Eastern Railroad Discussion > Philadelphia coal pier

Just wondering with the Port of Baltimore closed for an undetermined length of time if the former Conrail coal pier at South Philly yard is still operating - or capable of being reopened to handle coal shipments until the Port of Baltimore can be reopened.

I don't believe that pier has been used much, if at all, since Conrail's partitioning and I would doubt it remains suitably equipped.

The link below purports to show its appearance in 2008.

https://conrailphotos.thecrhs.org/photos/cr-philadelphia-piers-001

A quick check on Google maps shows the rails and infrastructure gone: https://www.google.com/maps/place/39%C2%B053'43.3%22N+75%C2%B008'27.7%22W/@39.8953691,-75.1423035,436m/data=!3m2!1e3!4b1!4m4!3m3!8m2!3d39.895367!4d-75.141016?entry=ttu

The coal and ore piers in Philadelphia were totally dismantled and scrapped years ago.
Gonut

All the original large commondity piers in Philadelphia are gone. RDG Port Richmond grain and coal. PRR Girard Point grain . PRR/PC/CR Pier 122 and 124 coal and ore. ------ Ken 

The Reading Company coal loader at Port Reading NJ prob hasn't been used in 40 years.

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The Port Reading coal dumper is a still standing industrial ghost and no longer connected to rail lines. Back around 2007 there was a parking area built for containers/trucks on the land where the pier leads used to be. The part of the pier that had the "kick-back" track is gone.
 Hampton Roads and Norfolk Southern's facilities are it until they open the channel into Baltimore. I'm guessing there will be a bunch of coal stock-piled and shipped ASAP when things open up. All news reports revolve around the auto and farm machinery and little mention of the containers and zero of the impact on the coal industry. People understand cars and tractors but not ships,trains and the entire intermodal business!
NS brought an empty Reading and Northern Anthracite train west today from Kinder-Morgan's Fairless dock and stashed it in a siding near here. Probably to wait for a crew available, most likely after Easter. So R&N at least has that facility available. I believe it is only for ocean going barges delivering to Canada, and not the international shipments to Europe and Asia.
What a general mess!
Gonut

The KM dock on the Delaware (Fairless) is a long distance from the bay. Lots of bridges to hit.

Gonut1 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> The Port Reading coal dumper is a still standing
> industrial ghost and no longer connected to rail
> lines. Back around 2007 there was a parking area
> built for containers/trucks on the land where the
> pier leads used to be. The part of the pier that
> had the "kick-back" track is gone.
>  Hampton Roads and Norfolk Southern's facilities
> are it until they open the channel into Baltimore.
> I'm guessing there will be a bunch of coal
> stock-piled and shipped ASAP when things open up.
> All news reports revolve around the auto and farm
> machinery and little mention of the containers and
> zero of the impact on the coal industry. People
> understand cars and tractors but not ships,trains
> and the entire intermodal business!
> NS brought an empty Reading and Northern
> Anthracite train west today from Kinder-Morgan's
> Fairless dock and stashed it in a siding near
> here. Probably to wait for a crew available, most
> likely after Easter. So R&N at least has that
> facility available. I believe it is only for ocean
> going barges delivering to Canada, and not the
> international shipments to Europe and Asia.
> What a general mess!
> Gonut


It's already being rerouted. The 598s have been running to Bellevue and turning south towards Portsmouth to Norfolk for a couple days now. Running as double ups (2x2, ~30k ton).