Western Railroad Discussion > Saturday Road Trip in Nebraska

A sunny but windy Saturday in Nebraska proved too tempting to ignore so a road trip seemed in order.  Scott Blair, Dick Schmeling, and I headed west on the Ravenna sub to check out progress on the Milford to Pleasant Dale double track project.

Before we got started west, we drove over the recently completed SW 40th Street overpass in Lincoln and spotted an inbound freight.  In the first two views, BNSF 4623, 5151, 4039, & 2618 are entering Lincoln's Hobson yard.  A sign to the right of 4623 in the first shot welcomes out bound trains to the BNSF 225 mile Hastings sub.

The next train was at Emerald, just west of Lincoln.  7041, 8001, 6520, & 8284 are pulling an east bound manifest.
(more to follow)
 

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In the first view here, 6168 & 8539 have a coal empty west bound at Pleasant Dale in the next view.  Grading for the second main track is started here but quite a bit of work remains to be done.

A Texas Utilities coal empty led by KCS 4800, 3985, & 4106 got by us east of Milford but we were able to get ahead of him for some shots south of Ruby.  It's not unusual to see KCS power on this train but we don't very often see one without some BNSF power mixed in.

When the empty cleared, we spotted an east bound load pulled by 8491 & 9039.

(2 more follow) 
 

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At Seward, 9161 & 9051 had an empty westbound a short while later.  Dpu was 8478.
 

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Thanks for the look.

Any idea if Grand Island to McDonald is being double tracked?

East of GI, only the Milford to Pleasant Dale stretch is single track and it is being double tracked now.  West of GI, I think it's double track to Ravenna.
 

GoatBoatMarty Wrote:
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> Thanks for the look.
>
> Any idea if Grand Island to McDonald is being
> double tracked?

If McDonald is on the west end of Grand Island, I would say no.  I was in G.I.
in September and found the spot on the east end, CP94.4, where the single track
over the UP begins.  There was NO evidence of any new track being constructed.
Given the reduction in coal traffic, I would expect very little in the way of additional
double track on the coal lines.  The work shown here at Pleasant Dale is something
of a surprise to me, although it's been needed for thirty years.  

Nick Tharalson,
Marion, IA