Trains.com

Stub End Yards

7838 views
21 replies
1 rating 2 rating 3 rating 4 rating 5 rating
  • Member since
    February 2001
  • From: Chicago, IL
  • 892 posts
Posted by pbouzide on Tuesday, March 18, 2014 8:22 PM
BNSF Corwith (former ATSF, all intermodal) in Chicago almost qualifies, but some (interchange?) movements come into or out of the south end and run via the Elsdon line.
  • Member since
    February 2001
  • From: Chicago, IL
  • 892 posts
Posted by pbouzide on Tuesday, March 18, 2014 8:17 PM
CN's Kirk Yard (former EJ&E) in Gary, IN. is a stub yard, and is a hump facility and the primary classification yard for CN in Chicago. The CSX yard in Hamlet, NC is effectively a stub, as the ex-SAL line north out the "other" end of the yard is only a secondary line terminating near Raleigh. I want to say that one or both of the primary CN and CP class yards in Montreal is operated as a stub.
  • Member since
    September 2013
  • 2,505 posts
Posted by caldreamer on Monday, March 17, 2014 8:10 AM

My hump yard has 3 arrival, 3 departure, 10 classification and all of the other tracks associated with such a yard.  I used the book "North American Freight Yards" as my guide when designing it.  It has very useful information on each of the yards, large and small, with drawings of the tracks for many of the yards. 

  Ira.  

  • Member since
    March 2002
  • 9,265 posts
Posted by edblysard on Sunday, March 16, 2014 9:26 PM

Crossing divisional lines would depend on the era you model, but it was done, and today crews cross divisions all the time.

UP brings my carrier a twice daily yard to yard transfer, from Englewood hump to PTRA, and they take their interchange pulls back with them.

In real life, there are a lot of local union contracts that allow crews to cross division lines on the same carrier, some on an out and back single shift schedule, others on an out, stay a shift, and come back the next turn.

23 17 46 11

  • Member since
    January 2014
  • 3 posts
Posted by TheZeke01231974 on Sunday, March 16, 2014 6:56 PM

Conrail had a stub yard at Hilliard, Ohio on the same route that was used mostly to store cars.. I see its gone now.

  • Member since
    September 2013
  • 2,505 posts
Posted by caldreamer on Sunday, March 16, 2014 5:26 PM

The hump yard is near the east end of my Valley Division (it is on the side the center peninsula nearest the Mountain  Division).  Portola yard is on the other (east) side of the summit of my Mountian Division, so the turn out of the hump yard would have to cross divisional lines.   Was or is this done?

The other option is to have the hump yard send the cars for Portola yard to the east end of the railroad at Medford and then send the cars to Portola..  BUT since the train out of the hump yard would be passing Portola, this would be VERY inefficient.

   Ira

  • Member since
    March 2002
  • 9,265 posts
Posted by edblysard on Sunday, March 16, 2014 4:34 PM

Look at the SIT yard in Dayton…it is actually a directional stub ended pair of yards, split down the middle with a diagonal pair of switching leads, one end is for east bound storage, the other end is west bound.

Approximately 5000 plus car capacity when full.

As for the either or question, do both.

Have your hump yard run a daily turn to your stub or “local” yard, and have a switch crew work the industries out of that yard, bringing back the out bounds to make up a pull track for your hump yard crew to take back with them after they drop off the inbound daily turn.

23 17 46 11

  • Member since
    December 2001
  • From: Northern New York
  • 25,010 posts
Posted by tree68 on Sunday, March 16, 2014 7:08 AM

caldreamer

Thanks to all.  I can now feel justified in putting a stub end yard on the mountain division of my layout where the transcon line and the San Juan cutoff rejoin at Portola.  The yard will service the industries on the mountain division.  Would i have the general merchandise trains rom each direction (east and west) pick up and deliver cars to the yard or would I run a dedicated train from my hump yard daily?.

Yes.

Both are prototypically correct.  Of course, with a stub yard, it may be easier for a train from one direction or the other to make the drop - unless you've still got a passing track in the mix.

LarryWhistling
Resident Microferroequinologist (at least at my house) 
Everyone goes home; Safety begins with you
My Opinion. Standard Disclaimers Apply. No Expiration Date
Come ride the rails with me!
There's one thing about humility - the moment you think you've got it, you've lost it...

  • Member since
    December 2001
  • 8,156 posts
Posted by henry6 on Saturday, March 15, 2014 2:51 PM

In model railroading the idea is that if you can imagine it, it can be done; if you can imagine it, it probably has been done on a railroad somewhere at sometime or will happen somewhere, sometime in the future.  How many guys I've heard say, I did this or that then found out the old Forgotten and For Good pike actually did!  

RIDEWITHMEHENRY is the name for our almost monthly day of riding trains and transit in either the NYCity or Philadelphia areas including all commuter lines, Amtrak, subways, light rail and trolleys, bus and ferries when warranted. No fees, just let us know you want to join the ride and pay your fares. Ask to be on our email list or find us on FB as RIDEWITHMEHENRY (all caps) to get descriptions of each outing.

  • Member since
    September 2013
  • 2,505 posts
Posted by caldreamer on Saturday, March 15, 2014 1:19 PM

Thanks to all.  I can now feel justified in putting a stub end yard on the mountain division of my layout where the transcon line and the San Juan cutoff rejoin at Portola.  The yard will service the industries on the mountain division.  Would i have the general merchandise trains rom each direction (east and west) pick up and deliver cars to the yard or would I run a dedicated train from my hump yard daily?.

   Rira

  

  • Member since
    March 2002
  • 9,265 posts
Posted by edblysard on Thursday, March 13, 2014 10:52 PM

tree68

I think you'll find that a lot of "SIT" (storage in transit) yards are stub yards.  All they are is a place to store the cars until the industry needs them, so it's not necessary to get out the other end.

I'm sure Houston Ed can provide plenty of examples.  I found two in the Houston area, just by looking around.  One small one is at N 29.74821 W 95.01199.  There's a pretty substantial stub yard at N 29.74672 W 95.09162.

Larry,

Your fist yard is in the middle of the Exxon/Mobil refinery at Baytown a, private yard, and the second one is inside a company called VoPak, it is their storage yard, they clean, repair cars there, the facility is a storage/trans load/blending facility for petrochemicals, and one of the PTRA’s biggest customers.

Scroll down, south just past the east west railroad tracks, (PTRA Pasadena subdivision) and you will see two stub end yards connected by a loop, we drag in around the loop, both of these yards belong to Solvay, and are their private SIT yard.

N 29.716/ W 95.076.

Scroll east (left) and follow our main, and you go straight through some of the biggest refineries anywhere, including Shell Deer Park and their huge coke pile,  N 29.7323 / W 95.1444, the yard next to that is Deer Park Rail Services, a private storage yard that “rents” railcar storage, also one of our customers.

If you want to see a really big SIT yard, look in Dayton, Texas.at .N 30.0047/ W 94.9055

Served by UP on the former SP, this is a big place, has 3 shifts working 24/7, those are all plastic pellets and PVC in those hoppers.

And, right down the street from my house, N 29.9137 / W 95.5040 is BNSFs Casey yard, storage for lots plastic and petrochemicals, and a staging area for cars headed to the PTRA and companies like Fina, Solvay, Inogene, OxyPasadena and Lubrizol, we get a daily “turn” from Casey.

Side note, I get to watch the inbounds on the BNSF main, headed to my yard, so often I can see what I will switch before I even get to work!

23 17 46 11

  • Member since
    November 2013
  • 15 posts
Posted by BRUCE ELLEFRITZ on Thursday, March 13, 2014 10:06 PM
While railfanning near Provo Utah I found the old Clearfield Naval Depot that has been taken over by several industries. Lots of track and switches that run parallel with numerous buildings. A small classification switch yard was added next to the area. Found it on Google maps. Would like to model it when I build my big HO layout.
DDA40Xman
  • Member since
    September 2011
  • 6,445 posts
Posted by MidlandMike on Thursday, March 13, 2014 9:42 PM

The GB&W had a stub yard adjacent to the carferry loading slip at Kewaunee, WI.  It's now a lakeside park.  AA had a small stub yard next to its carferry loading slip at Elberta, MI.  That yard was probably for trimming the ship, as the main yard was double ended.  That area is also now a park, although the turntable and roundhouse ruin are still there.

  • Member since
    May 2003
  • From: US
  • 25,277 posts
Posted by BaltACD on Thursday, March 13, 2014 8:12 PM

Yards, when built, were built for a specific business purpose.  As times and business change the original purpose for the yard may be obscured by it's present day used or disuse.

Never too old to have a happy childhood!

              

  • Member since
    December 2001
  • From: Northern New York
  • 25,010 posts
Posted by tree68 on Thursday, March 13, 2014 7:56 PM

I think you'll find that a lot of "SIT" (storage in transit) yards are stub yards.  All they are is a place to store the cars until the industry needs them, so it's not necessary to get out the other end.

I'm sure Houston Ed can provide plenty of examples.  I found two in the Houston area, just by looking around.  One small one is at N 29.74821 W 95.01199.  There's a pretty substantial stub yard at N 29.74672 W 95.09162.

LarryWhistling
Resident Microferroequinologist (at least at my house) 
Everyone goes home; Safety begins with you
My Opinion. Standard Disclaimers Apply. No Expiration Date
Come ride the rails with me!
There's one thing about humility - the moment you think you've got it, you've lost it...

  • Member since
    December 2001
  • 8,156 posts
Posted by henry6 on Thursday, March 13, 2014 6:57 PM

Commuter and other passenger railroads will often have stub yards.  In freight service there can be stub yards, too, like at industries, mines, and the like.  In some places stub yards are built because of the lack of space to be in and out alongside a main line or where it can be tied to a tail track at the other end with a return track someplace.  

RIDEWITHMEHENRY is the name for our almost monthly day of riding trains and transit in either the NYCity or Philadelphia areas including all commuter lines, Amtrak, subways, light rail and trolleys, bus and ferries when warranted. No fees, just let us know you want to join the ride and pay your fares. Ask to be on our email list or find us on FB as RIDEWITHMEHENRY (all caps) to get descriptions of each outing.

  • Member since
    April 2001
  • From: US
  • 1,103 posts
Posted by ValleyX on Thursday, March 13, 2014 6:07 PM

Goodman Yard in Marion, IN, is stub-ended, because the PRR Panhandle line between Columbus and Logansport, IN, is largely abandoned.  Still, it's an active NS yard for locals.  It builds and handles locals that access the former NYC/PC/CR/NS Marion Branch, running north and south between Anderson and Goshen, IN.

  • Member since
    March 2014
  • 78 posts
Posted by Polish Falcon on Thursday, March 13, 2014 5:17 PM

MacMillan Yard (CN, Hump Yard)  comes to mind...Tried hiking thru the yard in the 1990s and came to dead end  at the W end. Got a ride back out by CN police after briefly having handcuffs laid on me in the name of the Queen and a ticket to Highway 7 w. I think I paid the Queen 80.00 via mail.

  • Member since
    December 2001
  • From: Denver / La Junta
  • 10,820 posts
Posted by mudchicken on Thursday, March 13, 2014 4:57 PM

DRGW/UP "Walker Yard" at Pueblo - Now mostly mechanical and M/W long term storage. Not to be confused with the big MoPac/DRGW joint yard at Pueblo.

Mudchicken Nothing is worth taking the risk of losing a life over. Come home tonight in the same condition that you left home this morning in. Safety begins with ME.... cinscocom-west
  • Member since
    May 2003
  • From: US
  • 25,277 posts
Posted by BaltACD on Wednesday, March 12, 2014 10:04 PM

CSX's Eastside Yard in Philadelphia is functionally stub ended.  The Baltimore-Jersey mains connect with the switching part of the yard at the West (Timetable) end of the yard.  While engines can get out of the East end of the yard, it is to serve local industires through a connection to NS/Conrail.  The original purpose of the yard was in yarding and dispatching trains to the Reading, only secondarily did it have anything to do with through trains.  When a Westbound B&O/CSX train was to be originated 'off the yard' the train had to be shoved out of the yard and onto the Main tracks to depart Westward from RG Tower.

With the ConRail acquisition the former ConRail yard at Greenwich has become the primary switching yard for CSX in Philadelphia.

Never too old to have a happy childhood!

              

  • Member since
    June 2001
  • From: Lombard (west of Chicago), Illinois
  • 13,681 posts
Posted by CShaveRR on Wednesday, March 12, 2014 7:55 PM

GTW's yard in Grand Haven, Michigan, was stub-ended from about 1969 until the line was abandoned in about 1977.  For all intents and purposes, it was operated as a stub-end yard even before then (I first started watching the trains there in about 1962, and may have seen the opposite-end switches used once).  The first thing the crew would do upon arriving was make a drop of their entire train, including caboose, then switch the local industries, leave the train in the yard, and go down to the end of the main line and tie up.

I'll amend that...there was one local industry that had a trailing-point switch for incoming trains--if they had cars for or from them, those would be spotted or pulled first, before they made the drop on the train.

Carl

Railroader Emeritus (practiced railroading for 46 years--and in 2010 I finally got it right!)

CAACSCOCOM--I don't want to behave improperly, so I just won't behave at all. (SM)

  • Member since
    September 2013
  • 2,505 posts
Stub End Yards
Posted by caldreamer on Wednesday, March 12, 2014 7:45 PM

I know that railroads usually buid their yards double ended, since it is easier to run trains in and out from both ends of the yard.  Does anyone know of any stub end yards that are used exclusivly for freight trains?

.   Ira

   

Join our Community!

Our community is FREE to join. To participate you must either login or register for an account.

Search the Community

Newsletter Sign-Up

By signing up you may also receive occasional reader surveys and special offers from Trains magazine.Please view our privacy policy