Semaphores still in operation?

Trains Magazine General Discussion
1

Hi all:

I plan on a cross-country driving trip this week, and hope to photograph a semaphore signal still in operation. Any help on locations I can photograph woudl be welcome–I have heard there are a few left, but unsure where. Are there any on Amtrak routes? If not, freight-only trackage would be fine.

Thanks,

Patrick

2

BNSF’s Raton Pass still has working semaphores

3

Thansk for this. I am from New England and not familiar with the area. Any detail on the location of these woudl be appreciated! Is it true that Amtrak runs the only trains through the Pass right now? Does anyone know if the CSX (I beleive ex-Monon) semaphores are still in operation?

I am going to head to Raton Pass this week. Thanks!

Cheers, Patrick

4

The Raton Pass line has T-2 Semaphores, but not on the pass itself (Those have been searchlight signals for 40+years)…The T-2’s are out on the northern New Mexico high plains, mostly between Las Vegas and Colmor. Most obvious would be be around Wagon Mound to Levy where the track gets close to I-25.

The only thing out there is indeed Amtrak. What little industry is out there is no longer using rail service (and there was never much beyond the now closed York Canyon mine)…At least #3 and #4 go through there in daylight (if on time, check the schedule) in the middle of the day.

5

Doesn’t Amtrak’s Southwest Chief run on a line in the southwest that still has operating semaphores?

6

This is starting to sound like the Bob and Ray Komodo dragon bit…

7

Thanks for this great info! I now realize you are referring to Las Vegas, NM–I had myself confused at first about Nevada!

If anyone else has any info on the status of the CSX semaphores, if still in service or not, I woudl be curious to know.

Best, Patrick

8

Outside of museums, tourist operations, and abandoned/ out-of-service lines - very, very few.

There were a few on the ‘Southern Tier’ line across the southern part of New York - like from Binghamton to Hornell, etc. - but those were down to like 6 about 5 years ago. This website says that the last one was retired on Sept. 7, 2005:

http://gold.mylargescale.com/scottychaos/semaphore/

From another website on much the same question - http://ca.answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20090824141636AAvr32w , I found these 2 cryptic references from 8 months ago:

9

Another website on the Raton Pass line - again, badly out of date, like 10 years of so - but may be helpful instead of driving across half a state for no good purpose . . . [:-^]

http://www.rrsignals.net/Atsf/NewMexico/2nd/7061/7061.htm

Here’s a much better one from about 8 months ago:

http://www.railroadforums.com/forum/showthread.php?t=17663

10

I think there are some still operational in Indiana or Ohio, out in the flatlands. It has been a while, but the ex-NP lines in Montana (now MRL) had some upper-quadrants between Helena and Logan (Three Forks vic.) and westward to Idaho. SP had lower-quadrant semaphores on the Santa Rosa, NM - El Paso, TX line, but they prob’ly are history. I wonder if there are any left on the New Haven (Amtrak/M-NR) electrified lines from NYP to NHV. Stubby little things, they were. Guess I’m dating myself…

Hays