New England Depot: new england

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Thursday, May 19, 2022

CSX Receives Approval from Surface Transportation Board to Acquire Pan Am Railways

Trains SEPO & BFPO, Westford MA 2016

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – April 14, 2022 – CSX Corp. (NASDAQ: CSX) today announced that the Surface Transportation Board (STB) approved CSX’s application to acquire Pan Am Railways, Inc. (Pan Am). CSX will move forward with the acquisition with a planned closing date of June 1, 2022, at which time CSX will acquire control of Pan Am.

“CSX is pleased that the STB approved the proposed acquisition of Pan Am and has recognized the significant benefits this transaction will bring to shippers and other New England stakeholders,” said president and chief executive officer, James M. Foote. “We look forward to integrating Pan Am, their employees and the rail-served industries of the Northeast into CSX and to working in partnership with connecting railroads to provide exceptional supply chain solutions to New England and beyond.”

David A. Fink, president of Pan Am Railways said: “This much anticipated decision paves the way for an exciting new chapter for Pan Am customers and our employees as we begin our transition to the CSX team.”

Adding Pan Am to our network will extend the reach of our service to a wider customer base over an expanded territory, creating new efficiencies and market prospects for customers to capitalize on a robust pipeline of growth opportunities to move freight to, from and within New England.

With this transaction, New England will benefit from CSX’s track record as a leader in environmental performance. CSX will operate Pan Am with a more reliable and more fuel-efficient fleet, significantly reducing fuel consumption and improving rail’s environmental footprint in the region.

Passenger and commuter carriers in New England will benefit as the company is committed to maintaining or improving existing passenger service that operates on Pan Am. CSX has a long-standing history of working cooperatively with Amtrak and other passenger rail partners as evidenced by the significant improvement in contractual on-time performance with Amtrak since CSX has implemented its new operating model.

Headquartered in North Billerica, Massachusetts, Pan Am owns and operates a highly integrated, nearly 1,200-mile rail network and has a partial interest in the more than 600-mile Pan Am Southern system. Pan Am’s network across New England has access to multiple ports and large-scale commodity producers. The transaction will expand CSX’s reach in Connecticut, New York and Massachusetts while adding Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine to its existing 23-state network.

Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC acted as financial advisor and Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP acted as legal advisor to CSX in connection with the transaction.

Sunday, February 7, 2021

The Boston & Maine Railroad's Minuteman Logo - A Small History

With the introduction of maroon/gold EMD E-units to the Boston & Maine diesel roster in 1945 came a nifty new logo, usually simply referred to as simply the "Minuteman". But do people outside of New England understand that the logo was actually based on something real, not just an idea from the B&M advertising or art department?

The patriotic logo was apt for a railroad so connected to Boston, Lexington, and Concord Massachusetts. And here in Massachusetts, when someone says "The Minuteman Statue", you have to then ask "which one?". For there are TWO of them, one in Lexington and one in Concord.

The Lexington statue is of "a colonial farmer with musket by Boston sculptor Henry H. Kitson... stands at the southeast corner of the Lexington Battle Green, facing the route of the British advance... Originally a functioning drinking fountain and watering place for men, horses, cattle and dogs, it was unveiled on April 19, 1900, the 125th anniversary of the battle... was supposed to depict Captain John Parker, leader of the Lexington militia in 1775. Medford resident Arthur Mather, among others, served as a model for the sculptor... although called the 'Minuteman', it is meant to represent a member of the Lexington militia... The actual Minutemen were an elite subset of this group, young and fit and able to respond quickly".

The Concord statue was made by Daniel Chester French and was "unveiled for the Centennial celebration of the battle on April 19, 1875... is set near the spot where the first colonial militia men were killed in Concord... 7 foot tall bronze statue was cast from old Civil War cannons by the Ames Foundry of Chicopee Massachusetts. The pedestal base measures 7 ½ feet tall and 4 ½ feet on each side. Inscribed on the front facing is the first stanza of the poem 'The Concord Hymn' by Ralph Waldo Emerson".

The B&M logo was based in the Concord statue.

With the takeover of the B&M by Patrick McGinnis in the 1950s came a switch of maroon/gold paint to (in general) one of blue/black/white.

To mark the United State's bicentennial in 1976, the old Minuteman was applied to various equipment, such as boxcar 77039 and locomotives 200, 1750 & 1751.

In 2021, both statues are still with us, but the Boston & Maine in Lexington is now the Minuteman bike path, and in Concord is the MBTA Fitchburg commuter line. No name passenger trains, no freight trains. The B&M name itself is set to finally die with the purchase of Pan Am Railways by CSX.

https://www.tourlexington.us/attractions/pages/minuteman-statue

https://www.nps.gov/mima/learn/historyculture/the-minute-man-statue-by-daniel-chester-french.htm

http://www.faracresfarm.com/jbvb/rr/bmrr/diesel.html

Wednesday, December 2, 2020

CSX to Acquire Pan Am Railways in New England

SOURCE: 12:19 pm ET December 1, 2020 (Globe Newswire)

CSX Corp. (NASDAQ: CSX) today announced that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire New England's Pan Am Railways, Inc. ("Pan Am"), whose rail carrier subsidiaries comprise North America's largest regional railroad.

Headquartered in North Billerica, Massachusetts, Pan Am owns and operates a highly integrated, nearly 1,200-mile rail network and has a partial interest in the more than 600-mile Pan Am Southern system. Pan Am's network across New England has access to multiple ports and large-scale commodity producers. The transaction will expand CSX's reach in Connecticut, New York and Massachusetts while adding Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine to its existing 23-state network.

The transaction will provide significant benefits to shippers and local communities as CSX integrates Pan Am into its best-in-class network. CSX made nearly $1.5 billion in infrastructure capital expenditures in its network in 2019, supporting economic growth and ensuring the safety and efficiency of the supply chain.

James M. Foote, president and chief executive officer of CSX, said: "In Pan Am, CSX gains a strong regional rail network in one of the most densely populated markets in the U.S., creating new efficiencies and market opportunities for customers as we continue to grow. We intend to bring CSX's customer-centric focus and industry-leading operating model to shippers and industries served by Pan Am. We look forward to integrating Pan Am into CSX, with substantial benefits to the rail-served industries of the Northeast, and to working in partnership with connecting railroads to provide exceptional supply chain solutions to New England and beyond."

David A. Fink, president of Pan Am Railways, said: "Pan Am is pleased to reach this agreement with CSX, a North American leader in rail-based freight transportation. This is great news for New England shippers and the national freight network overall."

Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. The transaction is subject to regulatory review and approval by the Surface Transportation Board.

Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC is acting as financial advisor and Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP is acting as legal advisor to CSX in connection with the transaction.

Thursday, October 8, 2020

Rail Photography Can't Always Be Perfect... a Lesson For Flat-Landers & Super Picky Rail-Photo Websites

Rail Photography Can't Always Be Perfect... a Lesson For Flat-Landers & Super Picky Rail-Photo Websites

by Jonelle DeFelice

Some railfan photo sites are so picky, they will reject an image submission just because of a blade of grass in the "wrong" place. Or perhaps there's a tiny shadow on a locomotive's windshield. Well, they seem to think all railfans live in a perfect world of straight rails, great lighting, lots of trains, and absolutely NOTHING to get in the way of a perfect photo.

This photo from Shirley MA during late September is to show what we in Massachusetts have to put up with: Odd sun angles & shadows, curvy tracks, lots of trees, power lines & poles, signs, auto traffic, you name it. And this is a relatively clean commuter track (for now). Get past Fitchburg and things change... they become even harder.

"Perfect" photos are a lot harder to get in this neck of the woods than railfans in "the flat lands" can ever understand...

Oh, and the above photo is the best I could get as the train rounded the curve. Point made?

Here is an uncropped shot from Westford Station (MA) on a sunny September day. Despite the fact this ROW is just about IN the parking lot of a popular walking trail, most eastbound freights will look like this. Try to grab an eastbound and you need to stand someplace "photogenic" but also SAFE. Recent trackwork means lineside weeds are gone... for THIS season...

Another uncropped shot from the same location. This image from a cloudy Autumn day would probably still get rejected because of the sky. You may not know this, but skies are not always clear blue. That pile of ties and rail? Well, that isn't "perfect". And those signals aren't lit... why not?

This is a westbound work train at the same location 3/2020. Better lighting... sorta of. You can see it was a nice sunny day. But there are parked cars, moving cars, dead weeds, and yes, odd lighting. Nothing you can do about it either, unless you stand closer to the road crossing, then you have the gates to contend with and also you need to be safely away from the train itself.

ZOOMS are your friend. But I couldn't get nice, well lit shots of the consist. Had I stood on the other side of the track, which is closer to the rails, I probably would have had shadows to contend with there as well and the angle would have been bad. I also would have received nasty looks from the crew for being too close to the train.

Here is that crossing during August of 2018. Yet again... POINT MADE.

Here is a rather rare shot of an MBTA welded rail train at Belmont MA. No place to stand other than the station platforms. From this side, you have good light but the angle is sharp. Oh, and those ties, they may interest some but to make it onto some rail-photo sites you better just delete this one...

Uncropped, unedited photo of the same train, same location, but to get the train into the shot, I needed to cross the track. Now lighting stinks.

This Belmont photo is SUPER rare... Pan Am Railways detour freight EDNM 4/3/10. Also uncropped, we have GREAT lighting on the locomotives BUT only for a split second... soon the shadows will ruin things and the train will be too close to me to get a nice broadside photo. I couldn't stand further down the platform because the track has a tight curve.

In closing, here is a rather NICE photo... nice lighting, interesting subject... OH BUT WHAT are those things blocking the view at center-left?? Nature??

Welcome to freight railroading in Eastern Massachusetts...

Monday, September 16, 2019

Recent New England Model Railroad Announcements SEPT 2019

HO SCALE

ATHEARN: Alco RS3 Locomotive – Providence & Worcester

ATHEARN: EMD GP39-2 Locomotive – Guilford (D&H)/ CSX ex-Guilford schemes, with/without sound

ATHEARN: PS 5344 Box Car – Bangor & Aroostook, MM&A

ATHEARN: 40’ Gondola – Maine Central (green)

ATHEARN: 40’ Wood Reefer – Bangor & Aroostook

ATHEARN: 50’ 5283 FMC Double Door Boxcar – Bangor & Aroostook

ATHEARN: 85’ All-Purpose Flat Car – Maine Central (red)

ATLAS: EMD GP40-2 Locomotive – Boston & Maine (blue), 3 road numbers

ATLAS: FM H16-44 Locomotive – New Haven (orange/black)

ATLAS: Alco S2 Locomotive – Maine Central (black/red)

ATLAS: 2-Bay Offset Hopper – Maine Central

ATLAS: 1932 ARA Box Car – Maine Central (green)

BOWSER: Wood Chip Hoppers – Boston & Maine (McGinnis), 3 road #s: 7505, 7507, 7512

BOWSER: EMD F3 A/B Units – Bangor & Aroostook, B&M McGinnis schemes

BOWSER – N5 Caboose – Boston & Maine (due 4/2020)

LIONEL: Flatcar w/Water Tank Load – B&M

RAPIDO: USRA Double-Sheathed Wood Boxcar – Boston & Maine

RAPIDO: Comet Coaches & Cab Cars – CDOT, MBTA (sets & singles)

RAPIDO: EMD F40PH Ph3 Locomotive – MBTA (3 #s)

RAPIDO: EMD FL9 Rebuilds – ConnDOT, Maine Eastern (relaunched project)

RAPIDO: Alco RS-11 Locomotive – New Haven (McGinnis)

N SCALE

ATLAS: Russell Snow Plow – Maine Central (green), Bangor & Aroostook

ATLAS: EMD GP40-2 Locomotive – Guilford (B&M, 3#s) with or without SOUND

ATLAS: Alco S2 Locomotive – Maine Central (black/red)

ATLAS: GE U23B Locomotive – Conway Scenic #2820

ATLAS: 60’ Coach – Conway Scenic (4 road #s!)

BOWSER – N5 Caboose – Boston & Maine (due 4/2020)

RAPIDO: Comet Coaches & Cab Cars – ConnDOT, MBTA (sets & singles)

O SCALE

ATLAS: Comet II Passenger Coach – MBTA

ATLAS: Comet II Passenger Cab Car (coach) - MBTA

BACHMANN: N5c Caboose – New Haven

BACHMANN: Alco FA-2 Locomotive – New Haven

LIONEL: 4-6-6T Locomotive - Boston & Albany (3-rail)

Friday, February 16, 2018

Name That Photo Location: Boston & Maine Wreck at Lynn MA

I have managed to figure out the location of another vintage B&M photograph in my collection, and am sharing my findings with YOU!

The image shows B&M locomotive #827 on its side, with B&M crane #3359 hooked up to a baggage car. The area has multiple tracks and a signal, which helped confirm the location of Lynn Massachusetts, just west of the West Lynn station. (The Boston, Revere Beach & Lynn RR also had a West Lynn station)

The only real lead I had to go by was the sign in the distance atop a commercial building. It appeared to read "Hoag & Wald_n", which I assumed was "Walden" or "Waldon". After much web searching, I found a reference to a shoe manufacturer in Lynn named "Hoag & Walden".

I then started looking at old maps and aerial photos to see if I could find the building in the middle-background, as it had an easy-to-spot roof style. I finally found the exact building, which in 1916 belonged to Fred M. Page & Company, "manufacturers of cotton and paper specialties"and was located on 29 Bennett Street. Amazingly, this building was still standing as of 2014, though partially re-sided and in tatty condition. There was also a building to its left that may possibly be the one in the photo with a water tower on the roof. If so, it has been altered quite a bit.

As for the key Hoag & Walden building, it was located on Commercial Street in an area that appears to now be a playing field.

Now that I had located the location of the photo, I needed to figure out the date it was taken. I used an online newspaper archive to search for Lynn train accidents that made the news. I knew that locomotive #827 had been scrapped in 1913. I used that date, along with the style of automobiles in the photo, to narrow down my search. I finally found a short article in the March 29, 1910 issue of The Lowell Sun newspaper which said that just before noon, the "Portland express... Train 44" derailed while traveling on the Eastern Division toward Boston. The train consisted of "a couple of baggage cars, a Pullman, and three regular coaches, the latter being in the rear". The passenger cars being in the rear explains the baggage car being present behind the locomotive.

The train was not scheduled to stop at West Lynn, and left the track "a hundred yards beyond that station", followed by all but two coaches. The article states that an open switch had caused the accident, which also confirms the photo's location, as even today there is a track that curves off the main. This is the now abandoned Saugus Branch.

No one died in the accident.