CSXT New Castle Subdivision Trains

CSX train Q148-38 (Rose Lake IL-Cumberland MD) hurries eastward at milepost BG123.6 in Cuyahoga Falls OH on a thick and steamy July Sunday, 7.28.02. He has just crested the long hill on the east side of Akron and is poised to sprint straight on through to New Castle, PA. This is one of the eastbound trains that comes to the B&O off of the old Conrail Indianapolis Line at Greenwich, a direct product of CSX's share of the Conrail acquisition

Photograph copyright 2002 Jon Overfield


Through Traffic

The majority of trains on the New Castle Subdivision represent through-traffic between Chicago/St. Louis/Cincinnati/Detroit and the Mid-Atlantic states. At the east end we find that 99% of these trains use the Pittsburgh SD, but one or two low priority trains will use the P&W. Likewise, most of the trains at the west end head straight to Willard, but several will take the Greenwich SD southwest to St. Louis or Cincinnati and vise-versa.

While none of the Q130 series intermodal trains perform any work, many of the Q200 automotive trains swap blocks at Goodman (Lordstown), Newton Falls, Warwick, and/or Sterling. Certain Q300 manifest trains work Ohio Junction, Goodman, and Sterling. Trains Q640/641 work Ohio Junction, Goodman, and Newton Falls.


Coal Trains

Monongahela Coal comes from Southwest PA and Northern West Virginia mines and is marshalled at Newell PA on the CSXT Mon Subdivision. These trains head west from McKeesport PA on the CSXT Pittsburgh Subdivision to New Castle, here they are recrewed and sent west toward Michigan or Youngstown. Parkersburg District Coal comes from North Central West Virginia mines and is marshalled at Grafton WV for forwarding north on the NS Loveridge Secondary to West Brownsville PA, and thence to Newell.

Monongahela and Parkersburg District Coal to Upstate New York travels on the New Castle SD between New Castle and the connection to the NS Youngstown Line at Hazelton in Youngstown. This coal to the Michigan utility Detroit Edison travels the entire length of the New Castle SD.

Monongahela and Parkersburg District Coal to Michigan Note: after a cursory glace at these symbols, one would almost expect coal trains to be parked out on the mainline because there are so many of them listed. Utility contracts with mines tend to work in a cyclical manner, however. For example, we may see a rush of trains from the Emerald Mine to Belle River for a few weeks, and then nothing between those two points for the rest of the year.

Monongahela and Parkersburg District Coal forwarded to the NS Youngstown Line Note: Any coal moving to New York State from Monongahela mines over CSXT uses the NS Youngstown Line north of Hazelton in Youngstown and meets the CSXT Chicago Line Subdivision at what is known as the Buffalo Connecting Track at Ashtabula, turning east from there and joining the Chicago Line at CP-124. The Buffalo Connecting Track was one of the old main tracks of the NYC's Water Level Route.

Coal moves directly to Ashtabula Harbor, although less frequently than to New York State. Coal also moves to interchange with the B&LE at Shenango. It runs from New Castle over the ex-B&O Main to Haselton, over the (ex-P&LE) Youngstown Connecting track to the NS Youngstown Line, up to CP-58 at Houghton Jct. for forwarding on the Meadville Line to Shenango. From there it either enters onto the B&LE at the old "XN" (B&LE/EL Diamond), or at the "P Company 2" (Old PRR's Erie & Pittsburgh at the removed diamond known as "Bruin").

W&LE Coal overhead traffic The WLE exercises track rights over the New Castle SD between Niles and Akron, using a rather odd symbol. These trains run several days a week.


Unit Trains

Coke Trains move Pittsburgh area Coking Coal to Midwest steel mills, and Slab Trains move imported steel from Philadelphia to Midwest Steel mills. Dimensional Loads move agriculture equipment from Chicago to Baltimore for export. Grain Trains move Midwest grain to the Port of Baltimore for export and the chicken producing region of North Carolina for chicken feed. Most unit trains traverse the entire subdivision, except for a couple that head up the CL&W at Sterling.


Grain Trains

The Bullsheet has pulled their comprehensive listing of grain trains and replaced it with a brief list that informs us that trains G320 through G391 are "B&O Line". When we can get a grip on the details, we'll pass 'em along to you right here.


The Locals

The Youngstown, Akron, and Cleveland areas generate almost all of the online traffic on the New Castle Subdivision.

Warren traffic is served by locals called at DeForest Junction utilizing the Newton Falls SD at Newton Falls OH to connect with the New Castle SD mainline. Warren area crews are called at either Deforest Junction or at the WCI Steel Mill in Warren. The WCI crews are called at the mill itself and not the yard office at DeForest Jct., which is about 2 miles east of the WCI mill.

WCI crews report to a small office on the first floor of a railroad scale house operated by the mill. Several of these crews are referred to in the old timer's language as RISCO #1 and RISCO #2 jobs (RISCO is the acronym for Republic Iron and Steel Company). There is a job that spots the ore loads, one that spots the coal at the coke oven in daylight, and one night trick. The RISCO jobs also pull coke empties for the NS by day or night and the Coil Gons from the rolling mill during daylight operations. There is also a few of the mill's own remote control units working about as well.

All of the work is done within the confines of the mill's property and photography is strictly prohibited.

Coal is delivered by CSX from the Deforest Junction job which brings the coal up from Newton Falls. Iron Ore is delivered by the NS from Ashtabula Harbor via the Youngstown Line and the Niles Secondary.

Warwick traffic is generated by RJ Corman using the ex-CL&V south of Clinton, OH. Until May 31 2002, CSXT ran Wooster Local D755 between Warwick and Wooster using the old CL&V and Conrail Fort Wayne Line. This business has since been turned over to RJ Corman. Akron Traffic is generated by local industry and is served directly by CSXT as well as the WLE and ABB.

Cleveland traffic to/from Willard and the Mid-Atlantic states travels on the CL&W between Cleveland and Sterling for forwarding to/from Willard and Cumberland.


Back to the New Castle Subdivision

Back to the Ohio Railroad Page

Back Home to Knorek.com

drop us an email

This website and all contents herein Copyright © 2002 by Jeff Knorek except where noted.