Excellent Post K.P.!
A couple of thoughts:
..The bright paint on the the old high and wide foundations probably means to remove them.
..Your comment about the possible need for the workers to leave the trench when a train passes is interesting. If they do have to leave it, it seems not much work will get done.
Keep up the good work.. The Trench project is going to be interesting to follow.
Update as of Tuesday, September 23, 2014
The San Gabriel Trench
San Gabriel, CA
Part “L” (of A-L)
The intermediate signals on the shoofly’s west end are now active. The shoofly in lowering does NOT swing to the south (left) like the original track did, but maintains a new, north alignment for several blocks then swings back to the original alignment in the far background, lower trench level.
The old main that now ends:
So, there we have it, the current status of the San Gabriel Trench construction. Things should start to get more exciting now as the trench starts to be dug out.
This will end the series.
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A couple of very short and minor tidbits about the time after the above September 23, 2014 effort, specifically, concerning Montclair and Ontario, CA, that involve signals will be posted as time permits.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 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 “K” (of A-L)
At Ramona Blvd. (M.P. 490.20), the grade crossing is open.
The now active shoofly looking east:
Looking west:
Now, views start to get more interesting again …
Continued in Part L
Part “J” (of A-L)
An MTA bus stopped appropriately for a red traffic light, on the other side of the gates (upper right).
K.P. couldn’t believe how many autos (and a few trucks) stopped on the tracks, with absolutely no escape route!
Above, note the burial base and orange cones in the photos center. The crossing gates will soon be relocated.
Another MTA bus turns, and dutifully stops momentarily before going over the grade crossing.
Above, if the crossing gates activated just then, the bus likely wouldn’t have moved … and the roadway (eastbound lanes) parallel to the tracks would be blocked, tying up traffic terribly.
You may remember this July 22, 2014 shot of the intermediate signal just east of Mission Rd. (The mainline is barely seen on the far right, and the shoofly was only partially in at the time, left.)
Likely that signal (at least without heads), was laying down trackside this visit.
Continued in Part K
Part “I” (of A-L)
Looking east from Mission Blvd.:
A westward view:
Just above, note the fence on the far right.
Strangely, on the far side of that fence (public street side) is a burial base positioned, with cable coming out of it.
Continued in Part J
Part “H” (of A-L)
K.P. had parked the vehicle and was walking northward to the Mission Rd. grade crossing (M.P. 490.36) when a UP westbound came
By the time he got trackside, the tail end was almost upon him.
The train passing Ramona Blvd. in the distance:
Continued in Part I
Part “G” (of A-L)
Just west of Del Mar. Ave., on each side of the track, are new bases.
It is unclear at this time what such bases will be used for. Maybe (“maybe”) they would supplement the signal system with construction worker control, such as white to stop, and flashing white to proceed. Neither is known at this time if workers would be allowed down in the trench with a train passing at ground level. Such workers down in the trench would have NO escape route if a train was to derail, and tumble down into the trench.
Just south of the tracks, west of Del Mar Ave. seems to be a satellite office marked No. 4. Modals have been brought to the site, and makeshift ramps and railings have been put together.
Above, K.P. thought the “lines” of the guard rails (or whatever they are called) made for an interesting photo … They are sure eye catching in person!
Continued in Part H
Part “F” (of A-L)
The road just south of the tracks between San Gabriel Blvd. and Del Mar Ave. has a long fence between the tracks and the residential neighborhood.
From Del Mar Ave., looking eastbound (the track on the left is the shoofly):
Looking westbound and more very close to the track buildings:
Continued in Part G
Part “E” (of A-L)
A southeast view of the San Gabriel Blvd. grade crossing:
Looking westbound: Note the closeness of the background building to the shoofly track on the right.
Continued in Part F
Part “D” (of A-L)
At San Gabriel Blvd. (M.P. 491.23) looking eastbound: The original Main is on the right, the shoofly on the left.
A telephoto of the shoofly and the new bridge over the wash:
The grade crossing, with the shoofly in the foreground:
Above, only the forefront two-direction yellow striped separated roadway lanes are open. The background two lanes are closed. This is an incredibly busy street, and will likely be kept open all during the construction. Probably the trench will be dug out and bridged over on those closed lanes and then the same will occur to the foreground lanes.
Continued in Part E
Part “C” (of A-L)
From the basically east-west Grand Ave. a block or two south of the Sunset Route, the flood control channel is still intact, but the mounds and mounds of dirt are stacking up.
And debris!
Continued in Part D
Part “B” (of A-L)
Looking westbound again, the track now bends slightly to the right and then bends farther to go over the new flood control bridge.
The old, original Main (left background) is now severed and disconnected, and is isolated.
Continued in Part C
Part “A” (of A-L)
This presentation will be on a generally east to west basis.
Last month this August 26, 2014 photo was posted, of the high and wide detector by Walnut Grove Ave., M.P. 491.67. The track went straight into the western distance.
On this September 23 visit, the high and wide detector had been removed, and odd colored paint marked the burial bases.
Looking east from Walnut Grove Ave. the new high and wide detector is in service, but the intermediate block signal near it is not, and has its heads turned aside still.
Continued in Part B
The THREE Truss Bridges …
… in the Area of Grand Terrace, CA
K.P. was unexpectedly dispatched to San Bernardino for the evening of Wednesday, September 24, 2014. He went underneath the trusses on the I-215 Freeway at sunset, and there ARE three truss bridges in place on their final alignments, and they were as described, name in locations C, D, and E (east to west). He also was able to barely get in some photos of the truss bridges in dwindling daylight.
From Main St. in Highgrove, looking north (looking eastbound):
As seen above, the left E bridge is slightly farther west (left) than bridges D and C (the two on the right).
By the Barton Rd. overpass, looking south (westbound):
Just above, it was more important to find something to stabilize the camera on in darkening light than photo composition.
Just above, too, are bridges C, D, and E (left to right). Right of the middle D bridge the ground slopes downward, giving the impression the E bridge is more forward than Bridges C and D, but they are progressively left to right just slight farther back so they go over the angled I-215 Freeway. What an illusion!
So, now we all know the situation of the three trusses.
While in the area, K.P. went up to the Colton Signal Dept. to see if anything new was present. There was nothing earth shattering, but a number of signal heads were neatly lined up.
Exactly why is unknown, but possibly for an installation somewhere in the area, or maybe they were taken down from where they were somewhere in the area. A number of heads are of the two-bulb type, commonly used at sidings. K.P. knows of no such location in the area where such would be needed, or came from.
KP and of course everyone else tuned in here.
Looking forward to your great coverage of the Grand Terrace...hang over. Grin!
Gosh, they've gone absolutely bonkers with all those cul-de-sacs.
RickH
BarstowRick.com Model Railroading How To's
BarstowRick and Everyone Else
The Truss Bridges near Grand Terrace, CA
On Tuesday, September 23, 2014, the truss bridges were gone under while traveling northbound on the I-215 Freeway about 10:00 P.M. (Pacific Daylight Time), and it was really quite dark. In that darkness it looked like only two bridges were up, but that may have been an illusion, as three should be side by side now. The center piers, however, showed positions A and B (east to west) were bridgeless, so positions C, D, and E, three bridges of two spans each, must have looked like two bridges in the darkness.
Earlier in the day before fulfilling the above mentioned P.M. dispatch, the San Gabriel Trench (near Los Angeles) was visited for a few hours, and a westbound train ON THE SHOOFLY was seen and photographed as K.P. was arriving at the Mission Rd. grade crossing!
A posting series on the outing should be forthcoming in a few days.
Take care all,
K.P.
Update as of Friday, September 19, 2014
A Day of Perpetual Surprises!
Loma Linda Area to Pomona, CA
Part XVII (of X-XVII, Overall I-XVII)
By the 71 Freeway
Pomona, CA
Where Mission Blvd. intersection-crossed Highway 71, it had always been a logjam place ever since K.P. can remember, even as seen from the backseat of his parent’s car 50-55 years ago! Now, an overpass is present.
All this is making it more and more difficult to document the scene of adding tracks and otherwise revamping the railroad. If by some miracle an overpass is ever built by the present CP C030 ROSELAWN (which will in itself soon be gone), it will be a miracle. Unlike the long north ramp fencing at the soon to be opened Hunts Lane overpass over in the San Bernardino-Colton area that will make photography difficult …
Reshown photo from earlier in this series
… maybe the mythical ‘train gods’ will have mercy on photographers, and there won’t be such fencing all the way obstructing cameras.
OK, back to reality and an unknown future …
Part XVI (of X-XVII, Overall I-XVII)
What that cul-de-sac area looks like now: New buildings were put in between the cul-de-sac and the 71 Freeway.
It is hard to believe the overpass (that goes over the LA&SL and the Diversion, upper left background) was once accessible to pedestrians. But, NO more!
Looking east, things look different now, and the trees are taller. K.P. can’t remember the cell tower present before, but it may or may not have been..
Continued in Part XVII
Part XV (of X-XVII, Overall I-XVII)
Long time forum readers of this thread will undoubtedly remember this October 17, 2009 Diversion related view, shot from the Highway 71 bridge looking eastbound.
Then, on November 7, 2009 these late afternoon views of a very nearby Highway 71 onramp (that made the above photo possible) was shot and posted:
On October 6, 2010 the ramp was gone, and a cul-de-sac ended the street.
Continued in Part XVI
Part XIV (of X-XVII, Overall I-XVII)
The CP C030 ROSELAWN Area
The north side, now by the northern SP tracks, looking west:
Above, it is unclear what tracks will survive when the Diversion tracks are in full operation, and the SP mainline through here (the high track) is no longer needed. Unseen behind that high track is the short CTC Pomona siding.
CP C030 ROSELAWN’s west side eastbound signals are seen.
The east side westbound LA&SL signals, with the higher SP track in the foreground. Note that rod iron fencing in the background of the parking lot mentioned previously.
Looking east … and those single-bulb top heads:
Above … Oh, a shopping cart trackside! Naughty locals …
Continued in Part XV
Part XIII (of X-XVII, Overall I-XVII)
Across the street is that new building, now in the way of a curving road off an overpass bridge.
A “T” intersection is by the west end of the building:
So, in theory, if an overpass took up the parking lot, traffic could jog through the area, as well as pedestrians on sidewalks. The parking lot could be relocated.
Continued in Part XIV
Part XII (of X-XVII, Overall I-XVII)
The west eastbound signal for SP Main 1 (our “D” Main) is seen below, with the future “A” Main ending and not connected.
A westward view of the close proximity of the electric utility:
Continued in Part XIII
Part XI (of X-XVII, Overall I-XVII)
In the very recent past K.P. thought once City officials saw the potential of building an overpass near LA&SL CP C030 ROSELAWN they might just do it. Aerials show vacant land in the area that could be utilized. However, an onsite inspection showed that the aerials used to form that opinion was terribly outdated. Incredibly so!
This is what is just south of the LA&SL tracks and east of an electric utility: A rather new parking lot!
At the fencing, a good view of the LA&SL tracks can be had. The signals are of CP C030 ROSELAWN.
On the SP-side in the background are the west side eastbound signals of CP AL513 POMONA.
The siding (right signal) turners into the SP mainline (left signal), and that single-track in turn turns into the LA&SL Main 1, hence, only have single-bulb top heads, as in red over green. Somewhere in this area, LA&SL Main 1 becomes SP Main 1.
Continued in Part XII
Part X (of X-XVII, Overall I-XVII)
Hamilton Blvd.
This is the grade crossing that was saved, where an underpass or overpass construction was canceled.
The fourth track is still unfinished after many years, but now that the pipeline controversy is settled, should see it finished maybe within a year.
Continued in Part XI
Part IX (of I-IX, Overall I-XVII)
The Sad Thing Is Here!
Colton, CA
The outfit by the tracks, on the south side, seems to be manufacturing rebar bridge parts. That is just K.P.’s impression, though.
If those rebar parts are for bridges, it is wondered if any of those parts will be used next to the Sunset Route …
Continued in Parts X-XVII: To be posted tentatively by 12:00 P.M. (noon, Pacific Daylight Time) on Tuesday, September 23, 2014. It will cover mainly Pomona.
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A Quick Memo to BarstowRick (9-21):
Hi, Rick!
About those trusses in the Grand Terrace area … The dispatch lineup puts me in both San Bernardino and Riverside Counties on Tuesday, September 23, 2014. Unfortunately, the situation calls for being in WESTERN San Bernardino County in early evening, which will put me deep in Riverside County in darkness. That means I should pass the new truss bridges in the Grand Terrace area maybe around midnight, a time hardly conducive to photography, and I don’t think the trusses will be all lit up. Nevertheless, with limited freeway and auto lighting, I should be able to faintly see if the trusses are all next to each other on their permanent alignments now.
Stay tuned,
Part VIII (of I-IX, Overall I-XVII)
At “E” Street a similar road closure treatment was taking place.
Continued in Part IX
Part VII (of I-IX, Overall I-XVII)
A second row of barricade warning signs are closer to the tracks. Note the tan-like, yellowish building on the right.
A closer look at the col-de-sac and colored building: Take a good look at that building … and read the separate story below if you would like a historic note about this ex-grade crossing.
Continued in Part VIII
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A related true story for those interested …
The ‘sad thing’ (road closure) brought back memories to K.P. of another sad thing! Years and years ago, when the line through here was Santa Fe (AT&SF), and UP (LA&SL) had a reciprocal switching agreements with Santa Fe, there was a set of railcars tied down on a side track about a half mile to the north (leftward on both above photos). Vandal mind kids released the handbrakes, and the set of cars started rolling downgrade towards Colton Crossing (the Colton Flyover wasn’t even dreamt of in those days). At speed they went through a derail, derailed, crossed “H” Street at speed, hit a passing eastward moving car with three lunch minded girls from Colton High School (which school was just a few blocks away to the west), smashed the crossing gate and flashers to pieces, swung into that building at an angle, knocking a giant hole in the building, and came to rest halfway inside the building with a giant cloud of dust. The owner of the building was in that very corner, at his desk, and was buried and covered with debris. He managed to crawl out of the rubble, but was horribly bruised and completely covered with dust. Unfortunately, the three girls died during the long extrication process of emergency responders.
If you ever see kids releasing freight car handbrakes, by all means call 9-1-1 and tell them you know of a life and death situation that police need to deal with right now (and where exactly it is taking place at, the railroad, milepost, etc.) and ask them to immediately call and advise the railroad as well.
Part VI (of I-IX, Overall I-XVII)
Part of the funding agreement about the Colton Flyover included a clause that the BNSF / City of Colton would close both “H” and “E” Streets. That time has finally arrived! Looking east on “H" Street:
A cul-de-sac is being constructed on each side of the tracks on “H" Street, by BNSF’s CP29 GONZALES.
The ex-grade crossing is completely devoid of crossing gates now, and presently has white, spaced barricades present.
Continued in Part VII
Part V (of I-IX, Overall I-XVII)
Red over Green
On the right the freight cars appear to be at different levels of height. That is where the train is crossing over from Main 2 to Main 1.
DPU’s were on the trail end.
Continued in Part VI
Part IV (of I-IX, Overall I-XVII)
The west side of Colton was checked out, and while on site, the east side westbound signals of CP SP538 RANCHO came alive, the center one being lit red over green for a crossing over movement (Main 2 to Main 1).
That lower green light above appears to now surprisingly have the large diode array, and NOT the small cluster anymore. The top red likewise appears to have the large diodes. Since this was never noticed before, are small clusters being changed out, perhaps system wide, for the larger diode arrays?
Moments later the westbound came.
Just above, the last unit of the consist was one of those railfan-popular C40-8 units that have long been in storage.
Continued in Part V
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