Oddball Sightings on NS in Cleveland on Friday

On Friday afternoon Norfolk Southern train 17N came through Cleveland.

What made it special was an ex-Conrail E33 electric engine, No. 4601. Originally built for the Virginian Railway, it was on its way to the Illinois Railroad museum.

I also got the L13, which runs between Bellevue and Rockport and return. The past few weeks it has had a pair of former Burlington Northern SD60M engines.

These are somewhat oddballs on the NS diesel roster the past few years. Along with new locomotive purchases NS also has bought several hundred used locomotives.

Called tryclops by railfans because they have an unusual third window and also nose headlights where the NS standard is above the cab, another bonus is they are consecutively not numbered 6807 and 6808.

The 17N was at Sheldon Rd and the L13 was across from Hopkins airport.

Article and Photographs by Todd Dillon

But It Sure Looks Pretty

There was no getting blocked by CSX this time as the Virginian heritage locomotive passes through Berea as had happened three years ago.

The engineer of Norfolk Southern train 15J wasn’t all that pleased with her lead locomotive.

She was exchanging greetings with a crew member on an eastbound train as they passed between CP Max and Berea.

The lead unit on the 15J wasn’t pulling as well as she would have liked and there had been a problem with the horn.

“But it sure looks pretty,” she said after listing the engine’s shortcomings.

Indeed it did for it was NS No. 1069, the Virginian heritage unit wearing its bright yellow and black livery that has prompted some wags to call it the bumble bee.

The 1069 and a trailing unit passed through Berea on late Sunday morning.

I had expected to see the Virginian working solo because the engineer had made reference to having a one unit wonder. Maybe the trailing unit was off line.

It was the second time that I’ve seen No. 1069 at Berea. The first sighting occurred on Oct. 5, 2013, and I had dashed over from the Great Berea Train Show to catch it despite rainy and cloudy conditions.

Yes, I saw the 1069, but it was obscured by a passing CSX intermodal train. And the 1069 was trailing.

I also got blocked this time, too. CSX train Q158 — also an intermodal train — was bearing down on Berea as the 15J approached.

But this time there was enough separation to get clear images of the 1069.

Interestingly, I’ve seen a handful of NS heritage units in Berea, but the 1069 is the first one I’ve bagged that was leading. All the others had been trailing. There was no failing this time.

Article and Photographs by Craig Sanders

NS To Shut Down West Virginia Coal Line

Declining coal traffic has prompted Norfolk Southern to plan to take out of service 50 miles of the Princeton-Deepwater District in West Virginia as soon as next month.

NS said that it will reroute existing traffic away from the former Virginian Railway line.

Trains will now travel to and from Elmore over the Guyandotte Branch. Freight customers at Princeton will be served via the connection at Kellysville. The line between Princeton and Elmore is being taken out of service.

At one time this section was electrified. It contains numerous viaducts, tunnels and a mountainous 2 percent grade.

Among the locations favored by photographers were Garwood Trestle, Clarks Gap, Matoaka, Princeton and Kellysville.

NS said that trains moving to and from Elmore Yard will be routed via Gilbert. Loaded trains will travel west from Elmore Yard via the Guyandotte River Branch to Gilbert and then on  the former Gilbert Branch of Norfolk & Western to Wharncliffe, the junction to the Pocahontas District.

At Wharncliffe, trains bound for eastern destinations in southeastern Virginia and North Carolina will follow the mainline east to Bluefield and into Roanoke. The routing will be the same for empty trains returning west.

This will add up to 160 rail miles for some trains, particularly for trains bound for Ohio, Indiana or other Midwest points.