So the wonderous YouTube algorithm decided that, since I watch a lot of railroad videos, I'd like to view the "We brought an abandoned railroad" channel. Well, they weren't wrong, its sort of interesting in its own way, if a bit off.Anyway I suppose the railroad is called the East Terminal Railway, and several YouTube commenters (always reliable, of course) think the line in question is around here, east of Columbus Ohio. The new "owner" (possibly called Brian) describes what they plan to do in terms of the trackage (1. clear the brush, 2. fix drainage issues, 3. replaces ties and 4. re-ballast). Answers are not always forthcoming from them on YouTube, apparently they like instagram more but I don't use IG.The first video was amusing because Brian implies he is going to clear the row using a small electric chainsaw - in later videos you see a crew and bigger equipment in use of course.Apparently Brian is associated with a railcar repair service called ReRail America, so there's that (the stated plan is to start with rail-car storage). Don't know how the two mix.
chutton01Apparently Brian is associated with a railcar repair service called ReRail America, so there's that (the stated plan is to start with rail-car storage). Don't know how the two mix.
To store railcars, you need track space to store them - the owner of the track gets revenue from the car owners for storing the cars.
Never too old to have a happy childhood!
BaltACD To store railcars, you need track space to store them - the owner of the track gets revenue from the car owners for storing the cars.
BaltACD ..the owner of the track gets revenue from the car owners for storing the cars.
Rates vary, but a buck or two per car per day adds up.
A local shortline has had 700+ cars stored each summer. I'm sure it covers the payroll.
Larry Resident Microferroequinologist (at least at my house) Everyone goes home; Safety begins with you My Opinion. Standard Disclaimers Apply. No Expiration Date Come ride the rails with me! There's one thing about humility - the moment you think you've got it, you've lost it...
tree68 BaltACD ..the owner of the track gets revenue from the car owners for storing the cars. Rates vary, but a buck or two per car per day adds up. A local shortline has had 700+ cars stored each summer. I'm sure it covers the payroll.
The North Shore Railroad was storing several hundred tank cars in the vicinity of White Deer, PA the last time I went up to Watkins Glen to race. Tracks that store cars only have to be maintained to the 'Exempt' level.
Calling P.T. Barnum? (he bought a railroad, but he isn't a common carrier or applied to be one in recent history)
Larry, some questions which you may or may not be able to answer:
What kinds of cars are these? Are they owned by a few railroads/companies, or a lot? And why are they not needed in summer? And since this must take up about seven miles of track, how is it that the RR as that kind of space available? Are the cars on a branch line that no longer has any customers?
I was trying to think of what kind of car would be more likely to be used in seasons other than summer, and nothing comes to mind.
Many boatyards up here have this basic rule for winter storage: first in, last out. I'm guessing that a railroad storing cars would try to operate like that also!
The cars are LPG (1075), being stored during the summer - ie, low demand for heating fuel. These are all private cars (***X). The line in question lost its last customer at the north end of the line some time ago.
It's actually about ten rail miles from Boonville to Lyon's Falls. Of course, there have to be cuts for crossings, etc.
If I recall what I was told about the first year they did it, the short line didn't specify LIFO, which posed some problems. Ever since they have specified as such.
A few years ago, the same short line stored some 1,300 hoppers on another unused section of track.
In another area they have stored cars that were being held for credit against new cars as opposed to being scrapped (with the metal being sent overseas).
Our new friends at East Terminal are back with a new video, which explains a bit more (and includes Brian (I think) griping about some of the brush cutting, which was kind of sub-par to be truthful).To sum up:1) As previously mentioned they are looking to store cars, including tank cars which Brian states is of a bit touchy subject as even if the tanks are purged and cleaned out passers-by and locals may freak out upon seeing them. Maybe they could hang big signs on the cars like they do on empty NY school buses to indicate there are no sleeping children left on board* - "This tank car has been checked for hazardous liquids"
2) Brian said they had to turn down a contract to unload a large transformer [I think] that would have come in via depressed center flat, due to persistant drainage issues at the proposed off-load site. Brian discuss how they will address the drainage situation, and that they plan to get a customer who unloads telephone/power poles.3) Part of the area maybe used to offload steel construction mats (from flatbed trucks I'm afraid, but Brian said revenue is revenue, and he's right).4) Brian makes a lot of bad puns...Will the East Terminal be the next Grafton & Upton? The next RJ Corman? The next...Iowa Pacific {shudder}. Who knows. Since they're in Ohio, maybe one day JawTooth will show up to marvel at the reactivation. I'm sure YouTube will let us know...*You will note the sign states "checked for sleeping children", not that the driver or assistant did anything about them - "Yup, those kids are sleeping. Oh, well, let's lock up and leave."
East Columbus Terminal RR is exactly where?
He's gonna have fun with FRA, STB and Ohio PUC - probably ending badly.
Unless the tank cars have been purged and cleaned, there will be an issue with storing them on anything less than FRA Class 1 track. With the ongoing fun in Louisville and the past stored tank car problem in Cincinnati, Mr. Williams (Bryan) might get himself in a little deep brown smelly stuff. (even private industry is not exempt from the FRA rules and the Excepted track qualifiers) ... and this is different from the Hudson & Southern RR proposed start-up seen earlier on the forum in recent history (Akron RTA - Jeff White; that line used to run into NE Columbus) . Indiana Boxcar/Camp Chase related? Blacklick is CUOH (G&W, old PRR and B&O running side by side - the old PRR Panhandle is what survived?)
I have no idea if this man knows what he's doing. You would think he'd have done the due diligence before buying that line. I'd love to know what he paid for it. To say it was overgrown is a giant understatement! I hope he does know what he's facing, and I wish him well.
Lithonia OperatorI have no idea if this man knows what he's doing. You would think he'd have done the due diligence before buying that line. I'd love to know what he paid for it. To say it was overgrown is a giant understatement! I hope he does know what he's facing, and I wish him well.
Also, nobody has asked how you go about buying an "abandoned" rail line. Legally, I would think that is impossible as real estate law in most cases states once the line is abandoned it reverts to the original property owner from whom the easement was obtained. Unless the line was purchased by the state and held in a rail bank.......in which case it was not really abandoned.
I guess he could have bought it from the landowner, maybe just buying the track and some kind of buffer zone around it. I'm wondering what road this track used to connect with, if it still exists, and if not, then who has that line presently.
I guess a railroad would want the fees for hauling the storage cars to and from. Is there anything that would require a road to interchange with this new road? I wonder if Bryan plans to have a loco, or just let the connecting road go in and out for the cars. Brian does not mention any businesses on the line; it seems unlikely.
Well, maybe all the answers are on Instagram, but the few verified answers that East Terminal posted in the YouTube comments boil down to:They have 2 trackmobiles they can use, I guess from their rerailer business.They are in Ohio, but they don't pinpoint exactly where. Locations are conjecture on YouTube.Supposedly this track was owned by a company ("beer can plant") which closed down, althought other businesses still exist.Usage will be car storage, and apparently some trans-load operations as i mentioned before.And that's that.
Not exactly the High Iron. But good to see tracks come back to life.
The weirdness continues near (south of) Byesville, OH with a piece of former B&O/CSX/CUOH track that shows the confusion that can happen when people don't play by long established federal rule. Don't think this is the subject of this thread, but just as weird. (and "I dunno" won't be accepted as an excuse) ... STB FD-36432/ Independence Rail Works / 3.6 miles of Guernsey County OH track
Most recent video they posted was about a 'road trip' to a Ritchie Brothers auction site in search of 'deals' on unspecified equipment.
Given what they've done in the past, they would be smart to go looking for a 988 or a 980B plus a 4WD backhoe. Rare that you find on-track equipment with Richie Bros.....even stuff with high-rail gear would be unusual, more the domain of Sterling, Danella et al..
i saw the 'Field Trip to Richie' video yesterday as well, Brian and son seem to be having a blast goofing around on YouTube and showing off stuff like their new 'Rail-Saw'. The permission slip bit was kinda cringy...mudchicken, not sure they need any big Cats at this time (although having a back-hoe never hurts); I am pretty positive they are not deep in the thickest forest of Ohio, but rather on the outskirts of an industrial park on the east of Columbus Ohio, next to suburban subdivisions.We know they are in Ohio, and they kinda let slip they are sorta around Columbus.Brian in a response to a comment in an early video about the line stated the main plant which used rail serve was a (beer) can manufacturing plant that had closed some years back. Turns out Ball Corporation had closed their manufacturing plant at 350 McCormick Blvd in 2013 (the building with 3 tracks approaching it - more or less the same map link I posted in my OP, and suggested by other commenters on YouTube). As a additional clue, they kept talking about having to direct their drainage to flow north to a retention pond - well, north of that plant is indeed a retention pond (the bigger, square one, the smaller rounder one is likely part of the housing developement)Going by Google Maps (not necessary the best idea), as you can see by the map link above the line they have goes North and then curves East - likely to the switch off to Amcor Ridigi Plastics (which seems like it still exist and is an active rail user, but you can't really tell from undated Google aerials) - well, in that case the distance East Terminal runs is less than a km. Even if Amcor Rigid AND Cemex gave up on rail (sadly, not infesible) and East Terminal went all the way to...Ohio Central? CSX (the OC map on their website...stinks), its still only ~1.02 miles (1.64 km). Oh well, the paved area in back of the former Ball Corp. plant would make a good place to transload power polls and the like.
mudchickenGiven what they've done in the past, they would be smart to go looking for a 988 or a 980B plus a 4WD backhoe. Rare that you find on-track equipment with Richie Bros.....even stuff with high-rail gear would be unusual, more the domain of Sterling, Danella et al..
Their Ritchie Brothers footage highlighted several RJ Corman units that were being sold - one with rail wheels, the others without. Considering how Ritchie Brothers have various auction sites around the country I suspect that it is a relatively easy way for owners of specialized equipment to get it sold into the secondary market.
Episode 11 is out today.
Brian is wearing an "Air Net" pull over. Air Net is a cargo airline out of Columbus Ohio (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AirNet_Express). He also talked more about their rail car repair business, specifically repairing a door on a box car at some sort of paper plant. Columbus Airport is very close to the location you linked. Seems like Columbus is 100%. Brian also said he had background in railroad derailment cleanup. RJ Corman has a staging location west of Columbus in London Ohio. In the Richie Brothers videos they seemed to know a thing or two about how Corman got rid of their surplus equipment. Makes me wonder if he worked for them in the past.Searching the name Brian T Williams turns up a home record near Columbus. I won't post that because they should still have some privacy. Street view for the home shows a truck-crane in the driveway with hi-rail wheels on it. The home is less than 1 mile from the spur in the original post.I'd say that's the guy and Columbus is the place for sure. Can't be 100% sure it's the location you linked, but given the proximity it makes sense they might have had some first hand knowledge.
Time for a bump, as our buddies at East Terminal took another field trip to get the truck they purchased at auction earlier. This leads to a 3 part video series wherein the rail-derailment recovery business background of Brian fully comes out. I am posting a link to Video 2 here, which starts as more or less a high level discussion of rail derailment/recovery methods over the years, and ends with a discussion of various rail recovery services east of the Mississippi. Its actually rather interesting. Video 3 is also somewhat interesting, as Brian visits the garage of a rail recovery truck service and shows some pretty interesting equipment which would make the 1/87 Vehicle guys take notice. He talk a bit about another recovery job his company did (new poster 'scale' already mentioned his story of how they set the scrap paper loaded in a box car on fire when they tried to torch a door free, and ended up flooding the boxcar and load with water) - this time he explained how his company specializes in smaller in-plant jobs, exhibited by how they rerailed a derailed car in a building, over an unloading grate.No real update on the Terminal RR itself, but likely if they get a repair job or build that 'access' road or unload poles, they'll post a video.
Another bump, new episode out where they dig a ditch -- and it makes me think we're in the wrong spot on the map.He draws a diagram of how the water flows around the site, and they did a short ditch to redirect part of it to improve drainage. Looking at the satellite view of where we thought this was located, I can't line up his drawing at all. I feel like we should be able to see the water source to the east, likely identify where the culvert is located, and see the water to the north west. Also, it's clear when they are digging well off the right of way that there's not much futher on -- the location on the map has houses to the east.
Is it part of this line?
https://abandonedonline.net/location/cincinnati-eastern-railroad/
scaleAnother bump, new episode out where they dig a ditch -- and it makes me think we're in the wrong spot on the map.
deeplistIf you check the tax records for Franklin County (Columbus Ohio) for "East Columbus Terminal Railroad" you'll find a parcel of land just east of the Amcor Rigid Plastics building. (444 McCormick Blvd, Columbus, OH 43213) That's where he's at. They paid $8000 for it, and it's about a quarter of a mile long, maybe half a mile tops. And there's a retention pond to the east of his parcel where the overflow water is coming from.
What he's calling the 700 Track goes to Ferguson Plumbing Supply (438 McCormick Blvd) and what he's calling the "J Lead" goes to Jacobi Carbons (432 McCormick Blvd) or at least it did... google maps looks like it's been pulled up.
I don't even think he owns half a mile total. It's more like a quarter. Brian's parcel is 010-165726-00. The parcel to the south of his (010-165727-00) is still owned by Columbus Corporate Center, which is the entity that he bought his section from back in December.
Here's an image where I outlined in red what Brian owns.
So it seems Brian doesn't even own the line from the former can factory (on google, marked Scare Factory, guess its either one of those seasonal party outlets, or a 'haunted' house sort of deal). I figured those three sidings that lead to that former plant were where they were planning to unload telephone poles that he talked about in early episodes, as well set up their repair facility that he also talked about (seems like a good location) - but you're saying no, he doesn't even reach that. And does Amcor still get service - if so, he must only own south of that switch.Doesn't look lilke all that much room for a thriving car storage business, but at least the videoes are somewhat entertaining...
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