Eastern Railroad Discussion > Jesup, GA Railfan Platform, AMT station news

Am now in Jesup, GA doing some trainwatching at the Railfan Platform.
The Wi-Fi may be turned off as some neer-do-wells were using it and annoying the Chamber of Commerce. The nice folk in the Chamber of Commerce building will be happy to activate it for you upon request.

Spoke with a local "mover and shaker" who is active in the Chamber of Commerce and Rotary. He says a 900 kilodollar renovation for the Jesup, GA passenger depot is in the works. Money allocated, just needs to be released. The depot is now gutted and asbestos removed. Plan is to have a walkway from the current gazebo to an aux railfan platform where the NS crosses over the CSX.

The same fellow reports 5 trains each way on the NS thru Jesup each day including several carloads of Mercedes-Benz SUV for export via the port of Brunswick. Also mentioned the port of Brunswick will be used to import M-B cars shifting the traffic from Jacksonville.

Be Well,

Tim Colbert K3HX



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/18/10 04:29 by K3HX.

I hope that the station gets repaired. I did a video (DVD) at Jesup a couple of years ago - Jesup, GA - CSX Hot Spot. While I was videotaping there at night I was able to use the wifi to watch the University of New Hampshire mens hockey team lose their first round NCAA tournament game. Didn't miss a train.
Dick Eisfeller
Big "E" Productions
www.trainvideos.com

Mercedes Benz recently opened a big auto processing center at Colonel's Island Port in Brunswick. They built a large building and parking lots across the highway from the main port. It appears to be in full operation. This operation was moved from Jacksonville. Grain exports have increased dramatically at the port. The Colonel's Island yard is almost always full with half auto racks and half grain cars. The chemical plant there also receives tank cars. The grain is being exported to Cuba. It is allowed under the current agreement and it seems to be a big business. Since NS built the connecting track, they are able to get trains directly to the port without going into their Brunswick Yard. This has sped up their delivery schedules and made them more competitive with CSX. Kia is also a big player at the port. They used to have a large staging area west of Brunswick in Waynesville, but now that lot is empty. This may have something to do with the opening of their factory in West Point, not sure. I drive by the port every morning, and I'm surprised with this economy that it has remained so busy.