Eastern Railroad Discussion > CSX Heritage units

With the recent thread talking about the release of Amtrak 40th anniversary heritage paint schemes and knowing UP's proactive approach on showing theire heritage it poses the question. Has there ever been or are there, talks about CSX doing a heritage series of locomotives?

The thought is appealing to see a brand new SD70ACe or ES44 leading a mainline train in Western Maryland fireball paint, Chessie, B&O, Seaboard, and Family lines paint.

Thoughts and insight on this? Kyle

CSX would be the last Railroad that would do this.

Hmmm... up until the mid-late 90's just about every CSX consist had a dose of heritage! It would be terrific from a railfan standpoint if every railroad would produce a series of "heritage" locomotives, but there really isn't much of a bottom line benefit to doing it. I would be happy if they would just decide on any paint scheme and stick with it for more than five years.

-Ryan

MagnumForce Wrote:
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> CSX would be the last Railroad that would do this.


I agree. CSX doesnt see the benefit in this as UP did, although UP 1982 looked really cool.

Unfortunately I have to agree with Brent. Satan will be serving snow cones in hades before today's CSX does anything like this. They really would be "last" if we think about it: UP--yes, in full force right now; NS--Southern 4610; CN--they had the green E units for a few years; CP--one very sharp GP38-2 and several F units; KCS--their current scheme and again, some very sharp covered wagons. That leaves CSX and BNSF, and between the two, I'd definitely pick BNSF as the one who would give a nod in the "heritage" direction before CSX.

It's really too bad.

With all the parked trains mentioned in other threads, perhaps some clandestine railfans should make their own heritage units while the engines are just sitting around anyway!
I assume that the images I've attached wouldn't really count, now would they?!

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Unfortunately, about as close as CSX will get to a "Heritage" unit are the Spirit of Nashville, or Spirit of Cincinnati, or Spirit of Cumberland units....

Frank, in Tennessee

While I agree that there is no chance of this happening, I feel like a lot was left off the dream list...

Here's mine...

1) B&O
2) C&O
3) WM
4) RDG
5) CNJ (yeah, not really a part of the system, but a former partner)
6) NYC
7) SAL
8) ACL
9) L&N
10) GA
11) PM

This year marks the 25th(!) anniversary of the formation of CSX Transportation. One gray "CSX Transportation" unit, one Chessie, and one Family Lines (not Seaboard System) unit seems reasonable enough. Just saying...

Considering all these years CSX has run with so many old paint schemes, I think it would be a more fitting accomplishment for them to actually get the entire fleet in CSX paint.

Tom

CSXtom Wrote:
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> Considering all these years CSX has run with so
> many old paint schemes, I think it would be a more
> fitting accomplishment for them to actually get
> the entire fleet in CSX paint.
>
> Tom


with one exeption-the Conrail blues. Make them the 18 "bandits".

CSX ..... yesterday's Heritage units tomorrow ......

Lets say both CSX and NS do conceptual heritage units, agreed complete long shot, but consider this. Which one would do a better RDG, LV, NYC, PC, & CR units. Nice railfan pipe dream but you never know!

csxhansub81 Wrote:
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> With the recent thread talking about the release
> of Amtrak 40th anniversary heritage paint schemes
> and knowing UP's proactive approach on showing
> their heritage it poses the question. Has there
> ever been or are there, talks about CSX doing a
> heritage series of locomotives?
>
> The thought is appealing to see a brand new
> SD70ACe or ES44 leading a mainline train in
> Western Maryland fireball paint, Chessie, B&O,
> Seaboard, and Family lines paint.
>
> Thoughts and insight on this? Kyle

Write a letter to: Mr. Michael Ward, President & CEO, CSX Corporation, 500 Water Street, Jacksonville, FL 32202. If enough people would write letters, especially shareowners, this could happen. But sitting here complaining about CSX will accomplish NOTHING!! Just some thoughts.
Please don't rant about this, write the letter and spend the $.44 for a postage stamp.
JH a/k ClubCar

A couple of random thoughts on this, I'm not sure what the fascination with the idea is. Don't forget about the CN - yeah they have a stylized IC E-unit, but could anyone see them retaining an IC or GT unit? (To say nothing of say a DWP or DT&I repaint) As for the remaining Conrail units, frankly I hope those things go sooner rather than later - all the ones I've seen are looking really ratty. As the previous posts have mentioned, CSX has had an "identity crisis" basically since inception, and they have (finally) started to build a "brand" with what they have currently. Really, who would benefit from regurgitating the past?
However, if they were (unlikely) to do a few - I hope they do a stylized Penn Central first - with a huge mating worms logo on the side of a dip black widebody GE - just because...

I must be missing something here... UP, BNSF, NS, and CN all have units in former RR's paint, why is it CSX is the one that everyone complains that the fleet isn't all repainted. It's what happens when one railroad takes over another, and UP and BNSF have more units that need repainting than CSX does. CSX is down to like around a dozen or 18 units. Wonder how many UP and BNSF have.

West Virginia, a core state for both CSX and NS, has a 150th anniversary coming up. The "western counties" dissented from the Great Secession, and did not acknowledge the House Of Burgessses vote that the union had been dissolved.

So, if the WV government asked, maybe both NS and CSX would paint a few legacy schemes on their equipment.

Clinchfield
Interstate
Virginian

for starters

Lackawanna484 Wrote:
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> West Virginia, a core state for both CSX and NS,
> has a 150th anniversary coming up. The "western
> counties" dissented from the Great Secession, and
> did not acknowledge the House Of Burgessses vote
> that the union had been dissolved.
>
> So, if the WV government asked, maybe both NS and
> CSX would paint a few legacy schemes on their
> equipment.
>
> Clinchfield
> Interstate
> Virginian
>
> for starters

You can add the B&O to that list as well considering that railroad was one of the reasons for the Eastern Panhandle not being in VA

I always thought it would be cool to see ES44AH number 800 painted in Clinchfield gray and yellow.

I remember reading an article in Trains Magazine, they interviewed Mike Snow of CSX, and when asked about "Hertiage Units" he said basically that CSX was NOT interested in painting special locomotives like U.P. We are in the bussiness of moving freight. If you all look at what companies made CSX it was only two Chessie System & Seaboard System. There were several companies that merged to make the Chessie System, and like wise with Seaboard System. So with that in mind CSX would only have two "Heritage" Chessie System and Seaboard System. Maybe three if you count Conrail. Same with Norfolk Southern, BNSF (BN was merged by 4 or 5 roads and received a new name). U.P. merged or bought those six roads and never changed the name all where brought under the U.P. flag. If the B&O merged with or purchased all the predecessor roads and STAYED the B&O then yes you would have 10-14 locomotives with special paint jobs. Canadian National and Candian Pacific are the only other railroads that DIDN'T change there change their company names after mergers or buyouts. Now CN, CP and UP have brought mergers and buyouts under their respective company flags. Canadian National has a longer list than UP.
Duluth, Winnipeg & Pacific
Duluth, Messabe & Iron Range
Grand Trunk
Algoma Central
Wisconson Central
Elgine, Joliet & Eastern
Illinios Central
BC Rail
Bessemer & Lake Erie
And those are just the ones off the top of my head, and they have that many because CN NEVER changed the company name after a merger or buyout.
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If you want the ACL look to Intermountain ES44ACs they are doing the ACL purple and silver on that model in HO Scale.



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 03/17/11 20:30 by MRL.