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| PHOTOS: LAUREL RUN (1645286) | |||
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PHOTOS: LAUREL RUN |
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Posted by Jersey Mike on Tue Nov 18 23:49:19 2025 In recent years I have been using the Thanksgiving travel season to document more of the signaling on the Reading and Northern main line which now runs between Reading and Scranton on former Reading, CNJ and Lehigh Valley trackage. These trips provide me the chance to catch some action on the old PRR Main Line near Harrisburg as well as the RBMN's Scranton to Mach Chunk excursion service in the Poconos. 2024 was no different and I came away with ( mirror ) an informal train chase between CP-ROCKVILLE and CP-CANNON as well as RBMN photos at CP-LAUREL RUN.My first goal was to catch Amtrak's westbound Pennsylvanian Train 43. Arriving at a highway overpass at the eastern end of CP-ROCKVILLE, I saw NS AC44C6M locomotives #4314 and #4256 moving slowly towards a Restricting signal indication ahead on track #2 of a manifest freight consist. A Clear signal on track #1 was presumably for the Pennsylvanian.   My assessment proved accurate when Train 43 arrived on the scene with P42DC #119 and pulled past the NS freight. While I knew there was no way I could catch up with the Pennsylvanian, the NS freight was still moving at a crawl so I jumped in my car and hightailed it across the Susquehanna River to CP-BANKS.   Since it was still moving pretty slowly I figured I could get ahead of it again at the old Cove, PA signal location. Sure enough when I got there I saw an approaching headlight, but to my surprise instead of the pair of AC44C6M's and trash cubes, I saw NS SD70ACe #1149 and AC44C6M #4190 ahead of a different manifest freight on track #1. This train was likely running ahead of the one I had previously seen, which explained the Restricting signal indication, and then crossed over to Track #1 at CP-BANKS.   As it slowly moved passed, likely still on signals for Train 43 ahead of it, #4314 and #4256 appeared again, still on track #2 and making up ground on the train in track #1.    I still had one more trick up my sleeve and continued up US 15 to a pull-off where I could get a view of CP-CANNON. By the time I got set up the first train was gone, but its presence was still felt as a restrictging indication popped up on track #2 westbound. The following train with #4314 and #4256 didn't seem to be in a rush and by the time they pass by the signal at CP-CANNON was displaying a Clear.   Without any way to get further ahead of either train, I stayed trackside to watch the manifest pass ans was rewarded by a DPU with AC44C6M #4050.  Of course I was caught by surprise by an eastbound intermodal train with SD70ACe #1048 and AC44C6M #4821l.  After an overnight stay I just happened to be present for this mystery railcar shipment passing through downtown Catawissa, PA on PA Route 42. Although this might seem like a strange location for such a shipment, PA Routes 42 and 61 would be on the shortest path between I-80 and either NYC or Philly that has the benefit of avoiding $100-$300 worth of Pennsylvania Turnpike tolls. One might assume the shipment is from Alston or CAF in New York's Southern Tier, but the shape of railcar on the 9 axle trailer resembles an NYCTA New Technology Train. Apparently there was an odd shipment of an damaged R211 around this time and Kawasaki has a plant just off I-80 in Lincoln, Nebraska.   CP-LAUREL RUN is located on the former Conrail Lehigh Line, now operated as part of the Reading and Northern Main Line. What became the Lehigh Line started as an amalgamation of the largely parallel Central RR of NJ and Lehigh Valley RR main lines to Scranton in the 1960's as anthracite coal traffic largely evaporated. Mutual trackage rights were granted with new CTC interlockings placed in service at either end of the joint trackage. CP-LAUREL RUN was at the westernmost end of the retained CNJ main line where it ran parallel with the LVRR.  Eventually sold to the upstart Reading and Northern by Conrail, CP-LAUREL RUN technically marks the east end of a double track segment, however the former eastbound main has been out of service for decades and eastbound trains now take a green over flashing red Medium Clear signal on the dwarf.  Tracks in the snow indicated that certain four legged railfans hasn't gone into hibernation yet.  The displayed signal was for that mornings southbound excursion from Pittston to Mach Chunk. This regular weekend service allows persons in the Scranton area to take a scenic ride through the Lehigh Gourge with a day of shopping dining in what has become a Pocono tourist destination. The train normally makes use of RBMN 40th Anniversary GP38-2 #2023, a generator car, 4 coaches of various types, a dining car and observation car #7.       That's all I have from Anthracite Country. See you next time as I celebrate Thanksgiving Wednesday at GRUNDY interlocking in Bristol, PA. |
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