{"id":15753,"date":"2016-06-20T05:46:08","date_gmt":"2016-06-20T09:46:08","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/?p=15753"},"modified":"2016-06-20T08:20:06","modified_gmt":"2016-06-20T12:20:06","slug":"conrail-looking-back-anticipating-change","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/conrail-looking-back-anticipating-change\/","title":{"rendered":"Conrail-Looking Back; Anticipating Change."},"content":{"rendered":"

I was on my way to New London, Connecticut in late 1996 when I first learned of the news that CSX was to make a bid for Conrail.<\/p>\n

It was a big surprise to most observers. Ultimately CSX and Norfolk Southern divided Conrail.<\/p>\n

Armed with the knowledge of Conrail\u2019s pending split, I made many images to\u00a0document\u00a0the final months of Conrail operations.<\/p>\n

Step back a decade: In the mid-1980s, I\u2019d photographed\u00a0\u00a0the end of traditional double track operations on Conrail\u2019s Boston & Albany line.<\/p>\n

Long rumored, the B&A\u2019s conversion from directional double-track (251-territory) to a single-main track with Centralized Traffic Control-style dispatcher controlled signaling and cab signals began in late 1985. It was largely complete three years later.<\/p>\n

A year or so before the work began, I was sitting in an engine cab and a Conrail crewman pointed out to me that the railroad had re-laid one main track with continuous welded rail while the other line remained jointed.<\/p>\n

\u201cSee that jointed track, that\u2019s the line they\u2019re going rip up. Better get your pictures kid.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sound advice. And I took it to heart. By anticipating the coming changes, I made many prized photographs of the old order\u2014before<\/em> the work began.<\/p>\n

I continued to photograph while the work was in progress, but that\u2019s not my point.<\/p>\n

\"Conrail's
Conrail’s C30-7A and C32-8 diesels roll east with tonnage at milepost 84 in Monson, Massachusetts. In this view, I’m looking toward the Palmer diamond, and in the distance we can see Central Vermont cars for interchange. This was mid-1986. At this stage Conrail was still operating the B&A as a traditional directional-double track railroad, much the way it had been operated for decades. Yet, it was only a matter of weeks before the old westward main (seen here with jointed rail) would be removed from service. . By anticipating the changes to the railroad, I could emphasize the elements soon to change; the westward jointed track and the code lines. However, other more subtle changes also resulted. Without the old signals, the code lines came down, and the bushes and trees grew in their place.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Having observed New England railroading for the better part of four decades, I again have a sense that change is in the works for railways in the region.<\/p>\n

Will today\u2019s operators remain as they are for long? Will traffic soon find new paths and may some lines\u2014now active\u2014dry up? Will those antique locomotives, more than four decades on the roll soon be sent for scrap? Those are the questions we should think about. Take nothing for granted and keep a sharp eye for images.<\/p>\n

While, \u00a0my crystal ball remains clouded, I\u2019ve learned not to wait for the big announcement. I hate standing in lines to get my photos or realizing I missed an opportunity when the time was ripe. Act now and stay tuned.<\/p>\n

Tracking the Light Offers Insight and Stories Daily.<\/span><\/h4>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I was on my way to New London, Connecticut in late 1996 when I first learned of the news that CSX was to make a bid for Conrail. It was a big surprise to most observers. Ultimately CSX and Norfolk Southern divided Conrail. Armed with the knowledge of Conrail\u2019s pending split, I made many images … Continue reading Conrail-Looking Back; Anticipating Change.<\/span> →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":15752,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_s2mail":"yes","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"footnotes":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false}}},"categories":[10,48],"tags":[4537,3614,41,53,35,104,30],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/BA-mp-84-Monson-MA-c1986-by-Brian-Solomon-110024.jpg?fit=2315%2C1726","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p2BVuC-465","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15753"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=15753"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"http:\/\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15753\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":15787,"href":"http:\/\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15753\/revisions\/15787"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/15752"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=15753"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=15753"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/briansolomon.com\/trackingthelight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=15753"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}