Nostalgia & History > A couple Erie Lackawanna freights at JO in Akron - March 76

At JO interlocking in downtown Akron.
The tower was just to my left.
https://www.trainorders.com/discussion/read.php?11,4169452,4169452#msg-4169452

(1) Looking west through the signal bridge the interlocking can be seen - the EL
Chicago line crossed the B&O Chicago route.
It lasted till 1982 when a derailment damaged it. Chessie then reconfigured the tracks.
In the background, the REA building was still painted (later this was turned in to
shops/restaurants with a few passenger cars).
Back of that building were the silos of the Quaker Oats Co. They were later rebuilt in to a
hotel (I stayed there one time). Now owned by Akron U?

(2-3) U36C 3327 and GP35 2566 lead a train west with an eastbound in the distance.
B&O tracks to the right.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/23/17 09:45 by gcm.

---

---

---

(4-5) SD45 3616 heads east, while on the other side of the bridge I was on an EL caboose.
Gary

---

---

Some of the very best "Winter in Akron" images I have seen! They are all so good I don't have a favorite.
Thanks for sharing these.
Bob

Very interesting photos, the snow adds a lot of character to that Ohio look.

The link has interest as well, maybe somebody can recognize the style of interlocking machine and describe what it is and what it does. Is it automated for example? It sure doesn't look like the manual machines out on the west coast.

Great Stuff!! It's interesting to see the E.L. just before its transfer to Conrail.

It is interesting to see that the EL had recently installed welded rail on their main tracks. As best as I can recall I thought they did this to make the property more likely to be stay out of Conrail, but that failed and were included in Conrail as a revision to the Final System Plan.

Was the welded rail installed with EL funds or federal loans or grants?

Magnificent photos!

One of the big "ifs" was "if" the EL had done the planned upgrade to the Marion Yard, they might have survived independently. Banks wanted 3% over the prime rate, which was rejected by the management team as too expensive. Apparently, some improvements were made.

EL3600 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Magnificent photos!
>
> One of the big "ifs" was "if" the EL had done the
> planned upgrade to the Marion Yard, they might
> have survived independently. Banks wanted 3% over
> the prime rate, which was rejected by the
> management team as too expensive. Apparently, some
> improvements were made.

How would upgrading Marion yard kept the EL independent?