posted
Can anyone tell me the Freight train symbols for the few manifests that run out of Alliance over Crawford Hill. There are typically several per day. I can't seem to find a source for those symbols however. You can use my email too if you know. thanks, Will services@ihavideo.com Iron Horse America - Video / Media
Moderator Member # 2933
posted
I know it's not Amtrak related but I thought it might stand a better chance of being answered here.
Henry Kisor Member # 4776
posted
I agree with Moderator. No use posting in the other forums.
posted
Madam Moderator, so long as it appears that you are affording latitude at least in this instance, here is material adapted from that I posted elsewhere of possible interest. This past Tuesday's Journal carried an interesting column suggesting that increased construction activity will noticeably offset the loss of coal traffic:
They say the only way to see the real America is by train.
Whether or not that is the case, railroads paint a great picture of what is and isn't working in America's economy. For example, the recovering housing market and resurgent U.S. auto industry are reflected in a 13% and 16.5% respective increase in lumber and motor vehicles shipped last year, according to the Association of American Railroads
The unfortunate fact as noted within this "piece" (I'm not certain whether to characterize such as an "article" or "opinion") is that domestic utilities, who do sell their product (even if somewhat less so now that their are third parties increasingly involved in the process of selling residential electricity) to "John Q", hold that "coal is bad"; never mind that natural gas is also a product of the domestic energy boom and utilities find greater public acceptance in its use to generate electric current.
Only problem, natural gas is a product not exactly conducive to being handled by rail; the "bad stuff' of course there is only one reasonable and practical means to transport that. Both CSX and NS have now reported unfavorable Fourth Quarter (CY & FY) earnings attributing such to coal.
Now the "piece" noted export coal; CSX and NS mostly handle coal for the European markets through their Hampton Roads facilities. All of Europe is in a economic "morass"; while of course the former Soviet-bloc nations have greater reliance on coal for their economic output than those of Western Europe, public sentiment against coal will only rise. To what extent export coal to Europe will continue to be a long term traffic source can be debated. There appears to be a continuing market for export coal to Asia, and this is reflected in the building of several facilities along the lower Columbia River must to the dismay of environmentalists. Coal would move from the Powder River region to these facilities for onward shipping to Asia. Only problem; it would appear that the rail facilities in the Powder River region are set for the Eastward movement of coal; in order to handle such Westward, additional capacity will have to be built.
However, the real "ace in the hole" will be the industry's ability to retain the "bonanza" traffic from the Bakken Crude oil deposits. No question whatever, the most economic and efficient means to move petroleum products is pipeline. However, there are considerable capital costs and at present environmental resistance to the further construction of such - in short, the NIMBY interests for once are working in favor of the railroad industry. What is incumbent on the industry is to develop a business plan, along with successful marketing of such, that will enable the industry to continue its dominance in handling this traffic (the continuation of such is public acceptance of $4/ga and that some Sheik of Araby doesn't get desperate and start dumping product on the market - remember Abdul's stuff costs far less to extract per bbl than does Bakken) rendering it unnecessary to build a new network of pipelines to handle the crude.
There is of course the dangerous shoals of post-PANAMAX to address; I have commented on such at other sites, but here I defer to other members to address such if they so choose.
IronHorseAmerica Member # 57040
posted
Thank you, I have seen that Q Station list. I did not however derive the actual trains seen on Crawford hill from it, As I am not sure what routing some of those symbols might take. It is helpful though. Thank you. Not sure about Amtrak as a topic area for this. Seems odd.
I just hoped somebody had a list of ACTUAL train symbols of trains on the division. Thanks, Will
posted