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CN Rail Expansion Projects

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Posted by Deggesty on Wednesday, July 1, 2020 7:44 PM

williamsb

The first 20 miles of the Robson Sub is the original GTP to Prince Rupert Tete Jaune Sub. In the 1980's CN built a 9 mile connection to the Albreda Sub near Valemount, originaly the CNoR.

The grade on the GTP was approx 1% and the CNoR about 0.7%

 

Thank you. Is the 1% going east or going west? Is the 0.7% going east or west?

Johnny

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Posted by williamsb on Thursday, July 2, 2020 12:16 AM

Both eastbound

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Posted by Deggesty on Thursday, July 2, 2020 8:00 AM

williamsb

Both eastbound

 

Thank you. That explains why EB trains stay on the Albreda Sub and WB use the Robson Sub. The passenger train from Prince Rupert goes directly from Taverna to Redpass.

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Posted by SD70Dude on Thursday, July 2, 2020 5:43 PM

ADRIAN BALLAM

So those two sections, were they missed in the Trackside Guide then since they have been in operation for a year?

I don't have a copy of the current Trackside Guide, but if they are missing then yes, it is a mistake. 

Remember, the Trackside Guide is published by a volunteer group in Ottawa (Bytown Railway Society).  It is only as good as the information they receive, mostly from unofficial sources as CN and CP management probably wouldn't give them the time of day, and it does contain plenty of minor errors. 

Greetings from Alberta

-an Articulate Malcontent

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Posted by SD70Dude on Thursday, July 2, 2020 5:48 PM

Deggesty
williamsb

Both eastbound

Thank you. That explains why EB trains stay on the Albreda Sub and WB use the Robson Sub. The passenger train from Prince Rupert goes directly from Taverna to Redpass.

Both the now nameless Skeena (originally CN No. 9 and No. 10, the 'Rupert Rocket', currently VIA No. 5 and No. 6) and the Canadian can use either line depending on daily operational requirements.  If there are no nearby freights in the opposing direction the Dispatcher may use this stretch to allow the passenger train to overtake several freights at once. 

Greetings from Alberta

-an Articulate Malcontent

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Posted by ADRIAN BALLAM on Friday, July 3, 2020 4:38 PM

Thank you. I will be sending them an e-mail.

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Posted by williamsb on Friday, July 3, 2020 6:27 PM

I had asked about the DT at Hawthorne WI, kgbw49 answered that it was double tracked in 2018 from Hawthorne north to the Amnicon River bridge. I have seen pictures of trains on this section of DT. It is still not in the CTG. My question is does anyone have the mileposts for this section? Thanks.

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Posted by SD70Dude on Monday, October 19, 2020 11:57 PM

The double track at Entrance, Alberta was finally cut in a few weeks ago.  The controlled location at the west end (mile 193 Edson Sub) is named "Athabasca River".  

It is just under 22,000' long, which means that in many cases only one train will fit there.

Greetings from Alberta

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Posted by BaltACD on Tuesday, October 20, 2020 8:12 AM

SD70Dude
The double track at Entrance, Alberta was finally cut in a few weeks ago.  The controlled location at the west end (mile 193 Edson Sub) is named "Athabasca River".  

It is just under 22,000' long, which means that in many cases only one train will fit there.

In today's PSR sized trains 4 or 5 miles of double track can't really be considered 'double track' but just a long siding.

When the B&O reconfigured its line from Philadelphia to Baltimore from double track to single track CTC in 1960 (or thereabouts) it was done with nominal 10K feet passing sidings about 10 miles apart the capacity study for that configuration was predicated on being able to 'double meet' trains in those 'long' sidings.  In that era, a 5k foot train was the big exception.  Today a 5K foot train or smaller is the exception.

Never too old to have a happy childhood!

              

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Posted by williamsb on Tuesday, October 20, 2020 1:13 PM

This is between 2 large bridges, Prairie Creek mile 187.5 near Hinton AB and the Athabasca River bridge at 193.7 so pretty hard to make it much longer.

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Posted by SD70Dude on Tuesday, October 20, 2020 3:00 PM

Except it doesn't go right from bridge to bridge.  The east switch is in the same place as when Entrance was a 6400' siding, there is still almost a mile from it to the Maskuta Creek bridge.  The west end is about 1000' east of the last straight stretch before the Athabasca River bridge.  

Greetings from Alberta

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Posted by SD70Dude on Tuesday, June 22, 2021 6:09 PM

Reviving this thread, construction is well underway on two additional sections of double track on the Edson Sub.  

Leaman to mile 80 (not far west of Wildwood), and Gainford to Fallis.  It appears the 6400' Wildwood siding will be left as it is, despite having little utility in today's world of long trains.  VIA and the Cadomin rock train are about the only regular trains that fit there, the siding's usable length being further reduced by two public crossings.  

I've heard that the Gainford-Fallis section is not going all the way to the current end of double track at Wabamun because CN does not own a wide enough ROW through the village of Whitewood Sands, this was also the location of a derailment that dumped a large amount of heavy fuel oil and other 'goodies' into Wabamun lake (the lake coughed up tar balls for years afterward and may still).  

https://www.tsb.gc.ca/eng/rapports-reports/rail/2005/r05e0059/r05e0059.html

Whitewood Sands was also the site of an interesting battle between CN and a local resident.  Being rather well off this fellow had managed to acquire a choice piece of semi lakefront property, with only the track being between him and the lake.  He squeezed as large a house as possible into his lot, which is shoehorned in between the track and a public road, and built an equally large deck on the lakefront side.  

He was not amused by the oil spill beside his property, and proceeded to do his best to become a thorn in the railway's side.  CN responded by measuring where the ROW actually ended, and it turned out that most of his deck actually sat on railway property.  

CN quickly removed the offending portion with chainsaws and other power equipment.  

Greetings from Alberta

-an Articulate Malcontent

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Posted by williamsb on Tuesday, June 22, 2021 6:53 PM

CN is also working on double tracking from Abrahamson to Glen valley on the Yale Sub filling in a 3.6 mile piece between 2 double tracks.

A short piece of the New Westminster Sub was triple tracked earlier this year.

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Posted by SD60MAC9500 on Tuesday, June 22, 2021 10:38 PM
 

williamsb

CN is also working on double tracking from Abrahamson to Glen valley on the Yale Sub filling in a 3.6 mile piece between 2 double tracks.

A short piece of the New Westminster Sub was triple tracked earlier this year.

 

Any word of a replacement for the New Westminster Bridge over the Fraser River?

 
 
 
 
 
Rahhhhhhhhh!!!!
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Posted by SD70Dude on Wednesday, December 22, 2021 11:12 PM

The section between Leaman and Chip Lake (the new station at mile 80) on the Edson Sub opened this week.  The other section between Fallis and Gainford is still under construction, we'll see if they keep at it through the winter.

Greetings from Alberta

-an Articulate Malcontent

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Posted by SD70Dude on Tuesday, June 14, 2022 3:08 PM

The Fallis-Gainford section was finally cut in a few days ago, on the evening of Saturday June 11.  The controlled location at Fallis has been laid out to leave room for a full set of double crossovers, indicating that they plan/hope to extend it farther east. 

Greetings from Alberta

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Posted by williamsb on Wednesday, June 15, 2022 12:55 PM

 

Do you have mileages for this section of 2 tracks SD70 Dude?

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Posted by SD70Dude on Wednesday, June 15, 2022 3:19 PM

Fallis is mile 51.8 (the switch is immediately west of the Main St crossing).  Gainford is mile 60.4 (previously the west end of the siding, and just east of the large steel Magnolia bridge over Highway 16).

There is a private crossing into a lakefront gated community approximately 9,000' west of Fallis, and most trains will not fit between it and the east end of the double track.  The time limits around blocking public crossings do not apply to private or farm crossings, so it will be interesting to see how popular we become with the local residents. 

Greetings from Alberta

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Posted by williamsb on Wednesday, June 15, 2022 4:50 PM

Thanks Dude. Not double track but CN just opened an extended sidind at Ashcroft 16,105'.

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Posted by williamsb on Friday, June 17, 2022 1:19 PM

I just looked back on this discussion and noted I wrote on May 1, 2019 a quote from JJ Ruest Earnings call when asked about CN's OR that "CN was not a one trick pony about OR".

I was quite happy to hear that and I liked CN was spending a lot on capitol projects even through it raised the OR, CN was still making a lot of money.

Well a hedge fund did not like it and 3 years later JJ is gone, what do you think of that?

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