Towns and Nature: Fostoria, OH: (F) Tower: B&O vs. NKP vs. C&O/HV

Thursday, July 14, 2016

Fostoria, OH: (F) Tower: B&O vs. NKP vs. C&O/HV

CSX/B&O is the east/west route along the south side where as NS/NKP is the east/west route along the north side. CSX/C&O/Hocking Valley is the north/south route. The tower in the northeast quadrant of the HV vs. B&O crossing was closed by CSX a few years ago and the junction is now operated by a remote CSX dispatcher. CSX has installed a connector in each quadrant of its two routes. The CSX train in the 4615c photo below is using the connector in the northeast quadrant.

Satellite

30250904,07 4567c

An irony of the Fostoria Rail Park is that you can't get a real good shot of the F Tower from the park. I tried some Google streetviews from Columbus Drive, but they were also cluttered. What is interesting is that CSX evidently reported some sort of privacy issue with this view because they blurred out a corner of the tower. I checked Bing, but Columbus does not have a "blue line" when you zoom in.

4615c

Birds-Eye View

Craig Hensley Photography shared
A westbound Union Pacific manifest train hits the double diamond in Fostoria, Ohio back in March of 2021.
[Actually, this is a CSX train on the former B&O route using UP power. (Confirmed by a David Walker comment.)]

Michael Morley posted
After the NKP train went by, the operator on duty in F Tower came out and asked us if we'd like to come in and warm up. This is a photo of the "model board" that controlled the junction. (Actually, three photos stitched together to eliminate the "hot spot" from the flash, but don't tell anyone.) This should give you a pretty good idea of how the tracks are arranged. It's what's called an "NX" interlocking machine. To line a train through the junction, you push one button on the diagram where the train is coming from, and simultaneously push a second button for where you want the train to go, and the relay logic lines all the switches and clears all the signals for you--and prevents the operator from lining another train through on a conflicting route.
Michael Morley shared
F Tower's NX interlocking control panel.
Billy Ryan: I was a foreman at F tower it was called an enter and exit system,push 2 bottoms and it would line the route.
i tested all the relays merged all the wires, the people that built F Tower knew what there were doing, I learned a lot there,will never forget the place.
Thomas White: Both are correct: eNtrance-eXit interlocking.
B Tupper Upham: Anybody’s curious, the machine as been saved and is displayed at Marion, Ohio Interlocking Tower Museum.
Sonny Edwards: My daughter trained at F Tower and worked it a few times on her own ..

B Tupper Upham commented on Michael's share

Craig Hensley Photography posted
Turning North
Moving slow through curve and turning north onto the Pemberville sub, CSX ES44AH #3205 leads manifest train M200 making their way to Walbridge yard. The diamond junctions in Fostoria are really neat to view from the air and when it's busy (it usually always is) you can get some great images. A lot more to come in the next few posts, stay tuned!
CSX M200 (Gibson, IN (IHB) - Walbridge, OH) - Fostoria, OH - June 2023

Fostoria Rail Park posted two photos with the comment:

Michael Morley Medina Ohio shared a couple of great photos with us to post here. Here are a couple of F Tower with Mr J A Evans in the tower March 8 1986

Craig Hensley Photography posted
Today's adventure was a lot of fun! We went to some great spots, saw a good number of trains, and had good company. The day started out a little bleak with rainy skies in Toledo but ended on a positive note in Deshler. I'll have a ton of great content coming at you soon, but for now here's a cool one!
CSX I150 - DJI Mavic Air2s - 5/1/22 - Fostoria, OH

Jason House's posting

That CSX engine is not supposed to be that close to the crossing if there is another train already on it! November 29, 2015.

That is a UP ethanol train on NS/NKP's track that the CSX train almost ran into. According to the comments, the CSX train passed a signal.

The CSX train was taking the same northeast quadrant connection that the 4615c photo above was taking. Because it was going around a sharp curve, it was limited to 10 mph. Otherwise it could have been doing 40 mph and would never have stopped in time. The UP power is also stopped because when the NS engineer saw another train moving way to close to his tracks, he also did an emergency stop.

To summarize many comments: The NS train was quickly released, but the CSX crew would have to stick around for testing, etc. In fact, it sat for over a day because it was a holiday weekend and no one was around to download the recorders' data. Columbus crew was taking a train from Willard to Walbridge because Willard did not have any crews. Sounds like CSX layed off too many Willard people. It was an open question if the Columbus crew was qualified or if CSX illegally forced them to run the train.

Some comments implied that if the tower was still staffed, this close call would not have happened. But it is not clear to me what a tower operator could do about a train running a signal. I guess he or she could call the train on a radio and try to warn the crew that they are supposed to stop. I assume Positive Train Control would have stopped the train earlier.

Darren Reynolds posted three photos with the comment: "B&O/C&O "F" tower Fostoria,OH."

Bozo Upham: Fostoria. Machine has been thankfully preserved at the Marion Union Station Interlocking Tower Museum in Marion, Ohio.

Jack Homan: Known as the Fostoria Iron Triangle.

George E. Henderson: Jack Homan While working for B&O,CSX we called it "Malfunction Junction"