Eastern Railroad Discussion > Delaware City loop tracks

for reasons i can't go into my road trip excursions have been extremely curtailed so i have to rely on all of you TOers for info ... so can someone tell me where PBF built their loop tracks ...

here's a google map of the facility ... i would venture to guess it's on the open land north of the lead on the east side of Rt 9 but i'd like a confirmation on the site instead of my wondering speculation

http://goo.gl/maps/wiIcS

thanks for any info

The April Railroads Illustrated has a six page story, photos and a map entitled “Boom Town” about the Delaware City Refinery, the Bakken Oil Field and the NS trains hauling the crude. It could probable answer most of your questions.

It is not where you suggest, which is the same place I thought they would put it. Find the place where the Reybold industrial crosses Route 9, a grade crossing. The Reybold Ind is almost dead E-W here. Follow it west past several spurs into the refinery and other industry. About one mile you will come to wye to the north and a fourteen track stub end yard. This yard had three more tracks added at the east side last summer, so I thought they might build unloading racks there. Not so. This yard and wye was built after NS took CR. Go back to that wye. at the west end you will see a small building on the north side which is actually a modified house trailer. This is the NS Reybold yard office, ex-Conrail The dirt lane from it connects to School House Road. That road curves to the west skirtimg a large field that appears brown on the Google shot. This is where the new loops are. The unloading stations (25) are next to the lane where it appears wooded.

Another way to look for it is find where the new eight lane Delaware Route One crosses over the Reybold industrial and the the old Rt 13 now route 7 which is a four lane road. Rt 7 crosses the Reybold industrial there at grade. Just east of that crossing a spur comes off the Reybold to the north and enters the brown field mentioned earlier. Then there is a switch that makes a wye to reach the outer loop. The south leg is rather long. A shot in our newspaper clearly shows how it joins the loops, at this point parallel to the Reybold about 60 feet to the south, and then a crossover to the inner loop. The other leg of the wye is hidden by a small hill but has to join the outer loop and have a crossover to the inner loop, or else trains would be trapped. The loop is not a perfect circle, sort of elongated to fit the area except for the smaller field just east of the Reybold trailer. For some reason they did not extend it into that land. The loops are at least 6500 feet long and probably a bit more. There is a large diameter pipeline from the unloading stations first to the south side of the Reybold and east to the refinery. It is clearly visible where School House Lane crosses the Reybold.

The operating patterns I have heard so far is that the inbound NS crew calls the dispatcher at 'Savage', the outfit that handles all the switching at the refinery and spots the trains for draining. Savage lines them up. They go east on the Reybold, enter the south leg and go into either loop track counterclockwise and make a complete circuit with the NS crew before it is relieved by Savage.

I went down there Sunday, and again encountered men from the security agency that PBF hires. They say you cannot take pictures, that there are 3 places in Delaware that photography is prohibited, their refinery, Dover AFB and New Castle Co airport. There are no signs to that effect. I have reminded them rather strongly that it is legal to take pics from a public road. The older guys are nice the younger ones not. In fact I didnt try to take any pics, wrote down some engine and car numbers, and they didnt care even when I used binoculars. They are well aware of the heritage units and have had many fans to visit. The C of G unit was there but in no position for a photo. The most sensitive area, where the unloading house is, is not good for photography anyway.

If you sit at the junction of Upper and Lower Twin Lane Rds and School house lane they may not bother you there. Sunday they were moving both trains at the same time. That's right next to Route One below. They also implied if you watch and shoot a train at the entrance to the loops they wont care. Their main concern is nut cases and enviornmentalists, I guess. They may take your liscense plate numbers.

Best I can tell for March there were 28 loaded crude trains, 12 had DPU's, and one load and three empties went via Philly instead of the port Road. Hope that helps.