CSX Plymouth, MI Operations 2020

Locomotive identification, railfan locations, frequency information, etc. can be found here.
User avatar
Racer
Stops in Oncoming Traffic
Posts: 4365
Joined: Sun Sep 23, 2007 9:40 pm
Location: Livonia, MI

CSX Plymouth, MI Operations 2020

Unread post by Racer »

With work being slow due to COVID and my daughter taking an interest in trains, I’ve finally been able to be around Plymouth and get some consistent operational observations after a few years of inconsistent train watching and how erratic CSX has been changing their operational plans, especially when COVID started dwindling carloads.

Here’s what my observations have been so far as an update (and if anyone wants to chime in and add info please do).

Locals: D738 - daytime local for Plymouth, works North Yard sorting cars for D714, D716, any set outs by Q214, and works the 6-7 customers in Livonia.
D716 - evening local out of Plymouth, uses D738’s power and works the customers from south of Wayne Junction to New Boston including the Kelsey Hays Spur.
D714 - evening local out of Wayne, comes to Plymouth to swap cars and goes back south to work the customers between Plymouth and Wayne Jct. Somedays takes the Plymouth outbound cars to Rougemere.
D735 - late afternoon/ evening road turn from Toledo Walbridge to Lake State Railway in Wixom. Sets off train in Novi Siding and pick-ups their outbound train inside Lincoln Yard in Wixom. Lately has been frequently oversized for Novi Siding and the whole train (with power) becomes next morning’s Z127 for Flint.

Road trains:
Q567/Q568: road trains to/from Detroit/Rougemere to Toledo/beyond. Q567 is a mid-day/ early evening sight for Plymouth.
Q508/509: road trains to/from Detroit/ Rougmere to Cincinnati/ Queensgate Yard. Q508 is an evening sight for Plymouth. Frequently has intermodal to set off for CP’s Oak Yard or Livernois TV Ramp that used to be Q150/151.
Q200/201 Detroit/Rougmere to Toledo/beyond. This train frequently has intermodal for Detroit as well, but mostly sets off/ picks-up autoracks for TDSI in New Boston. Q200 is an evening sight in Plymouth and a few days a week has a cut of racks for Detroit.
Q214/215: road trains for Detroit/ Rougmere to Toledo/ beyond. Q214 sets off Plymouth cars mid-day before going south for a pick-up at TDSI in New Boston.
Q132/131: Recently revived intermodal from UP/Salem, IL to Detroit Livernois TV Ramp. Q132 is an evening sight through Plymouth. Q131 is middle of the night through Plymouth.
Unit train extras:
Grain/potash/fertilizer empties for Lake State, CSX/LSRC swap crews either south of the diamond and becomes Z491 with LSRC crews. Southbound loads are picked-up by CSX in Wixom’s Lincoln Yard. This process includes the N803 coal trains for Essexville that lately have been 2-3 loads a week and same count for empties. Loads and empties are swapped at either Novi Siding or Lincoln Yard. Empties on CSX run as E803 and empties/loads are Z388 on LSRC. Same rule applies for N660/E660 whenever they run for Belle River on the old PH&D.
Grain/potash/fertilizer empties for Grand Ledge/Webberville/Grand Rapids shortlines come to Plymouth and swap between GR/west crews and Toledo/Detroit crews either at Beck Road on the siding or MP25 on the siding, this includes work train extras.
D708 has made a few rare appearances here coming from Lansing for a hot car or two, but not often enough to really mention.

That’s about it, still some action in this area to be seen, but a far cry from a decade prior when CP still had a presence here and were regular trains on the Plymouth Sub. It seemed better when Q328/329 were running in the morning and meeting each other at Beck and Q328 was making pick-ups. Hopefully those trains in some form will return.
Last edited by Racer on Mon Aug 03, 2020 8:56 pm, edited 2 times in total.
"...and I was in the front and Matt grabbed and pulled my ears from behind me and made horsey sounds."

Man o' War
Railroadfan...fan
Posts: 1623
Joined: Fri Jan 12, 2018 5:27 pm
Location: Mount Clemens, MI/Hawks Nest, WV

Re: CSX Plymouth, MI Operations 2020

Unread post by Man o' War »

Nice report Racer. Thanks for posting.

Man o' War

User avatar
AARR
Ann Arbor RR Nerd
Posts: 37904
Joined: Wed Dec 22, 2004 7:39 pm
Location: Washington, MI

Re: CSX Plymouth, MI Operations 2020

Unread post by AARR »

Thanks for the report. Nice to see you back Racer.
PatC created a monster, 'cause nobody wants to see Don Simon no more they want AARR I'm chopped liver, well if you want AARR this is what I'll give ya, bad humor mixed with irrelevant info that'll make you roll your eyes quicker than a ~Z~ banhammer...

User avatar
mikekmac
Railroadfan...fan
Posts: 654
Joined: Sun Dec 16, 2007 7:27 pm
Location: Okemos, MI
Contact:

Re: CSX Plymouth, MI Operations 2020

Unread post by mikekmac »

Nice update, thanks.

Have all the road trains between Plymouth and Grand Rapids been cancelled? That line runs within a few blocks of my house, and there used to be a few but regular daytime opportunities. But I haven't been able to get out for a couple years.

(So hard to imagine that once there were 8 streamliner passenger trains a day on that line.)

User avatar
SD80MAC
Ingersoll's Mr. Michigan
Posts: 10431
Joined: Thu Mar 10, 2005 4:59 pm
Location: Grand Rapids

Re: CSX Plymouth, MI Operations 2020

Unread post by SD80MAC »

mikekmac wrote:
Sat Aug 08, 2020 3:21 pm
Nice update, thanks.

Have all the road trains between Plymouth and Grand Rapids been cancelled? That line runs within a few blocks of my house, and there used to be a few but regular daytime opportunities. But I haven't been able to get out for a couple years.

(So hard to imagine that once there were 8 streamliner passenger trains a day on that line.)
Yes. The only scheduled trains between Grand Rapids and Plymouth are Y106, D707 and D708.
"Remember, 4 mph is a couple, 5's a collision!"
http://flickriver.com/photos/conrail680 ... teresting/
Image

User avatar
mikekmac
Railroadfan...fan
Posts: 654
Joined: Sun Dec 16, 2007 7:27 pm
Location: Okemos, MI
Contact:

Re: CSX Plymouth, MI Operations 2020

Unread post by mikekmac »

Seems to have been a recent shift in the Plymouth-Lansing-Grand Rapids schedule? I've started hearing a train passing Dobie Road between 3 and 4pm pretty much daily. I happened to be out running an errand last week and actually SAW that train, got caught at the crossing, the first time I've seen (rather than heard) anything on CSX in quite a while. I didn't have my radio, so I couldn't hear the defect detector, but I guessed it at 5000+ feet, maybe as much as 6000, mixed freight. That's very much longer than I'd been accustomed to there.

User avatar
SD80MAC
Ingersoll's Mr. Michigan
Posts: 10431
Joined: Thu Mar 10, 2005 4:59 pm
Location: Grand Rapids

Re: CSX Plymouth, MI Operations 2020

Unread post by SD80MAC »

mikekmac wrote:
Fri Nov 20, 2020 1:28 pm
Seems to have been a recent shift in the Plymouth-Lansing-Grand Rapids schedule? I've started hearing a train passing Dobie Road between 3 and 4pm pretty much daily. I happened to be out running an errand last week and actually SAW that train, got caught at the crossing, the first time I've seen (rather than heard) anything on CSX in quite a while. I didn't have my radio, so I couldn't hear the defect detector, but I guessed it at 5000+ feet, maybe as much as 6000, mixed freight. That's very much longer than I'd been accustomed to there.
A few months ago now, CSX instated a pair of locals, D705 and D706, that run every other day between GR and Detroit. That's probably what you saw. D708 can also be quite large when they take the GLC traffic to Howell.
"Remember, 4 mph is a couple, 5's a collision!"
http://flickriver.com/photos/conrail680 ... teresting/
Image

blueheron13
Railroadfan...fan
Posts: 531
Joined: Wed Jun 07, 2017 4:01 pm
Location: All over Southeast Michigan

Re: CSX Plymouth, MI Operations 2020

Unread post by blueheron13 »

Also of note, Q200 and Q201 appear to be gone, but Q150 and Q151 have returned.
Amateur railfan trying to become a real railfan since 2017.

Post Reply