuter rail operation operated by the Connecticut Department of Transportation.

It was placed behind the two Amtrak P42DC units assigned to pull No. 48. That same day the Lake Shore operated without its New York section baggage car.

On Monday No. 48 ran without its Boston section Viewliner sleeper.

VIA Makes More Service Cuts

VIA Rail Canada said that beginning March 31 it will further cut service on most routes.

The new schedule calls for only one train per day on all routes in the Quebec City-Windsor, Ontario, corridor.

All trains will stop at every station on all routes.

Montreal-Jonquiere, Quebec; Montreal-Senneterre, Que; and Sudbury-White River, Ontario, routes will operate with one round trip per week.

The Winnipeg-Churchill, Manitoba, train is no longer offering Sleeper Plus service.

Other operations, including the Canadian and Ocean, have been suspended through May 1.

VIA said carry-on baggage assistance offered by employees is temporarily suspended on all trains across the network.

However, it said it will continue to offer the same level of assistance to passengers with disabilities and/or limited mobility.

Checked baggage service has been temporarily suspended on all routes except Sudbury-White River and Winnipeg-Churchill.

In the United States, Amtrak and CTrail Hartford Line trains have begun operating on an even more reduced schedule with a combined 11 round trips (six CTrail, five Amtrak) on weekdays and revised weekend schedules on Amtrak’s Hartford line between New Haven, Connecticut, and Springfield, Massachusetts.