Ever seen track this bad?

[FJ and G]

I've seen worse than this (FJ&G for instance, where the rails are really crooked), but was surprised to see that the UP has a pretty bad line going to the Airport just south of Austin Texas

[coborn35]

Thats not bad track, just bad ties.

[Anonymous]

Looks like the lines gets some traffic on it.

[DSchmitt]

40+ years ago I saw a spur that had a curve laid with a combination of short pieces of straight rail and short pieces of curved rail that were not even close to the correct radius.

[Anonymous]

That looks like Class 1 track from what I can see of it. Not bad at all.

I'm sure MC would be more accurate, unfortunately the pictures are poorly taken so it is difficult to tell how many good ties per rail, but I have seen MUCH worse track that is operated every day.

LC

[trainboyH16-44]

Looks a little better than the ex CP E&N line..

[tatans]

Yes the ties need a little "touching up" but on the top photo who are those lucky people in those lovely condos on the left, what a view of trains, nice as long as they keep below 85 mph.

[Modelcar]

...Just a few years ago on the Florida Central I saw track every bit as bad located near Eustis and Tavares, Fl. It served an orange processing business at Umatila a few miles north of those towns. Believe that business is closed now. Every day a few covered hoppers were moved in and out on that branch. Saw it operate for more than a half dozen years and never witnessed any cars on the ground. Sure can't understand how they stayed on the rails. Rails were bad as well as the ties and road bed....Many places one could not see ANY ties, rails were down in the ground with grass growing all around them. I do have some photos but would have to locate them.

[mudchicken]

I would second LC's comment, probably Cls 1 (10 MPH) if I could see more of it.

Just because a tie looks bad doesn't mean it it is. (Will it hold gage, is it in one piece, will it hold a spike???)....Only needs 5 good ties per rail length (the other 19 can be junk or gone) and hopefully those good ties support the staggered goints.

Switch appears to be straight-railed/frog removed. No biggie.

It appears it drains and vegitation is not a problem, I've seen much worse that is still FRA legal.

[PBenham]

That track just needed the attention of a good tie gang and will likely get the attention in time (cross the fingers on that). Now, I rode on the Ex-NH Danbury branch in the mid 70's and there were no level joints anywhere, and the "washboard" M.U.s rocked and rolled like a trawler in a hurricane, only drier![sigh] The worst track I've seen a train on would have to be the last remnant of the old NYC Tonawanda branch, locally referred to as the "peanut". That line was on the "hit list" for quite a while and NYC and successor Penn Central wound up having to keep the west end in to handle Lehigh Valley's Niagara Falls traffic. Even the relatively light LV 4-motor units rocked around, at all speeds, with spikes popping out from the tie plates and mud flying everywhere! Came 4/1/76 and that was that![xx(] I wonder did Penn Central cringe when the Valley's "monster" C628s (633-641) went up along that line? Another line with really awful track was the [censored]branch of the [censored] which had a 2.5 MPH speed restriction. [censored], in their wonderful and crazy manner, ran SD45s on that branch, with full (4000gal) fuel tanks.Remarkably everything stayed on the tracks.

[eolafan]

QUOTE: Originally posted by Limitedclear

That looks like Class 1 track from what I can see of it. Not bad at all.

I'm sure MC would be more accurate, unfortunately the pictures are poorly taken so it is difficult to tell how many good ties per rail, but I have seen MUCH worse track that is operated every day.

LC

LC

Like LC, I too have seen much worse track conditions than those in your pictures and it was also active track...not to minimize the poor condition of the tracks in your photos but it is really nothing that unusual at all (unfortunately).

[Anonymous]

That looks like the ex-RI from Bureau Jct. to Peoria.

[monkeyman2]

Worst tracks I've ever seen....

[solzrules]

QUOTE: Originally posted by Limitedclear

That looks like Class 1 track from what I can see of it. Not bad at all.

I'm sure MC would be more accurate, unfortunately the pictures are poorly taken so it is difficult to tell how many good ties per rail, but I have seen MUCH worse track that is operated every day.

LC

LOL!!!!!!!!!!!!![:D]

[mackb4]

The overall look of the track is not to bad.There is ties that need to be replaced and some tamping.The gauge doesn't look to be that bad.I'd say put some more ballast down and make a 10 mph. slow order and use it.

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by monkeyman2


Worst tracks I've ever seen....

Awww, come on, I'd say that 79MPPH passenger track! [;)]

[amtrakwine]

The track is used for freight ,the condos are in a really depressed area of Austin the worst part of town. The line runs to Bastrop and Smithville where it meets the BNSF.


Alvin in Austin

[Anonymous]

Yea I've seen some track in even worse shape then that.

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by DSchmitt

40+ years ago I saw a spur that had a curve laid with a combination of short pieces of straight rail and short pieces of curved rail that were not even close to the correct radius.

That is really a sight to see too.... short piecse of straight rail making a curve. On the old Pacific Electric Ry in Los Angeles, we had an area known as Wingfoot that had this concept. We had to operate at about 5-6 mph around them.


Virlon

[Cheviot Hill]

In one of the books that I have, The Pennsylvania Railroad In Cincinnati. There is a picture of a tree trunk being used for a tie. It was taken near Lebanon Station in Lebanon Ohio. Not sure of the time of the photo. Pretty strange looking with branch stubs sticking up.

[Murphy Siding]

I rode a tourist railroad that had track much worse than that. I don't think we topped 10 mph. It was harvest season, and the combines in the adjacent fields were walkin' away from our train![xx(]

[Anonymous]

Yep. I saw a lot of PC and LV track prior to the formation of Conrail.

Old Timer

[Kevin C. Smith]

I'd have to agree that, for an industrial area access track, it's not too bad (more ugly than unusable) but it reminds me of the tracks that used to go through my hometown. Rather than just a few miles to the airport, it was 60 miles through the woods like that. Prior to the wholsesale slaughter of branchlines in the 80's, a lot of track like that was in service. I'd have to agree with FJ & G, though- I would've expected better condition on one of today's big class 1's.

[Anonymous]

Would have loved to have track that good back about 1970 on the PC!

[spbed]

I was at Olthordorf Street or something like that in Austin a few weeks ago & I saw 3 trains moving along at a pretty good pace & the track there seem in fine shape. Maybe this is a very lightly used spur off the mainline which is the reason it is in the shape it is? [:)]

Originally posted by amtrakwine

Living nearby to MP 186 of the UPRR  Austin TX Sub

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