A bad night for the dispatcher

[dknelson]

Friday's railfanning involved a bad night for the dispatcher of the Soo/CP line between Milwaukee and Chicago. He had an eastbound train in the siding that had an over-wide load, and was waiting (and waiting) for a corridor so he could send it east down the #2 main line without anything else on #1 main. The crew went dead, finally. Then the relief crew had a hard time finding the train. Then the Amtrak Hiawatha Service train westbound was hopelessly late which since it is a "turn" meant its east bound counterpart was also hopelessly late, screwing up the line even more than usual. When the Amtrak train finally arrived (over an hour late for a train that takes only an hour and a half between Chicago and Milwaukee!) at the head end was a tired and wheezy Soo Line GP38 which had been commandeered from the Sturtevant Patrol. The GE at the head end had failed (at the other end was an F40 dummy cab car). The train headed back to Chicago this time with the Soo engine and defective GE at the rear and the "dummy" F40PH at the head end. The dispatcher planned on sending out the overwide load right after Amtrak came through and in anticipating of that also authorized another east bound freight to leave the Milwaukee yard, so that both would pass the overwide load at the same time. Coming up the hill at Waterford Avenue the Amtrak Soo engine failed, the Amtrak train came to a halt, the newly authorized freight came by it and once again the dispatcher had a bad situation on his hands. So he put that freight into another siding, finally the Amtrak got going again, but meanwhile so mucy time had gone by that a hotshot intermodal westbound was now bearing down on everything so of course the overwide load had to stay put again.
It finally worked its way through of course. The overwide load? Retarder tracks for a hump hard mounted on a flat car. Last year in a similar situation we had seen a full Schnabel car so this was a bit of a disappointment.
My railfanning friends and I had parked trackside to wait for the oversize load. A local cop asked us (politely) to leave but relented when we told him there was a special train coming. He allowed us to stay for "just one more train" but then the situation mean that the fast intermodal, the revived Amtrak, and the newly released freight all had to go by us BEFORE the overwide load could be released. We didn't know that when we begged and pleaded for "just one more train." We were afraid the cop was watching to make sure we left after our allotted one more train. We took a chance, waited, and saw all the trains including the overwide load. At the end there it was a pretty busy 20 minutes of trains!
You could hear the relief in the dispatcher's voice when the overwide load finally got out on the main line. Once it got past Rondout it was going to be Metra's problem!
Oh and our post-railfanning dinner at an Italian restaurant was a good way to end the evening.
Happy winter railfanning!
Dave Nelson

[Anonymous]

I had my radio on at home. I was trying to figure out what the heck was going on! (I live in Buffallo Grove Ill.) Thanks for clearing up my confusion.
TIM A

[eolafan]

Well, talk about a bad day, here's one for the books. I was rail-fanning near the BNSF Eola yard one day when I watched a string of cars being taken into the east (compass direction north) yard off of the BRCGAL (Belt Railway-Galesburg) train by a crew obviously not familiar with Eola yard. The fellow riding the rear car did not see that the derail was "on" and locked as he approached about ten yards from the derail. Well, once he saw what was about to happen he jumped off the car and began to run to the derail, but did not make it before the first car jumped over the derail and about two feet into the air and came crashing down back onto the rail. The train went into emergency and stopped just before the second car was about to go over the derail itself (the train was going about 3-mph when it hit the derail). Well, this poor fellow limped over to the yard office (must have pulled a leg muscle when he jumped off of the car) to report the incident and then came back shortly afterwards to complete his switching. He evidently "dodged the bullet" as the car did not derail itself. I will bet you he never does that again!

[dknelson]

Tim - the dispatcher would refer to a "retarder car" and for the life of us none of us could figure out what he meant. I wondered if it was a special car for extra braking power --
then when we saw what was on the flat car it call became clear
Dave

[dknelson]

James -- the guy was lucky he wasn't killed! I have a small collection of photos of cars that have been pushed over a closed derail. It is a good way to end a slide show with a few laughs
Dave Nelson

[Anonymous]

In Oglesby Ill. there is a cement plant. (LoneStar Industries) They have a small railroad that they use to switch the plant. They do not use Derailers. They use track switches that they set to run any run away's down a track that has a big pile of sand at the end. The sand stops the car and keeps damage to a minnimum. One day two cars got away. the switch was set properly but the cars went down the track and into a creek. Seems they were having a new Employee parking lot built. The contractor needed one more truck load of sand to fini***he job. Rather then buy one he seen the sand pile at the end of the track and thought it not important. There still laughing about that one in Oglesby.
TIM A

[edblysard]

How about a bad night at the ballpark..
If you know of Enron Field, which is built on the site of the old Union Station here in Houston, this ought to give you a insite into how railroads think. Before they tore down all the trainsheds, the east side of union station had a service area for the locomotives. Around 1936 or 37, it was deciced to enlarge this area to incluce a new, more modern facility to serve diesels, and to re arrange the departure tracks.
The old service area, with a coal bunker and a below ground fuel oil tank, was in a depression, about ten feet below street level, on level with the basemant floor. Instead of removing all the equipment, coal, oil and tank, they just buried it, along with some tank cars full of oil.
60 something years pass, the Astros and Enron decide they need a new ball park, buy whats left of Union Station, and get to digging for the utility trenches. Imagine the look on the backhoe opperator's face when he brings up a 1920 era tank car, still loaded with oil? They went nuts, had the EPA down there, stopped construction for a week. When they finally got it all dug up, they ended up with tons of coal, 5 or 6 tankcars full of 60 year old fuel oil, a turntable, water tower, tools, you name it, they found it. Took quite a long time to find out where this stuff came from, they finally came up with the original plans for the "new" (1938) tracks and elevations, and realized they dug up the very first steam service area. Seems it was cheaper and easier back then to just bury all of it, and build new from scratch. Oh, and they left the whole fuel oil tank there, just tore the top off, pumped it out, and filed it in with dirt. EPA said it would be more of a hazzard to try to dig it up and dispose of the parts of the tank than to leave it in place. So next time you go to the ballpark, left field is sitting on a big fuel depot...who know, they may have left a steam switcher or two down there....
Stay Frosty,
Ed

[eolafan]

Ed, sounds like when that construction company dug up the "graves" of the old service facility to put the (choke) Enron field there, they angered the "Gods of Railroading" and perhaps that is why Enron ended up in the scrap heap of history!

[Anonymous]

I am surprized the rail fans in Houston did not try to get it named as a Historical Landmark!
TIM A

[edblysard]

But if Enron had just hired railroad acountants, there would have never been a problem, no one would have known where any of the money went.
Stay Frosty
Ed

[edblysard]

It was, sorta, they kept the west and south walls of the station, now its a office and consession stand. Go figure. Like the Astrodome isnt big enought to play ball in...
Stay Frosty
Ed

[dknelson]

Ed:
If you ever come up to Milwaukee to watch your Astros beat the ..... um,tar out of our Brewers, there are a number of parking lots at our new stadium with an excellent view of the Soo/CP main line -- a line which now also sees the former Wisconsin Central, now Canadian National, service that comes east from the junction at Duplainville. If you are lucky you will see a CN train and CP train at the same time. Some old Milwaukee Road shop buildings were destroyed to make room for the parking lots but those buildings were doomed anyway.
Dave Nelson

[eolafan]

Long live the CMStP&P

[dknelson]

James
Three weeks ago our Friday night railfanning on the Soo/CP had an unusual feature.
Three former Milwaukee Road engines came by in orange (with the lettering painted out in black)
One GP40 and two MP15s. They have had to redo the black paint because the "Milwaukee Road" lettering was starting to show through.
Long live the CMST&P? It lives!
Dave Nelson

[Anonymous]

They still have the MP15's. I first saw them 10 years ago. A rail fan told me I should take pictures of them for, they were to be scrapped or repainted. They still have not at least repainted them??
TIM A

[dknelson]

I can't speak about all the MP15s but at least some are still "rotted pumpkins" -- orange and black. Let me modify that railfan's advice from 10 years ago: take pictures of everything. Believe me. In 20 or 30 years you will NOT regret taking "too many pictures" of even the most common locomotives, cars, or trains. Take it someone who knows!
Dave Nelson

[Anonymous]

Did ya get any pics of the 'bandit' Milwaukee road engines? I thought I was too young to ever see these bad boys back in home teritory!
I got a chance to walk in the last building north of the miller park(ing lot) and I knew of the history in that building. I mean if you where ever in it there was a feeling of dispair towards its final days. I so wish I had taken a pic before it was too late.
viva el Milwaukee Road!!
Icemanmike-Milwaukee (flurries huh!)

[dknelson]

Alas no bandit shots -- it was night time
Dave Nelson

[eolafan]

Dave, thanks for your note. Would have loved to see those orange units. I fondly remember my four years living in Wausau and the "new" GP38-2's in new orange paint...looking very nice back then. Also remember the Wausau engine house with F units, some Alco units, etc. Last time I was in Wausau the engine house had been torn down and only a locally assigned unit was there. Jim

[Anonymous]

Can some one please tell me when the Chicago Milwaukee St Paul and Pacific Railroad died? Were I am from we simply refered to it as the "St Paul" (Oglesby Ill.) Was the "Milwaukee" the same railroad?
TIM A

[Anonymous]

i whanna say some time in the early '80s and yes the milwaukee is the same as your st paul farmall kid

[Anonymous]

long live the milwaukee!!!!!!

[eolafan]

Timely note from you on the Milwaukee Road as I was trackside Saturday and saw a CN run-through on the BNSF Chicago triple track main come through Aurora with a CN SD40-2, a UP GE (could not tell model) and a (are you ready for this)Milwaukee Road GP40 still in orange and black with the remnants of the Milwaukee Road lettering and logo on the long hood and with only a SOO in small letters below the cab window! What a trip it was to see this unit!

[Anonymous]

acording to my book 1986 whean milwaukee merged with soo my dad says the same the book that i am looking at is milwaukee road in its hometown by jim scribbins it is a really good book my favorite picture out of the book is on page 75 of our (minnesotas) residant 4-8-4 milwaukee road 261 so long live the milwaukee!!! farmall kid

[Soo2610]

Jim, any idea where that train originated or where it was going? Last time I saw one of those old Milwaukee engines was in the Bensenville yards about two years ago.

[eolafan]

Sorry Len but I have no idea at all about either origin or destination. One of the guys with me at the time also said he had seen one or two of these at Bensenville doing switching a while back. All I can tell you is that the train was a CN run-through and it was eastbound on the triple track BNSF main through Eola yard at about 4:45 pm on Saturday with a mixed load of general merchandise cars and the three units I prev. described. Sorry I don't have more information for you. Jim

[Soo2610]

Almost makes me wonder if the engine was sold and was in transit to a small regional somewhere. Seems like that was a mighty odd combination of engines for that line.

[dknelson]

We see "rotted pumpkin" Milwaukee Road GP40s on a fairly regular basis up here in Milwaukee. It always is cause for excitement among the Waterford Avenue/Powerton railfans.
Also MP15s with the Milwaukee Road lettering starting to show through again.
Dave Nelson

[Soo2610]

Dave, Thanks for the info. I don't get up that way as often as I used to now that I no longer have kids going to school up that way.
Len