New Signals at Portland Union Station

For the last year or more, Portland (Oregon) Union Station has been involved in a slow motion re-signaling project that will unfortunately zap the last active vestiges of VC Tower, which closed in 1996 as Oregon's last active interlocking station. 

Until labor dynamic forced a change in the early 2000's it was not uncommon for railroads to splice old interlocking hardware, like switches and signals, into new control logic. VC was one such example where the eastbound signals were left untouched. 

These included a short mast signal off of passenger track #1 with a mix of GRS type E and L&W modular lamps, a modernized GRS type MF triangular dwarf, (popular with UP in the 80's and 90's) off main track #4 and two vintage GRS type MD dwarfs on track #3 and #5 that likely date back to whenever VC tower changed over from semaphore signals. 

The replacement will be an obtrusive double cantilever mast for tracks 3, 4 and 5 and a likely modern type mast on track #1. 

The current two lamp dwarf signals appear to consist of a red lamp over a yellow lamp, which would provide for Y Approach, R/Y Diverging Approach and *R* Restricting, although was not able to observe actual operations. The new signals seem to bring Y/Y Approach Diverging to the table. 

The changes aren't limited to the east side of the terminal. For some time passenger tracks 1 through 4 have been un-signaled with the west end of of those tracks being reached via non-interlocked M23 powered switches. Based on bagged station track signals and a bagged through track mast it appears the west end will also be interlocked, including the presently hand throw station track #1.

This will hopefully cut a couple of minutes off the run time, with trains possibly able to make hotter stops, instead of creeping down the super long platforms. 

2023 Searchlight News

 For the last post of 2023 I'm going to go through my backlog of searchlight related news items. First up is the Florida East Coast where we are all aware of the re-signaling in the Brightline Zone, but it appears that the remaining searchlights on the north end are also on the way out. The Bayard siding, just south of Jacksonville, had no evidence of signal replacement in Feb 2023, but new masts were in place by September.

Up on the former B&M Main Line east of the CSX zone in Ayer, there was been a good deal of searchlight attrition, but this has been a piecemeal process and at milepost 425 near the VT/NY state line the MP 435 searchlight was still standing as of may 2023.

East of Ayer CSX hasn't quite had enough time to start re-signaling projects as they are still trying to rebuild the connector from Warcester to Ayer. Getting out to the two searchlit interlockings between the Lowell and Fitchburg MBTA zones are high on my list.

Up on the former Montana Rail Link the searchlight replacement is ongoing with new signals up around EAST BOZEMAN.

Unfortunately around 2019-2022 many remaining searchlights on the BNSF San Bernardino Sub lost its ATSF vintage searchlights except for a few around the Riverside Station.

Finally on the UP/BNSF Joint Line south of Denver, an interesting situation has developed where CTC has been added to one of the two former single direction ABS tracks and the other has been left as ABS with no PTC due to a lack of need. This has at least temporarily saved a number of searchlights, including the mast at Milepost 226.8 just of US 85 north of Castle Rock, which has had a replacement hovering over it since 2018.

That's all for now. Remember there's no time like the present to get out and get your photos. I'll be doing a followup piece on re-signaling on the New England Central line in the CT River Valley in a few months.

BNSF CTC Replacing Union Pacific Julesburg Sub ABS/TWC

Just a heads up that about 24 miles of ABS/TWS (aka Rule 271) on the Union Pacific Julesburg Sub in northern Colorado is being converted to CTC as BNSF takes over maintenance of the entire Bush Sub/Julesburg Sub corridor between Union and Sterling, CO. This line represents one of those dual operating arrangements where as traffic levels dropped, two competing railroads turned their parallel lines into a single joint. In the case of the Bush and Julesburg Subs, the division point was the small railroad location of UNION.

Over the last decade or so BNSF upgraded their side of the line and, as their traffic levels increase, they gained more control and have decided to apply CTC to the Union Pacific portion of bi-directional ABS. Although Union Pacific ABS signaling had eliminated use of the pole line and installed PTC, it also made use of short mile long signal blocks with US&S N type color lights at mileposts 77, 70, 69, 67, 66 and 65 in addition to fairly uncommon late model US&S modular color lights at mileposts 71, 72, For example the CTC interlocking replacing the ABS hand throw siding end at MP 58.8 in Sterling will have its distant at the MP 61 signal location. Union Pacific appears to have already been reducing the block length with 2 mile jump to a new Safetran signal at MP 63. The project will also include new interlockings and the currently hand throw searchlit ABS siding between WE and EE MESSEX and two new intermediate signals at mileposts 79 and 78 between MESSEX and UNION. 

 

It remains to be seen if BNSF will remove/replace all of the old UP intermediates or just those directly adjacent to one of the new interlockings, but for anyone in the area all of the existing signals are easily accessible from public highways including US 6 and County Rd 178.

Caught on Camera: Mendon, MO Level Crossing

 One side effect of taking photos from the back of long distance Amtrak trains is that from time to time you get a good shot of what might end up in a national news story. When the Mendon, Missouri grade crossing accident and derailment first took place in the summer of 2022 my impression was that it was located at a random farm crossing in the middle of nowhere. Since the former ATSF main line lost its searchlight signals over a decade ago there was no real need to check on the status of a notable signal such as this Conrail era signal that almost got wiped out in an Columbus, OH area derailment.  

Anyway, while watching the above Plainly Difficult production on the incident, I spotted what appeared to be a signal location adjacent to the collision site on County Road 113. Checking the archives I discovered a clear photo of the accident site along with the Milepost 363 intermediate signals taken from the rear of the Southwest Chief in 2013.

In addition to the signals and the unprotected grade crossing we can also see the ATS inductors that allowed for 90mph speeds across the state of Missouri. These had been recently removed by the time of the accident due to PTC making the legacy system unnecessary.  Anyway the moral of the story is to take photos of everything because you'll never know what might be historically significant.

Montana Rail Link Loses Its Lease

This news isn't exactly new, but I figured I should go over the signaling implications of the end of Montana Rail Link's lease of 400 miles of former BN Main Line in the state of Montana. 

Classic Northern Pacific Searchlit Cantilever Mast on MRL

MRL is fairly special in that it runs a high quality CTC main line with modern motive power such as SD70M-2's.  Like many regional railroads with signaling, changing out its legacy equipment was never a high priority, especially since it was PTC exempt and the the physical plant was leased not owned.  MRL's former Northern Pacific/Burlington Northern trackage is largely signaled with searchlights and GRS Type D color light signals with a mix of masts, small vintage gantries and cantilevers. 

BN vintage GRS Type D masts on MRL

MRL was in the process of having many of its legacy signals replaced by BNSF standard Darth Vader types with relay box mast combos being a popular replacement choice.  The reversion to BNSG is likely to accelerate the replacement process and although BNSF could in theory try and get a PTC exemption if it does not need to run TIH cargo on the line, provisions to make the route available for some potential passenger services make the prospect of government infrastructure money highly likely and with that comes a brand new bland signal system sooner rather than later.

Brand new BNSF type Darth Vader type signals newly installed on MRL.

As of this writing the lease termination appears to still be under review and if the limbo state accelerates and decelerates the existing re-signaling efforts remains to be seen. I recommend anyone in the area to get their photos now, the more the better.

The Trials and Tribulations of Los Angeles' Closed Towers

This post fits neatly into the "old news" category as the events I am noting took place something like 4+ years ago, but it will provide some closure for anyone else who has not been paying attention. The West in general is known for its general lack of towers compared to the East and Midwest.  Certain area of California had more towers than most of the west, but the number was still rather low and from that level there was been a high level of attrition as those, largely wooden, towers were closed and demolished. Most of So Cal's surviving towers were in the general vicinity of Union Station with TERMINAL TOWER and MISSION Tower being the most well known. 

However a bit to the south were two attitudinal towers on the former ATSF Chief route, HOBART and REDONDO.  Each governed a single track diamond crossing of the busy AFST main line.

Built in 1906, REDONDO was located at the ATSF crossing of the Los Angeles and Salt Lake Railroad, that became Union Pacific's primary route into the Port of Los Angeles. The redwood frame tower was ultimately equipped with a GRS Model 2 pistol grip interlocking machine and the junction controlled the southern end of the LA passenger rain engine and car facilities. The tower was closed in 2001 when a passenger flyover was built over what would become the Alameda Rail Corridor route to the port of Long Beach that converted the sleepy UP main into a 3-track intermodal superway.

Located in a fairly isolated area the tower was generally left along for the next 15 years until some time after December 2016 the tower either caught fire or was tagged for demolition. By June 2017 the tower was a husk and by Octover 2017 it was gone. In 2001 the Alameda Corridor Transportation Authority was nice enough to commission an historical pamphlet with a selection of interior photos.

HOBART interlocking is located about a mile east of REDONDO at the west end of Hobart Yard where the UP San Pedro Branch crossed the former ATSF main line. Also equipped with a GRS Model 2 pistol grip power frame, the tower was a bit more modern than REDONDO being made of concrete. Closed in 2002, its location at a major yard and non-flammable construction gave HOBART a fighting chance of survival.

 

Unfortunately between May and December 2017, a fire started by homeless persons gutted the tower.  Although the concrete structure was still generally sound, the tower was now on the glidepath to demolition, a fate that was ultimately carried out in May of 2019.

Of course the fates can occasionally smile on old interlocking tower.  DAYTON AVE tower, located at the southern end of the Southern Pacific Taylor Yards north of Union Station, was saved by relocation not once, but TWICE.  

When Metrolink was building a new maintenance facility in the 1990's, DAYTON AVE tower was relocated from its initial site on the LA River to a site adjacent to the Metrolink Facility entrance on San Fernando Rd.

Later in ~2013 when this site was tagged for a new development, DAYTON AVE tower was moved again to a new location 3 blocks to the southwest on part of Metrolink's rail storage lot.

At the start of this article I mentioned TERMINAL TOWER and MISSION tower.  TERMINAL TOWER is currently used as some sort of MoW or signaling support base part of the greater LAUPT complex.  The long closed MISSION tower is less critical to operations, but is likely owned by a government entity and has been generally protected by local preservation groups and general governmental paralysis.  I recently found a 1980 vintage film on Youtube documenting ATSF operations at MISSION tower with its GRS Model 2 pistol grip type interlocking machine.

Enjoy.

Painted Ladies - North American Signal Paint Schemes

In the age of steel and iron, paint was primarily used to protect the metal from corrosion, however in the world of railway signaling other factors, both aesthetic and practical, played a role. What follows is a brief summary of signal paint schemes over the years.

The simplest is the all black scheme that puts literal emphasis on the signal lamps themselves.  Cheap and available, black paint over the entire signal structure (as opposed to just the signal heads) was popular with northeastern roads like the Pennsylvania and New York Central for use on mast and dwarf signals. Today, all black signal paint schemes are primarily used by PRR-successors Amtrak and the Long Island Rail Road.

Although slightly more complex, the silver scheme was just as popular as all black.  Generally seen on mast signals out west and some signal bridges and cantilevers in the east, a silver paint scheme would reflect sunlight and prevent the signal structure from heating up (an issue that is salient out west and on riveted signal structures).  Of course the backing around the signal lamps remained painted black. 

Championed by Conrail and earlier iterations of CSX, the two tone black and silver paint scheme represented the apex of signal paint design. This scheme keeps the all black paint anywhere in the general eye line of the signal heads, but paints the lower part of the mast silver so that it stands out perhaps in case of power failure. This scheme was used on some CSX and NS controlled lines up through the 90's, however Conrail was its biggest proponent.  Conrail not only applied the black backing paint on otherwise unpainted aluminum structures, but maintained the practice under the auspices of Conrail Shared Assets up until the present day.

 I suspect the primary reason this type of paint scheme was abandoned was because the paint tends to flake off aluminum structures after a decade or two.

The switch to corrosion free aluminum signal structures largely eliminated the need for painted signal equipment.  Aluminum signal heads and targets still needed to be colored black for visibility reasons and turned to factory applied anodized coatings.  This new black-on-unpainted scheme has largely become the standard, however BNSF has broke from the back with silver backed signal heads instead of black.  This has seen intermittent use on Union Pacific and some other small railroads. 

 

Finally we have the odd duck of the lot in the form of the Western Pacific railroad that painted its signal structures a pleasing mint green.  At a quick glance the paint may appear silver or gray, closer inspection reveals it to be a very light green.  This unique color scheme faded with the demise of the WP and it is not clear if there are any remaining mint painted WP signals in service.

That's all of the paint schemes I can think up at the moment.  Please let me know if the comments if I missed any.

The NTSB's Sound of Silence

 From about 2005 until 2018 every time there was a serious passenger train or freight derailment, the NTSB would always make some remark about how the trains involved lacked PTC and/or how PTC could prevent accidents like the ones in question.  It was almost like such remarks were included in their press release template.  Well here we are in 2021, billions of dollars have been spent, average trains speeds and capacities have come down and yet trains are still derailing in pretty much the same ways they did before. 

BNSF Hi-Line Near Joplin, MT

After Amtrak Train 8 derailed near Joplin, MT, killing three, the revised NTSB press release simply notes that PTC was installed and the train was operating below (of course) the same 79mph speed limit.  I guess it would be inconvenient for them to point out that 97% of accidents are not PTC preventable.  Or maybe credit the robust build quality of the Amtrak Superliner equipment for saving lives in a more cost effective manner than a fancy new technology. 

We are now in the PTC era, trains are still derailing, speeds are the same or slower and the best defense in an accident is equipment that won't rip open or turn into confetti when your train rams into a low bow trailer carrying an excavator.

The Final* Wig Wag

In March of 2021 the final active Wig Wag style grade crossing warning device on a North American main line railroad was retired from service on the former ATSF Raton pass route, also known for hosting the last instances of main line semaphore signals. Located in the ghost town of Delhi, Colorado, the Wig Wag was signed for the Santa Fe Trail, but according to the map serves county (dirt) road 88 and was about 100 off of US Highway 350.

Preserved, along with the semaphores, because of the only use of the line is for Amtrak Trains 3 and 4, the Southwests Chief and, until recently, the route was under perpetual threat of abandonment.  With additional funding obtained to keep the Chief routed through southern Colorado, BNSF is engaged in a slow process of replacing the traditional signaling elements. 

Although the Delhi Wig Wag will join several other Wig Wags in various states of preservation in museums and on tourist lines across the country, it was the last example operating on a railroad main line with signaling and high speed operation.A cursory search of Youtube shows a number of others in various states of operation scattered around California and, until December 2020, Wisconsin.

Don’t forget the Van Ness wigwag which was also restored! (Motor was dead for 2 years, they finally fixed it a few weeks ago) pic.twitter.com/mzRrE5C4rY

— Fresno Railfan (@FresnoRailfan) March 17, 2021

If you are into technology connections, Wig Wags represent the general lag in display technology that was also seen in the audio visual world.  Electric power was limited, long life bulbs weren't very bright so electro-mechanical systems that moved a thing were the best way to get people attention in daylight.  From a time where any grade crossing protection that wasn't some dude with a flag was cutting edge technology, the Wing Wag has joined other vintage railroad technologies that today live on only in museums or literal backwaters.

BNSF to Retire Most ATSF ATS on 2/15/21

On Presidents Day 2021 (likely at Midnight between Sunday and Monday), in a move that was entirely foreseen and entirely understandable (unlike with the UP cab signals), BNSF will retire the Santa Fe era IIATS Automatic Train Stop system that was popular during the first wave of technical railway safety aids in the 1920's and 30's.

Bi-directional ATS shoes under a classic ATSF signal bridge on the Marceline Sub.

 The inductive system, similar to the magnetic Automatic Warning System in UK service, was identifiable by the upside-down canoe shaped shoes mounted to the right of the track.  When activated by a signal displaying an indication other than Clear, the shoes would trigger a warning horn in the cab and failure to acknowledge would result in a penalty brake application.  Set as the most basic requirement by ICC directive for travel 80mph and over after 1948, railroads couldn't abide by its modest cost, resulting in an unofficial nation-wide rail speed limit.  While the Southern, New York Central and Santa Fe maintained hundreds of ATS equipped route miles, all but the ATSF managed to abandon their systems around 1970 with the general collapse of passenger services.  For whatever reason, the ATSF Chicago to LA "Super Chief" route retained its ATS system, allowing the successor Amtrak Southwest Chief to travel for long distances at speeds up to 90mph. 

Inert "always on" ATS shoes protecting a permanent speed restriction on the Marceline Sub

A clever system that could fail safe with just inert steel components, IIATS was in service on the Marceline Sub across Missouri and the Needles, Seligman and Gallup Subs between Barstow and Dalies, allowing for speeds of up to 90mph on Class 5 track.  Unfortunately the system relied on careful clearances between the lineside shoes and the pickup coils, that were mounted, as needed, only on the head end locomotives on freights traveling this territory. Moreover, BNSF went out of its way never to expand the system from what they had inherited, therefore as tracks were upgraded to bi-directional operation, the ATS would remain in the old single direction ABS configuration. In other cases ATS was only in service in one direction on both tracks.  

ATS shoes for westward movements only on both tracks on the Seligman Sub.

The good news is that active PTC is being accepted by the FRA as a valid ATS replacement.  Moreover, in the affected areas since signaling, track and grade crossings are all configured for 90mph, speeds will either remain at 90mph or will be raised to 90mph where ATS did not cover specific directions of travel.  It remains unclear if previously non-ATS territory that is equipped with Class 5 (90mph pass, 70mph freight) track, will see similar speed increases. I have been informed that, similar to the METRA ATS shoes, the timetable for removal is 90-180 days.  However the BNSF ATS territory is probably 10+ times the total route territory, so we'll see.

Railrunner territory semaphore with ATS shoe on the Glorieta Sub.

Due to absent or incomplete PTC, ATS will remain on parts of the Glorieta (controlled by New Mexio Railrunner), Raton, LaJunta and Topeka Subs, however it has been all or partly suspended on most of this territory since the early 2000's, lowering speeds to 80mph where applicable. Due to the nature of how ATS works, I have been told that Amtrak Train 3 and 4 run with the system on, but do not report any activation issues.

ATS shoe on the NJT RiverLINE.  The only instance where IIATS is used as a trip stop.

In addition to the Chief route, ATS will remain in service, enabling 90mph on the former ATSF San Diego route, now playing host to Amtrak Surfliner Trains as well as on the NJT RiverLINE where the technology is used, shockingly, to enforce positive stops at absolute signals.  Anyway, get your photos (or after 2/15 get your ATS shoes) quickly because after President's Day, they could start to vanish without warning.

BNSF Moves to Abandon Chicago Cab Signaling

Following in the footsteps of Union Pacific, BNSF has petitioned the FRA to abandon its cab signaling system on the former CB&Q Chicago "Racetrack" Sub between Chicago and Aroura, IL.  In service only for METRA commuter trains, the system dates from the heyday of first generation safety systems following an ICC order in the 1920's.  With PTC being the cited reason, it is now up to the FRA to decide if new technology is an acceptable replacement for the simpler, yet far more resilient safety systems from the 20th century.  Although the burden ostensibly falls on METRA, which contracts BNSF to run the commuter rail service, BNSF is still responsible for maintaining the physical plant.  If the CB&Q cab signals are discontinued, it will be harder to justify METRA's Rock Island district 20 mile segment of cab signals between Blue Island and Joliet.

All of this represents a stunning reversal of fortune for cab signaling in North America as the system has seen robust expansion over the first part of the PTC era as northeastern railroads relied on it to meet the mandate. While Class 1 road NS has also been recently expanding its cab signal territory, CSX has applied to discontinue use of the CSS based ATC system on the RF&P Sub in Virginia.  The latter is less problematic as the ATC only enforced a minimum brake pipe reduction upon cab signal downgrade as is made completely redundant by PTC protections.  CSX has states no intention of removing the cab signals, partly due to the pending takeover of the corridor by the State of Virginia for increased passenger operations.  It remains to be seen if the future 110mph S-Line restoration will feature cab signals or rely solely on PTC.

Fall 2020 Signaling News

 After a long period of not much going on I recently uncovered a bunch of signaling new, little of it good.  First off, the last pure ATSF signal bridge on the BNSF 3-track raceway out of LA is being replaced by a traffic light cantilever.  The signal bridge, which supports 6, two head US&S H-2 searchlights, is located in Riverside and sees joint UP, BNSF operation.  Although the ATSF bridge was modernized with new concrete footings and the signal location was equipped for PTC, something still managed to upset the powers that be.  Other searchlit locations on the San Bernardino sub appear to be unaffected.

Moving over to the east, the ex.NKP KM interlocking in Vermillion, OH is in the midst of a slow motion re-signaling as its US&S elephant ears are being replaced a mix of current NS signals and an a non-Darth traffic light that appears to have been pulled from the parts bin.  The replacement mast was dropped off on or before mid-2019 and has been recently installed so if you live in the area document the old mast while you can.

Finally, after many many years and false starts, new signals are going up on the BNSF/ATSF/Southwest Chief Rtaon pass route to replace the elderly semaphores.  I guess this is good for the future of the Chief, but bad for the future of semaphores :-(  The photo I have is from Colmor, but I have to assume this is part of a general re-signaling effort.

The only bit of good news I have today is that at this point in time, the main PLs at ARSENAL interlocking have survived the major SEPTA track project of May 2020 that installed a new interlocking south of University City station.  So there's that. 🤷

Surviving BNSF Marceline Sub Searchlights Retired

While this probably isn't breaking news I am still going to report the fact that the last two intact ATSF era signal bridges on the Marceline Sub in eastern Missouri were de-signaled in late 2019, some 6 years after the rest of the route was re-signaled in the summer of 2013.  The two-track, weathering steel I-beam construction signal bridges at mileposts 243 and 241 not only remained standing, but also retained their US&S H-5 searchlights.

MP 243 signal in 2013

MP 241 signal in 2013

These signals were located between Argyle and Ortho and also retained their prefab concrete relay huts.  As you can see from the above photos, PTC antennas had been erected and no replacement signals were on hand.  However, seeing that the signal heads on the bridge at MP 238 had been turned in place, I just assumed that the MP 241 and MP 243  signals would likely be replaced or removed in short order.  The replacement signals at MP 243 and MP 241 use 1 mast and one cabinet mounted half mast.  The ATSF structures were still standing as of April 2020 and as far as i am aware the few color light equipped ATSF signal bridges are also still in place.  My 2013 survey of this line segment can be found here.

Signs! Signs! Everywhere a Sign! - Western Freight Roads

Well it's time to cross the Mississippi and get this series finished up.  Today I will be exploring the signs of the Western freight roads.  Today this would be UP, BNSF, KCS, CP (former SOO) and CN (former IC).

We'll begin with the BNSF and you can't spell BNSF without ATSF.  Spoiler, western railroads had a big thing for white signs and black lettering so most of this post is going to be discussing all the ways one can do a white sign with black lettering and in my opinion the ATSF did the best job with white signs on black letters by adding a black border to the signs and a somewhat distinctive font. In this photo below we can see an example on the BNSF Raton Sub showing a single interlocking with a free standing ATSF style sign (probably from late in the ATSF era in the 1990s, and then more plain black on white BNSF signage mounted on the relay hut.

Elsewhere on the Raton sub we see a non-black border sign with the same ATSF font.

And finally we have a BNSF standard font.

On the BN side of the house we see a similar style of free standing black on white sign using a two post support.  On certain single track territories, interlocking signs would sometimes be replaced by a station sign similar to the one seen below. 



Note the variety of fonts.

A Few Bits of News

I haven't had much to report on lately, but I did save up a few random news items, some good, some bad.  On the good side of things I finally discovered why the former DRG&W route has not seen its new signaling cut over between Helper, UT and Grand Junction, CO since it I first spotted it in 2012.  Well, Union Pacific has decided not to PTC equip the line due to low traffic volumes, so that's cool.

The former ATSF transcon in Illinois is seeing increasing amounts of re-signaling so if you live in the area get out soon to document the searchlights and signal bridges.

Edelstein, IL

While no stranger to re-signaling efforts, the last searchlight signals on the freight level of Blue Island Jct are now on tap for replacement.

I had also reported on the NS Harrisburg Line re-signaling between Philadelphia and Reading.  At first glance it appears that CP-TITUS, at the junction of the old southern Belt Line and the Main Line into downtown, was going to be spared, but as I have learned many times before, looks can be deceiving and the new double crossover between here and CP-BIRD will replace CP-TITUS in its function as a junction.  Ultimately that is all CP-TITUS is, a double crossover, just with a lot more complexity and it's otherwise isolated location, accessible only through the locked gate of a private power facility, made NS relocate the track split a mile to the east.