How CSX created a double track Main out of their Rice Yard at Waycross by utilizing an old, underused subdivision. I tracked the project from Waycross over to Nahunta and back.
From a foreign perspective it's very refreshing to see rail infrastructure getting build cheap easy and fast. No year long studies needed, just get to work and lay down tracks.
Haha! It's great to see this from an American perspective, too. Everything that involves transportation in the US today requires months and often years of studies, tests, lobbying and meetings for public comment. It's refreshing to see a company just do something. Of course they had some government approvals required for this, but not nearly as much as usual.
I used to live on the Nahunta Sub. The track ran right behind the house I was renting. I didn't like trains so much back then. Especially when they stopped right behind my house in the middle of the night. Which they did frequently. A dash 8 will rattle your walls when its idling 100 feet from your bedroom!
Glad to see that you got the "45" sign up. Hope that you enjoy it! Just FYI...the crew change point in South Waycross is less than a 1/2 mile from my Dad's boyhood home on Blackwell Street. Saw many a train on that line while visiting my grandparents, including passenger trains in Illinois Central, Louisville & Nashville, and RF&P colors, in addition to ACL(SCL). Also, very nice to finally meeting you in Folkston!
Great video. Back in 1977 when I hired on with SCL out of Richmond they sent us to “school” in Waycross. They took us up to Nahunta to learn how to fall off boxcars and watch for snakes. ;-).
Hey danny! I work for CSX in Ohio and I just wanted to tell you that you were much of the driving force to get me there! Yeah we derailed today (not my fault) but I still love the job! Thanks Danny!
Hi Drew!!! That is so great to hear and congratulations. Sorry about your bad luck on the ground. Hopefully you got 'em back on the rail with out incident.
Another 5-star video, Danny. There have been a number of occasions when CSX management has wished network fluidity had been taken into consideration when their predecessors ripped up the SAL and single-tracked the ACL 30+ years ago south of Collier Yard in Petersburg, Va. They got burned pretty badly when tropical weather events flooded some rivers in the region and shut down the ACL, forcing CSX to run expensive and time-consuming detours until the trackage was restored. A recent study of satellite photography shows that some of the 2nd ACL track has been restored, but I don't know if those sections are still considered to be sidings or if they have been upgraded to 2nd-main status. It's refreshing to see Class 1 managements change their thinking back to pro-growth and capacity improvement after the last 5 or 6 years of the PSR disaster.
Danny I live in Waycross. Trains are both a blessing and curse here. This new routing system has helped a lot with the congestion on the tracks around town.
I have worked for CSX for about 2 years now. We do have some pretty smart folks here. I have not worked for another railroad but I would like to say we get treated pretty good minus the furloughs every now and then. I haven’t been hit with one yet thankfully. I have not been on a service in Florida or Georgia yet but I’m looking forward to it.
Watching trains is fun, but it's even more interesting when you understand how the system operates. Great video, Danny, and I agree, it's nice to see a railroad investing in infrastructure rather than cutting back for a change. I assume the railroad must've been paying taxes and maintenance on that old Brunswick Sub, right? If so, may as well make it useful again.
Thank you for this video! The railroad engineering personnel were quite creative with this one! One way to preserve outdoor signs is with a coat such as acrylic. Even Thompson's water seal from a spray can can be useful (but may become somewhat brown in the sunlight).
It’s just Danny knocking another one out of the park! 😎 I really loved your shots with the drone! Those close up perspectives were great. Thanks for all your efforts and when you go back take Liz and split the time between trains and some sites to visit with the better half. 😉
Danny, hi I just found your channel. I’ll have to browse the archives. I have a dumb question: are railroads and regulators favoring one way tracks as well as double tracks. It would be great for passenger rail, as well. The fuel savings and making less air pollution would be great, too. Road vehicle waiting times could also be reduced. Could everyone be happier at once for a change?
Danny, you are e true railroad gem! And anyone who skips parts of your videos are really missing things. Your content is valid, educational and timely. I'm on the left coast so my chances of visiting your area are kinda low... really low! But I have NO doubt that if I have a chance to visit the East Coast I'm making a point to stop by your neighborhood! Lunch will be on me at the best BBQ place you know of! Thank you from Kali. And thank you Uncle Joe. My prayers for your family.
You are the best! I love how informative you are. Great voice. You should be a professional narrator for the History Channel. THE TRAINS THAT BUILT AMERICA!
CSX engineer . Used to run on both of the subs. - side note. We don’t call it “ outlaws “ we either say “ on the law “ or “ dog lawed “ ….. or just …. “Dead” …. Lol. I find your videos to be very thorough and worth a watch, so thanks.
I really enjoy your videos You have a great voice and talk just enough to explain things well, You keep it very informative and low key. Thank for all your work making these videos.
It'll be interesting if railroads start looking at old and/or less used lines like this, as its kinda depressing seeing lines become disused, abandoned, and then eventually ripped up when it might just be in a good spot to do something like this (maybe not always, but I'd like to see more of this done. I'll also have to remember to try thinking this way in transport games for capacity reasons)
I lived in Waycross and worked at Rice Yard not that long ago, so it was good to see the old stomping grounds. As far as I know, the Brunswick Sub ran one local per day, so I bet the neighbors are loving the increase in traffic, in terms of both size and frequency. Very well done. 👍
Thanks for noticing the MEC side dump cars as I missed them. I wonder how those MEC cars ended up on a CTX freight in Georgia in 2023. I tried to search for those cars on line (MEC 1040 & 1044) but didn't see anything about them. I make sure to make screen captures of those cars. Saw a RU-vid video of a CP train with the same type of side dump cars done by Trackside Tyson called "CP SD40's Unloading Side Dump Cars ...". I remember the Maine Central going by my house in Carmel, Maine in the late 50s and early 60s as a kid. I even remember passenger trains but they soon disappeared and all I saw after that was mixed freight. Always enjoyed watching them. They came from the Northern Maine Junction going south and through Newport then Etna going north. Do you know of any good Maine Central sites?
Great video. Grew up loving the railroad. From Queens NY. my grammar school looked out towards the Hell Gate bridge that went over east river. Bridge built in 1916 and still going strong. Amtrak and freight using it til this day. This is why I fell in love with the old GG1 locos also. I remember them like yesterday with the old Penn Central logo and painted green. Would love for you to do a video on the importance of this bridge then and now. Thanks :)
Thanks, Danny! I love your videos. I appreciate how you incorporate your TV news/announcer skills into your railroad videos; making them informative, descriptive, and entertaining! Being from Ohio, the video of your trip up here was great!
Excellent video. Reminds me of the great story telling videos from the old PBS show All Aboard. I love how you cover everything including the route history and present day.
Hello Danny. Have been watching your channel for years and have never skipped a minute of your videos. I believe that you have the best rail fan channel on RU-vid and I have never been disappointed with any of your videos. Have a good day, don, New Hampshire
I've said this before, and can't compliment you enough. This rail video channel is better than any other I have seen. Why? You provide a monologue that is always very informative, usually educational, and entertaining. Your personal touch, such as your Alaska hat or Harmon road sign, only adds to the appeal. You take the time to explain things from track lights to old station locations, to significant station dogs. You point out the differences of signs between Florida and Ohio. The end result is that at the end of your videos, I never feel that my time was spent watching trains. I have at least some idea of what is going on from the rail switching perspective, and that makes all the difference. My perspective is that understanding the inner workings of a rail yard is far more important than viewing 10 trains roll by. Being aware of the defect tests, the size of trains (11,000+ feet, or more than two miles), what happens when air pressure is lost (braking), and having you attempt to help us understand that a train will rarely depart the origin point and enter the destination with the same consist (except maybe the old juice runs, empty auto racks, trains designed as a single unit such as coal). Thank you, and I hope you will continue to provide us with your insight as to the importance of how railroads operate.
Those are some SERIOUSLY nice words, BD and much appreciated. You and I share the same viewpoint on RU-vid content; If I'm not learning something, I'm not really interested. Thanks for taking the time to write this. I hope you won't mind if I copy and paste it to send to some of my friends who don't really get what I'm doing. (Ha!)
I worked on a project in Springfield MO many years ago for the SLSF, just before it was acquired by BN. They referred to a crew going past its expiration time as "hoglaw" or "piglaw", not "outlaw". The control center, which was what my company was upgrading with a new computer system, had logic built into it to estimate if/when/where a crew would hoglaw and warn the dispatchers hours in advance so they could deal with it.
Danny really appreciate your diving into the background and history of your reports. Not aware of any reporters up here in Detroit, Michigan area. I do spend a lot of time up in Durand, Mi. Back in 1900s it was a big railroad junction. In 1906 they had a big train crash involving a circus train. Some pictures around the small town and the small railroad museum of this wreck. CN and Amtrak use the double track, and Great Lakes Railway currently runs the single track on the diamonds.
not aware of anyone doing reporting either on the other side of the mitten in the Grand Rapids area. About twenty years ago, a friend of mine did a show on public access that was train watching videos with the scanner for audio. He knew a few spots near Waverly Yard in Holland where he was off CSX property but still near the action. "Train Time With Brad" was interesting not nearly as educational as Danny.
Very nice Danny! Always happy to hear of them reopening and using an older piece of rail. Gives me hope maybe they’ll bring back the north end of the Clinchfield some day
Now if only they had done this with the Coleman to Auburndale line some 40 years ago instead of turning it into the longest, flattest, most boring bicycle path in the state. But they were not in a railroad track saving state of mind 40 years ago. Sure am gonna miss Uncle Joe. Thanks for adding a tribute to him at the beginning of your video, that was very honorable. Thanks Danny!
It's not just cool when railroads update or build new infrastructure, it's a sign of the economy picking up. NS put in a new industry spur near my part of the Rust Belt within the last couple years. That's pretty incredible. We've all sorts of hike and bike trails that have sprouted up on disused rail lines. Lots of industrial and railroad access roads made by pulling out infrastructure, or just burying ties and ballast and dumping gravel overtop.
Really informative and interesting video. I like to learn about the operations versus just watching the trains go by. I traveled throughout this area in my job before retirement and know many of the locations you film and visit.
Danny This is another Danny and a Railroad Son. My Dad was a steam enginner for Canadian National Railroad. U are truly the best at what U do and I sinceley i\enjoy your postings Here. Keep it up my new friend and I will keep watching. I am so sorry for your loss but what yuou do here keeps him alive for all of us.. Dan White
Impressive and informative presentation. As you said it's wonderful to see a railroad make good use of underused track rather than handing it over to 'rails-to-trails' groups and then finding out that they actually needed the line. I remember reading years ago about how Norfolk Southern had essentially 'banked' a bunch of lines which they estimated had little use at the time, but could be useful in the future, one of those lines ended up becoming a key bypass when the yard in Atlanta became clogged. I for one look forward to the follow up episode, it will be interesting to see how this project develops, I can bet that CSX will be inspecting both lines for possible siding locations if this goes well.
Danny you must invest tons of time preparing the dialog and also the video footage for these videos. MUCH APPRECIATED! For those of us not familiar with this territory, it'd be helpful to have quick maps to give us some idea of where we are and where the trains are coming from and going to. Thanks again!!!
“Job Well Done” with the Joe Oates memorial at the beginning! My job in Savannah sends me to a Waycross a few times every year so I travel through Nahunta most of the time. It will be nice to see some CSX trains on the Brunswick Subdivision
@ 10:00 That's a ballast cleaner and removes busted rotten ties, I operated one for Loram years ago, very complex but interesting machine. Aside from the railgrinders I primarily was on this was a loud violent shaking experience 😂 Worth every minute of work
The new CSX CEO is going against precision railroading as he is about adding business to increase revenue and not cutting infrastructure for a quick buck. It was in an article in Trains Magazine.
I'm not sure what's actually what he said. “The results that we’re seeing throughout our network being delivered by our great one CSX team is the result of that and focusing on our employees and the customer service specifically,” he says. “I believe that the principles of scheduled railroading are just as valid today as they were five years ago. Obviously it’s how you keep things in balance … and we’re trying to lead by example in that regard.” I would hardly say that's against it.
@@hollywood1340the need for balance is such a good insight. Whenever these new buzzwords come out, they are chosen because there is something out of balance. Maybe it's network fluidity, or precision schedules, whatever. The higher ups want everything to be viewed from a perspective with more attention paid to network fluidity or whatever. But it's a balance. You don't wanna send a train from LA to SF via NY just so you can say the train stayed running, no! You need to manage the tradeoffs, with the priority subject having a heavier weight in the decision making process. Balance.
I can't imagine skipping ahead on any of your videos I always look forward to them and I don't want to miss a minute of them. Thanks for another great video 🙂
Like you say Danny it's great to see railroads upgrading rather than closing down. Super video about a simple solution to a overwhelming problem. Well done 🤓
It is good to see CSX doing more down in that area; although, I wish they were doing more in Brunswick. There used to be two large rail yards in Brunswick (for both CSX & Norfolk Southern respectively) on US-341 coming into town from I-95. But now there is only a handful of industry, and some rare bulk cargo ships that are not handled by either the Ports of Savannah or Jacksonville that come to town. I would love to see more industry and jobs return to Brunswick.
I also love that view of the prefab turnout with what appears to be a lift frog. The perspective makes it easier to understand how it operates. And I forgot to compliment you on your drone piloting skills for the opening shot. You stayed pretty close to center!
I agree with your post video remark of new track connections. As compared to the long slide of continued abandonments that American Railroads have experienced over the past forty or so years. Great video program. Keep up the great work!!!
Ha! He IS a professional!!! Works in TV and Radio around the Tampa area. Very famous around here. Railfan kids follow him around at train events like the Pied Piper. Saw it with my own eyes!!! Great guy!!!
Fantastic video. Always nice to see Engineering Dept folks come up with solutions to complex problems, and seeing a close up of the side dumps on manifest freight, most folks overlook the critical equipment that keeps the railroads working.
My Condolences to friends and family of Uncle Joe. May St. Peter open the Gates of Heaven and allow Joe to pass through and be we loved ones again. Hope all is well my friend!!
I love to see Fallen Flag cars in operation (well, sort of in operation); theebad order coil car with NYC reporting marks. Also interesting are the side dump cars with Maine Central (MEC) reporting marks. It's interesting that they are so far from their former home rails. Perhaps with CSX's purchase of Pan Am, the cars are finding their way further afield?
