QUOTE: Originally posted by dknelson Galesburg IL is one of the best places in the midwest to see trains (it is where the old Santa Fe and CB&Q cross). True, Galesburg Railroad Days is not the railfan event it once was but is still a good train show and decent equipment display; the Railroad Museum and proposed Hall of Fame and the many excellent train watching vantage points are going to make Galesburg a railfan destination for years to come. The other day the Galesburg Register Mail ran a story about the health of the BNSF -- no small matter in a town that has lost two major employers. Here is the web address for the full article, and some selected quotes so you get the flavor. I suggest reading the full article By the way when the article says that on some days 150 trains go through the yard -- keep in mind from a train watching perspective that not all trains that go through Galesburg go through the yard! Dave Nelson http://www.register-mail.com/stories/061106/BIZ_BA2DDHBJ.GID.shtml Railroad revival Galesburg's unique position has made it a BNSF workhorse Sunday, June 11, 2006 By MIKE LANDIS The Register-Mail Galesburg is home to the second largest classification yard in the BNSF system. As Galesburg braced for difficult economic times with the closing of Maytag and Butler, BNSF has emerged as Knox County's top employer and helped prevent the local job market from falling completely off the tracks. "We've been fortunate. We've seen about 10 percent growth in the last few years," said Rick Danielson, terminal superintendent of the Galesburg yard. "We've been hiring considerably. Right now we're probably at 1,200 total employees, plus or minus a few." Danielson can point to the numbers at the Galesburg yard to demonstrate the uptick the railroad industry is enjoying. When he arrived as terminal superintendent in 2000, Danielson said, 85 to 90 trains went through the Galesburg yard daily. Now, Danielson said about 130 trains go through the yard daily, and that number spikes occasionally to 150. Danielson said Galesburg's location is what makes the yard unique in the BNSF system. The yard has two ways to go to Chicago, St. Louis and Kansas City, Mo.; routes to Lincoln, Neb., Minneapolis and on to the West Coast, and to Peoria and back. Danielson said there also are local routes to Peoria, Chicago and Burlington, Iowa, that originate from Galesburg on a daily basis. The possibilities are seemingly endless for the Galesburg yard - thanks largely to the construction of the Cameron Connection shortly after Burlington Northern and Santa Fe merged in 1995 and the land available around the yard. Last year, the BNSF completed a yard improvement program in Galesburg where two additional departure-yard tracks were installed and extensions were put on receiving-yard tracks. Next year, Danielson said, the yard's diesel shop will be expanded from two bays to four. "I can't say enough about our workforce here," said Danielson. "I've worked for the BNSF 29 years and I've worked all over the system. ... To me the work force here in Galesburg is the best."
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)
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