Read that EHH has listed all of Michigan as a possible target for disposal.
Would that mean everything other than the greater Detroit area?
All lines? No. Some lines? Yes. I am suprised Grand Rapids to Plymouth is still around. There is too much auto and intermodal traffic between Detroit and Toledo to get rid of that. I would also be suprised to see Grand Rapids to Porter section sold as long as the West Olive power plant is burning coal.
Plymouth to Flint is a wild card. You have grain, coal, and chemical traffic for Midland and Port Huron. I am not so sure on that line getting sold, although it would not suprise me.
There have been multiple threats of getting rid of Michigan lines since the Chessie days.
Like Balt said, those rumors have been floating around for a long time. Now, with Harrison at the helm, they may well become reality. Back around 2000 there were sixteen trains a day on the Saginaw Sub north of Plymouth. When GM closed a big share of their operations in Flint those trains went by the wayside.
Last report from my contacts there, around four years or so ago there were only four trains a day and the occasional coal or grain drag. I’m not sure what CSX did with the Saginaw Sub north of Flint. Sold or leased to LSRC? I’m not certain. They’ve also ridden themselves of all trackage in the Thumb. They use trackage rights on CN to get to the ex PH&D trackage in Port Huron and into Sarnia.
The Plymouth Sub from Plymouth to Grand Rapids has also seen a major drop in traffic over those same years. Not sure what it’s fate is going to be, but they have been upgrading signals and crossings there.
That leaves Grand Rapids and Detroit, both of which I suspect CSX will want to keep access to. The southern portion of the Saginaw Sub would cover Detroit, and the Grand Rapids sub is self-explanatory. The latter is also used by Amtrak, and I don’t know how well that would work if is sold to a short line.
Another lingering question is whether CP would be interested in purchasing/leasing the Grand Rapids and Plymouth Subs to give them access to Detroit.
I’d place money on a full or almost full pull out of Michigan. Detroit is lucrative due to auto traffic so they might stay there but the Western Michigan lines including Grand Rapids should have been sold a long time ago in my opinion. I would also suspect some of the Western Florida lines could be spun off more. Does CSX really need to go to Tampa?
CSX works with Conrail and auto haulers to get autos to Total Distribution Services (owned by CSX) in New Boston, southwest of Detroit. Combined with other customers in Detroit they would be losing a big chunk of revenue. CN’s alienating GM did a lot to help CSX gain the auto traffic.
If they sold off everything in Michigan they would also have to rid themselves of their operations in Ontario.
I believe averything north of Flint is leased to LSRC. And CSX just added D706 to run Monday-Wednesday-Friday. Also, D705 will run Tuesday-Thrusday-Saturday-Sunday. About the Port Huron situation, there have been rumors since the opppening of the Huron tunnel in 1995 of letting Cn take all the chemical and other traffic. There is not a date, but I think it will happen somday. I think thats all right, too much is hapin
[:)]I think the odds are( 15to6 to dump.
Don’t know how EHH will divest ‘excess’ trackage.
Historically, CSX has leased out operation and maintenance of their lines to Short Line and Regional operators. CSX retains ownership of the property, the leassors pay taxes, operational expenses and all maintenance on the line and reap all the revenues they are able to generate.
I think you mean"leasees"
How about “lessee”? [:D]
I was not a English major.
[:-,] “Lessee” is a legal term, not English as we know it . . . [:-^]
The coal trains to West Olive are daily or better, I believe, and I’ve heard nothing to suggest that that particular plant is in danger of closing.
I wish the state could acquire GR to Plymouth, and upgrade it for passenger service. CSX would lose any arguments about how it would interfere with its freight service. A route from the Detroit area to Grand Rapids (or Holland) would probably do well, as it would include Lansing. Perhaps it could be routed via Howell and Ann Arbor (there was talk of using the old Ann Arbor for commuter service once or twice).
Just a thought. I think they could do well with Holland to Muskegon again, but that’s just me. What’s the male equivalent of Pollyanna?
Well, there is a thread over on another site (railroadfan.com if you wanna read it) talking about an increase of traffic coming for the Chicago-Detroit PM line, particularly GR to Detroit, thanks to Hunter shutting down the humpyard in Toledo (Stanley Yard), and having Flint traffic, and MAYBE Detroit traffic eventually, go to Grand Rapids instead, to be sorted out there and then moved out on Q trains. Our first confirmed “new” trains are D701 and D702 between GR and Flint, beginning next week and replacing Flint-Toledo trains Q321 and Q322. There may be new Q trains between GR and Ohio someday, but for now the MI traffic is going to be funneled down to Chicago on Q326 and Q327 (GR-Chicago trains). So this line doesn’t seem to be going anywhere soon.
Said it before, and I’ll say it again. The population keeps increasing, and thus RR traffic will increase here and there in following decades and centuries. And since its such a pita to get ROW and lay down a new track, why don’t they have a stop on pulling up tracks. Some day probably after I have passed on, the cost of petroleum will increase as it gets harder to extract. And if there isn’t a way to cheapen hydrogen fuel cells, people could be forced to use more rail transportation. Electric cars and battery storage is improving but at what cost? Leave the tracks there. Don’t develop the ROW. Preserve the corridor for later generations and save the them from going through the legal hassles.
It’s not about the future - it’s about short-term gain.
Pollyandrew?
Carl,
There is a study in the works on doing exactly that. GR to Det. via Lansing using the CSX line. They have been ‘discussing’ which way to get from Howell to Detroit. Straight or turn right to Ann Arbor. May be in mothballs now but I read about it in the past couple years.