The Observation Deck

As mentioned here about 6 months ago. Norfolk and Western will increase train traffic.

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From the mayor...

I just received a phone call from Norfolk & southern notifying me that increased rail traffic and congestion will result in 4 additional trains coming through Lakewood each day. Current volume is 2 trains per day.

Volume increases should start soon.

I will initiate discussions with the Ohio Rail Development commission regarding the implementation of quiet zone investments . this is essentially a double gate on each side of a crossing to eliminate someone from driving around the gate.

Michael P. Summers
Mayor, City of Lakewood

Historically speaking, how many trains used to come through Lakewood?
It seems like there were a lot more back in the 1980s.

I would assume the number was even higher back in the 40s and 50s when light passenger trains also used those tracks.

I am curious where the figure of 2 trains per day comes from. The only days we get 2 trains a day is on the weekends, usually we have 3-4 per day, anyhow I am not really concerned about increasing to 6 trains a day. And is driving around the gates really an issue, I don't remember the last time I saw someone doing that.

I don't really see the need for crossing gates beyond what we have, either. I can vouch for the rail companies ... I cover agriculture for a media company and rail traffic and logistics is giving ag retailers fits.

Back when we lived near the tracks on Cranford, when there were two tracks, we had 20 or so trains a day. This was in 1970s and 1980s. Gates were installed when the line was single tracked in the 1990s. NS purchased it's share of the former Conrail and diverted trains to the other line, adjacent to the RTA Rapid tracks. Part of the commuter rail discussion in the 2000s was that commuter trains were shorter and quieter and it would help implement a quest zone.

Didn't Dennis negotiate a limit of 13 trains per day? Or was that just about the rail companies' deal?/either way13 ... Let alone 6 ... Is quite a bit lower than it had been. When's the last time someone got hurt by a train in Lakewood by accident?

Is freight of a lower hazard class being routed through our area to make room for

the crude oil in corn syrup cars trains on other nearby lines ?

michael gill wrote:Didn't Dennis negotiate a limit of 13 trains per day? Or was that just about the rail companies' deal?/either way13 ... Let alone 6 ... Is quite a bit lower than it had been. When's the last time someone got hurt by a train in Lakewood by accident?

Michael

It was down to 4 trains a day, and according to Dennis as of a month ago, that is where it
still was. I have no idea where the number of 2 came from the mayor, probably the same
place he has been getting his numbers as of late.

To me it matters not, as the "rumor" was, "get ready for an increase and that will be followed
by them putting back the second track and much more rail service. It seems funny that it
was a respectful amount of time since Dennis left, and the current Westside mayors seem to
be whores of business, forgetting residents in favor of commercial and industry.

We shall see.

Ed Favre would be the expert on this stuff.

.

Chance of NS putting a second track back in is zero. When they pulled up the one track, they rebuilt the other with heavier rail and installed new train control signals. In effect, they then had the ability on one track to run the number of trains they had been running on two tracks. The move also cut their taxes, maintenance costs, and eliminating two trains in opposite directions at the same time greatly reduce the likelihood of accidents.
When they moved most of the traffic to the old Conrail line, NS still intended on keeping this line for local and slower demand traffic as well as back up.

Fast forward and the railroad business is booming. Main lines are clogged, there are not enough train crews (NS is hiring like crazy), Amtrak cannot run on time and the Surface Transportation Board looking into it. It's inevitable that NS and other railroads will be using lightly used lines for more slower, less timely traffic to open up the mains for revenue traffic that demands being on time. With Christmas coming, UPS and other shippers will be demanding on time delivery.

Two questions:
1) Are the 2 current trains and 4 additional trains the total traveling east bound and west bound, or is it 2 current and 4 additional east bound, and 2 current and 4 additional west bound? In other words are we talking about 6 or 12 total trains? (Ain't math fun? ) I ask because, from my vantage point 12 houses from the tracks, it seems like the 2 current trains they are referring to are really 4 total, 2 going in each direction.

2) Who is taking the lead in fighting this? Or don't we do that anymore?

What's to fight about? Haven't the trains been here long before most of us bought our homes? My wife and I now own a home on the Lake well west of here, there are many trains in the distance but we knew that before we plunked our money down....

Tim Liston wrote:What's to fight about? Haven't the trains been here long before most of us bought our homes? My wife and I now own a home on the Lake well west of here, there are many trains in the distance but we knew that before we plunked our money down....

It's the 3x increase...

Tim Liston wrote:What's to fight about? Haven't the trains been here long before most of us bought our homes? My wife and I now own a home on the Lake well west of here, there are many trains in the distance but we knew that before we plunked our money down....

I agree there is no fight. We live next to the tracks, to us it is a non-issue. The trains were here when we bought our home, we knew that along with the tracks came trains, it would be absurd for us to complain. I am mostly curious, curious exactly how many trains will be coming by because they say 2 trains is what currently goes by and that isn't exactly correct.

And to add to Danielle's point....

These days it is easy to unearth the ownership history of a property. According to county records your family has owned the home on French for at least two decades anyways. Back then there were a ton more trains going through Lakewood than there will be even with an increase.

Consider yourself lucky that there are as few trains as there will be even going forward. Nobody really likes living near them but when you live near train tracks, there are trains.

Dan you are lucky the way things have transpired during your Lakewood home ownership. You have seen a dramatic decrease in train traffic during that time.

Danielle Masters wrote:The trains were here when we bought our home, we knew that along with the tracks came trains, it would be absurd for us to complain.

Too bad some people don't feel the same way about buying a home next to a park (with basketball hoops)! Oh, well!