Update as of Monday, September 1, 2014
Checking Out Three Areas …
… on the Western End of the Sunset Route
Part IV (of I-VI, Overall I-X)
SECOND Area
The Workman Mill Road Grade Crossing
City of Industry, CA
Another westward look:
From the above camera location, looking away from the tracks, the street is all cluttered with necessities scattered over it.
Looking eastbound: Main 1(lower track) used to go straight to the photo’s lower right corner.
Above, the new box for CP C014 WORKER is on the right.
A telephoto looking towards the 60 Freeway: The new switch (lower right) still needs a counterpart switch.
Continued in Part V
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- K.P.’s absolute “theorem” from early, early childhood that he has seen over and over and over again: Those that CAUSE a problem in the first place will act the most violently if questioned or exposed.
Part V (of I-VI, Overall I-X)
Satisfied with his photos, K.P. was returning to the car … When a familiar sound was herd … Oh, well.
(Above, note the gentleman on the far right. He and another person found the closed street a convenient place to do some car repair work.)
More photos:
Continued in Part VI
Part VI (of I-VI, Overall I-X)
The tail end:
Note the lack of hot-top where the road was.
Say goodbye to the westbound, with a DPU pushing, on a new Main 1 trackage that pretty much aligns over the old Main 2.
--------
Continued in Parts VII-X, about the THIRD area (Vineyard Ave. in Ontario, CA), will be presented Friday, September 5, 2014 by 12 Noon Pacific Daylight Time, but could be posted up to 9 hours early.
Part VII (of VII-X, Overall I-X)
THIRD Area
The Vineyard Ave. Underpass Construction
Ontario, CA
Southbound on Vineyard Ave. from the I-10 Freeway, a westbound (rightward) double-stack is seen as we get close to the tracks.
Just above, at road level under the leftmost stoplight head, a cycling sign advises the roadway will be closed until February 2016.
On the south side of the tracks now … A southward view on the roadway excavation and grading.
Looking north, and at the cross Holt Ave. the first photo above was taken from.
Just above, on normal days this temporarily two-lane road has too much traffic to pedestrian-cross safely. However, there was hardly any traffic this holiday, and K.P. went across to see what was on the other side, between the roadway and the tracks.
Continued in Part VIII
Part VIII (of VII-X, Overall I-X)
Wow! What a sight! And this is going to be an underpass? There is still much to dig out.
Continued in Part IX
Part IX (of VII-X, Overall I-X)
More views:
Oh, what have we here?
Continued in Part X
Part X (of VII-X, Overall I-X)
An eastbound:
The shoofly is clearly seen higher than the old out of service Main.
Just above, note the green over red color light signal to the far right, at CP AL523 GUASTI (M.P. 523.5).
Because of failing evening light, the end of the train proved to be the final shot for the day.
Trains were moving quickly on the shoofly, maybe 50-55 M.P.H. It is unknown if trains do such on non-holiday, regular construction work days, but they sure were moving quickly this day.
This will conclude the series.
On 8/31/2014 K.P. wrote:
"A most intriguing two-tracking development west of Houston, TX! Since that is on the Sunset Route, that most certainly qualifies for insertion into this thread.
In reviewing aerials it appears the six additional miles of two-tracks (between Sugar Land and Stafford / Missouri City) will be an extension westward of the present two-tracks out of Houston.
It is unknown if commuter interests are funding this, or UP just wants to make its system more free-flowing in the Houston area, but that is a noteworthy development. If you, blue streak 1, or anyone else, hears anything further on this, please let us know."
K.P.,
From everything I saw, read or heard while in Texas, UP is working to relieve choke points to improve freight movement. Midland-Odessa is another example, as is the work around El Paso-Santa Teresa, New Mexico. I've heard nothing to indicate that the Sugar Land project involves commuter rail.
John Timm
desertdogOn 8/31/2014 K.P. wrote: "A most intriguing two-tracking development west of Houston, TX! Since that is on the Sunset Route, that most certainly qualifies for insertion into this thread. In reviewing aerials it appears the six additional miles of two-tracks (between Sugar Land and Stafford / Missouri City) will be an extension westward of the present two-tracks out of Houston. It is unknown if commuter interests are funding this, or UP just wants to make its system more free-flowing in the Houston area, but that is a noteworthy development. If you, blue streak 1, or anyone else, hears anything further on this, please let us know." K.P., From everything I saw, read or heard while in Texas, UP is working to relieve choke points to improve freight movement. Midland-Odessa is another example, as is the work around El Paso-Santa Teresa, New Mexico. I've heard nothing to indicate that the Sugar Land project involves commuter rail. John Timm
Houston, TX, desertdog, and WHERE Many Desert Creatures Roam
Forum contributor desertdog (John Timm) probably hit the nail on the head about Houston, TX, that the six miles or so of Sunset Route two-tracking out that way is probably an effort to make the UP System more fluid.
Circa 1981 K.P. was returning from a “railfan trip” to the Midwest (including Omaha), and while on I-15 approaching Toomey, CA (the first siding east of Yermo, which is east of Barstow), he was struck with disbelief at finding the Yermo-Toomey section had been two-tracked!
CP C164 EAST YERMO (M.P. 163.8)
Circa 1993 the area between Yermo and Daggett (the junction with the AT&SF, now BNSF) to the west was two-tracked also.
Looking eastbound from Daggett with CP C161 WEST YERMO (M.P. 160.5) in the distance
Yermo (a Spanish word meaning “desert”) was, and is, a UP crew change spot on the Los Angeles to Salt Lake City stretch on the way to Chicago. Yermo otherwise is totally desert, where many desert creatures roam.
Now that SP has been merged into the UP, Yermo seems to have taken on a lessor roll, making the investment in two-trackingin the Yermo area circa 1981 look questionable, but at the time nobody at UP had a crystal ball to tell them the future. There are not many railroads left today to merge with, so any investment in the Houston area is not likely to become questionable. The Sunset Route between El Paso, TX and New Orleans, LA is single-track, and likely will remain such for decades to come. But, in the Houston area of the El Paso to New Orleans line, apparently some congestion has arisen, and UP is tackling that congestion with two-tracking.
Today per Trainorders one span two sections of the I-215 / BNSF bridge has been moved. Very heavy auto traffic on the Freeway. Looks like that the new sections near the Shell station are next.
usmc1401 Today per Trainorders one span two sections of the I-215 / BNSF bridge has been moved. Very heavy auto traffic on the Freeway. Looks like that the new sections near the Shell station are next.
The Houston, TX Area Again … An Inquiry
In recent days reliable word has been posted that on the western part of the Houston area, between Sugar Land and Stafford / Missouri City, a Sunset Route 6 mile long two-tracking project currently is in the works.
Questions:
Is that track exclusive to UP trains, or does another railroad(s) have trackage rights thereon?
Is the two-tracks currently just to the east for trains to pass each other, or for an open route while industries are being switched off the other main?
Do eastbound trains currently log-jam wait to get into a Houston facility?
Anyone have any knowledge of these things for the Houston area?
Thanks,
K.P.
Thank you as always for the great photos! I especially appreciate the update on Vineyard Avenue. Next month, I'll be flying out of Ontario for the first time ever, so this reminds me to avoid Vineyard Avenue.
As for Houston, my guess is the capacity improvement is to park trains.
Replies
ccltrains (9-4):
A “great juggling act” is a good way of describing the situation of managements.
I wish I was privy to the formula used by investor (stockholders) owned railroads (private or public) in making their decisions. At what point do throwing money away (because of inefficiency) move investor-driven managements to correct those inefficiencies? The answer to THAT might explain much of what we all see in railroading …
desertdog and billio (9-5):
In railroading, capacity and fluidity are strange things. As an example, UP is known to like to fleet trains, but BNSF on Tehachapi doesn’t seem to like that and their trains are in and out of sidings up that way all the time.
The problem with fleeting is that a whole bunch of trains needing to be yarded show up as a fleet. Now, everything sits while one train is yarded, then another if there is yard capacity for it. The capacity enhancement in Houston, TX might merely be a place for ‘waiting to be yarded’ trains to sit and idle after the efficiency of fleeting.
Replies Continued …
Replies Continued
gonx (9-7):
Thanks for the input related on the Houston, TX area. We at the forum really haven’t dealt with trackage outside of Los Angeles-El Paso in the past, but the fact there is now two-tracking going on right outside Houston broadens our scope. Your input gives us more of the picture for that area.
mvs (9-7):
Yes, definitely avoid Vineyard Ave. for a few years, but especially for your flight unless you want the ‘thrill’ of getting your car hung up on the tracks and missing your flight … I recommend taking Archibald Ave.
My Mrs. will be flying out of there in November, as she has done a number of times over the years, but I know all the hazards! Southbound on Archibald Ave. you will go under a pedestrian bridge (foreground right) and the Sunset Route (background left).
Just beyond that is the cross Airport Drive, and after that is a hairpin curve situation. THAT can be the most memorable aspect of the airport!
AERIAL LINK: Archibald Ave. Hairpin Curves Just South of Sunset Route
If you are going to Terminal No. 4, be in your left lane in that crazy curving. If Terminal No. 2, be in the middle lane for the crazy curving.
From the below photo’s vantage point, Terminal No 4 area can be seen, as well as the west end of the Guasti siding, at CP AL523 GUASTI (M.P. 523.5).
If you can survive trying to see a glimpse of the Sunset Route and avoid flipping your car on the hairpin curves at the same time, you’ll otherwise have an enjoyable experience.
In 2001 I drove to the Midwest for a ‘railfan’ trip, while my wife flew the kids to Disney World in Florida. After returning, I too flew to Florida and met up with everybody. All of us used Ontario International Airport. In trip planning, we debated going to New York City, or Orlando, Florida. If we had gone to New York, the Twin Towers would have been visited. A month after the vacation, the Twin Towers were struck in the infamous 9-11 attack! I’m glad now I never went up those Twin Towers …
Anyway, have a great flight out of ONT … and safe return!
Take care, everyone,
I've been following this thread for a while and have loved seeing your excellent coverage of this work, KP!
However, having now seen some questions come much closer to home for me as concerning the Sunset Route through Houston, I figure I could pitch-in some information.
K. P. Harrier A most intriguing two-tracking development west of Houston, TX! Since that is on the Sunset Route, that most certainly qualifies for insertion into this thread. In reviewing aerials it appears the six additional miles of two-tracks (between Sugar Land and Stafford / Missouri City) will be an extension westward of the present two-tracks out of Houston. It is unknown if commuter interests are funding this, or UP just wants to make its system more free-flowing in the Houston area, but that is a noteworthy development. If you, blue streak 1, or anyone else, hears anything further on this, please let us know. Aerials of the news area, west to east: LINK: Sugar Land Area West End of Siding LINK: Sugar Land Area East End of Siding Between the above two linked areas on the west and the below two linked areas below apparently is the area of the two-tracking in the Houston area. LINK: West End of Two-Tracks in Stafford Area LINK: Nearby (to Above Link) Universal Crossover to the East Interestingly, Missouri City is involved, a city on the Sunset Route in Texas. Missouri Jct., IA, on the Central Corridor, also is related to two-tracking out that way. Two different two-tracking efforts each with a Missouri named location … Quite a coincidence!
A most intriguing two-tracking development west of Houston, TX! Since that is on the Sunset Route, that most certainly qualifies for insertion into this thread.
It is unknown if commuter interests are funding this, or UP just wants to make its system more free-flowing in the Houston area, but that is a noteworthy development. If you, blue streak 1, or anyone else, hears anything further on this, please let us know.
Aerials of the news area, west to east:
LINK: Sugar Land Area West End of Siding
LINK: Sugar Land Area East End of Siding
Between the above two linked areas on the west and the below two linked areas below apparently is the area of the two-tracking in the Houston area.
LINK: West End of Two-Tracks in Stafford Area
LINK: Nearby (to Above Link) Universal Crossover to the East
Interestingly, Missouri City is involved, a city on the Sunset Route in Texas. Missouri Jct., IA, on the Central Corridor, also is related to two-tracking out that way. Two different two-tracking efforts each with a Missouri named location … Quite a coincidence!
K. P. Harrier The Houston, TX Area Again … An Inquiry In recent days reliable word has been posted that on the western part of the Houston area, between Sugar Land and Stafford / Missouri City, a Sunset Route 6 mile long two-tracking project currently is in the works. Questions: Is that track exclusive to UP trains, or does another railroad(s) have trackage rights thereon? Is the two-tracks currently just to the east for trains to pass each other, or for an open route while industries are being switched off the other main? Do eastbound trains currently log-jam wait to get into a Houston facility? Anyone have any knowledge of these things for the Houston area? Thanks, K.P.
Well, I'll see if I can kill two birds with one stone here and I'll try to answer all your questions.
I'll note as a disclaimer that these are based off of observations with some information from "inside sources", but most of this is purely based off observed operations.
First, a bit of background here. The line is question here is UP's Glidden Subdivision, which runs between West Jct in Houston (It's near the intersection of US 90A and S. Post Oak Rd about 6 miles east of Missouri City) and Kirby, which is on the northeast side of San Antonio, TX. It handles heavy traffic on the order of about 40 or more trains a day, on average, and is at capacity along its single-track main line. Due to its heavy traffic, UP has been working at several locations. They recently (Around the end of 2013) finished adding about 5 miles of second main track east of San Antonio, and are continuing to work a few more miles farther east. Also, about 2 years ago UP added a new ~11,000 ft siding about halfway between Houston and San Antonio. However, this isn't nearly the busiest section of the Glidden Subdivision.
And that brings us to the section in question. Between West Jct in Houston and Tower 17 in Rosenberg, TX (A distance of about 22 miles), the Glidden Subdivision is one of the busiest stretches of single track main in Texas, if not on the UP system. It handles up to 60 trains a day through that stretch of track (And to answer one of KP's questions, UP has outright said NO to any possibilities of commuter rail through there).
LINK: West Jct in Houston, TX
LINK: Tower 17 in Rosenberg, TX
To give an idea of the railroads in question here, this busy stretch of track is used by UP, BNSF, KCS, and Amtrak (The Sunset Limited). To give an overview here, I'll start at Tower 17 and head east.
At Tower 17, UP's Glidden Subdivision (The Sunset Route) is the line that runs east-west, paralleling US 90A. It handles about 30 to 40 trains a day west of Tower 17, and the fun begins east of the interlocking.
The track from the southwest (Following Spur 529) is KCS's line that runs towards Mexico. It handles a variety of traffic which is seeing a steady increase and US-Mexico trade flourishes. KCS trains enter UP trackage at Tower 17 and head eastward towards Houston. As KCS does not have their own route between where their trackage ends at Beaumont, TX (About 100 miles east of Houston), KCS utilizes the UP between Beaumont and Rosenberg, which is about 125 miles.
The track from the northwest (Following SH 36) is BNSF's Galveston Subdivision. It's BNSF's main Gulf Coast to Midwest route. It handles decent traffic. It crosses the UP at Tower 17 and heads southeast towards Galveston, TX. However, there is a 'spur', if you will, that leaves the line near Alvin, TX that runs to Houston. It makes for a much longer routing for trains heading to Houston, so often BNSF's higher priority trains take the UP eastward from Tower 17 because it is a much more direct route into Houston.
Also, UP has trackage rights between Tower 17 and Sealy, TX (About 30 miles northwest of Rosenberg) on the BNSF to connect with UP's former MKT main between Houston and San Antonio. Because the eastern end of the former Katy was severed in the late 90's due to a freeway widening project, all trains taking the former MKT must come down to the Sunset Route for the last leg of their run to Houston.
So, you end up with all these trains entering the Sunset Route at Tower 17 for the run into Houston. It can lead to long waits when the route is only single track with 2 sidings (Formerly 3, and I'll get to that below) between Tower 17 and West Jct. As far as log-jams, there have been cases where trains waiting to get into or through Houston which are normally held farther into the Houston Terminal have been held farther back eventually backing up onto the Glidden Subdivision. There was a story of a KCS crew that held at Missouri City for about 8 hours before they could head into Houston, and by the time they were able to move, their Hours of Service were about to expire. Also, there was an occurrence earlier this year where the westbound Z Train (ZATLC) was held in the siding at Harlem for a fleet of 8 eastbound trains in a row, including several UP's, a BNSF train, two KCS trains, Amtrak #2, and the eastbound Z Train (ZLAJX).
Now, how is UP going about fixing this problem? Until last year, the Glidden Sub was single tracked between Heacker (It's the now single crossover just west of West Jct) and Tower 17, with passing sidings at Missouri City, Sugar Land, and Harlem (It is the siding just to the west of Sugar Land Siding).
LINK: East End of Harlem Siding
Missouri City was nearly useless for long trains, as it was only 6000' and has two crossings cut the siding into a usable length of about 3200'. Harlem Siding was also fairly short, with only about 3000' usable as well due to a crossing through the middle. However, in 2007 UP extended Harlem Siding to its now ~12000' length by running it eastward to SH 99. Now, the east end of Harlem and the west end of Sugar Land are one control point, designated CP SA029 Harlem.
So, early last year UP finished the first part of its efforts to improve efficiency along the Glidden Subdivision by extending two main tracks westward from Heacker to Missouri City Siding, with 2MT ending at West Missouri City. As part of the project, Heacker was turned into a single crossover and a new universal crossover was installed as CP SA916 Ormandy.
LINK: Ormandy Universal Crossovers
LINK: Heacker Single Crossover
This work has helped some, but congestion is still a concern, and in order to work on this UP is doing two things. They are working on adding a second main track between Sugar Land and Missouri City, and they are building a second bridge of SH 99 to connect Sugar Land and Harlem Sidings (See "East End of Harlem Siding" link above). This, when completed next year, would give UP nearly 20 miles of 2MT west of out Houston and would help increase fluidity on this very busy stretch of track.
Chris
The rail from the San Antonio Heights horse car line that ran up Euclid avenue was buried in the vineyards that used grow where the parking lot for ONT is now - hairpins not withstanding.
A10
A Grand Terrace, CA Area …
… Truss Bridges Update
Yes, as reported and alerting of us by a few alert thread readers, one of the truss bridges (of two spans) was indeed relocated (right)!
K.P. had opportunity to spend several hours in the Colton-Grand Terrace-Highgrove area Wednesday, September 10, 2014, and will put together a photo presentation on the current situation there. Stay tuned …
Next move this weekend.
Update as of Wednesday, September 10, 2014
Part “A” (of A-H)
The Truss Bridges Review
The Grand Terrace, CA Area
Most of the known accessible areas were visited, and the following photos are what the current situation looks like at the new BNSF truss bridges (that the LA&SL has trackage rights through, and many Sunset Route trains are routed towards or came from). For comprehension purposes, the CURRENT bridge supports layout will be described as, from east to west, Bridge Positions A to E.
From Main Street in Highgrove, looking north (eastbound):
Above, Bridge A is seen on the far right. Bridge B was moved westward (leftward) to become Bridge D.
Continued in Part B
Part “B” (of A-H)
On July 16, 2014 the following photo was taken, by Iowa Ave. and the I-215 Freeway.
Above, note the spacing BETWEEN the truss sections.
On this trip, Wednesday, September 10, those two truss sections had been moved closer together!
Blue moving equipment had also been moved into that area. From the southwest side, looking northeast:
Just above, one of those by Iowa Ave. sections (right) is seen, with the Position B Bridge relocated to Position D Bridge seen on the background left.
More of the blue moving equipment is seen from just off the bridge over the I-215 Freeway.
Continued in Part C
Part “C” (of A-H)
Strangely, the new Iowa Ave. I-215 northbound onramp seems to be being redone!
Signs are advising motors of the ramp’s upcoming closure.
Will the new ‘old’ ramp be used for moving the truss spans by Iowa Ave. sometime in the future?
Most likely Bridge A will be moved to Position C next.
Continued in Part D
Part “D” (of A-H)
The Iowa Ave. northbound I-215 onramp:
The new pillars (5 sets) with the newly repositioned B to D spans in place:
The north (eastbound) side:
Just above, it looks like the E spans abutment is incomplete still.
A comparison of the old A position spans with the new B relocated to D spans:
Continued in Part E
Part “E” (of A-H)
What will probably be just a buffer zone is currently being used as a construction dirt road roadway.
Those Iowa Ave. area truss spans are currently right by the I-215 Freeway.
The center of the I-215 pier-work (five groups with two piers each) is better seen in this view from a different angle.
Continued in Part F
Part “F” (of A-H)
The scene with the now apart truss bridges and a BNSF approaching way in the distance:
As a refresher, a photo from June 6, 2014 when the above two truss bridges were side by side:
Continued in Part G
Part “G” (of A-H)
Back to the present, a final few photos of that BNSF eastbound train moving northward out of the repositioned truss spans and approaching in a hard to photograph setting of dimming sunlight.
In the last photo above, make a mental note for filing away of the wide area on each side of the train …
Continued in Part H
Part “H” (of A-H)
The Colton Signal Dept.
Colton, CA
These then new, pristine, numerous box crates were photographed at the Colton Signal Dept. back on July 16, 2014, just under two months ago.
The Colton Signal Dept. area was revisited Wednesday, September 10, 2014, and those crates were still there, but had dramatically showed weather-wear and expose to the elements.
It is unknown how such crates fair in the Midwest where UP Central Corridor sees 40 degrees below zero weather in the winter, tornadoes, severe floods, great humidity at times in the summer, and who knows what else. Maybe in the Midwest storage is in indoor signal departments. Does anybody know? But outdoors here in Southern California the crate-wood is just quickly rotting away …
K.P. suspects the parts in those crate boxes will soon be used nearby at the future, big CP AL514 HAMILTON in Pomona.
A Second Section follows.
Second Section
About the Grand Terrace Area Again
Since there are THREE truss bridges (of two spans each) being put over the I-215 Freeway, there has been some question as to HOW BNSF could get three tracks underneath the obviously two-track Barton Rd. overpass less than a mile to the north. Even the cut that the tracks are in suggests only two-tracks can go through here.
The answer might have been right before us all the time, since way back in 1936 when the bridge was first built.
Wait till you see HOW the bridge was built, its structural design!
A report (with photos) on this for the forum’s pondering will be in the works soon.
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