Trains on the Norfolk Southern Harrisburg Line Late Spring 2014

It's time for another installment of trains along the busy Norfolk Southern Harrisburg Line. The foliage has filled in and the sun is hot and the days are long, which allows a variety of trains and locations in daylight hours that are not possible during the short days of the winter, late fall and early spring. Plenty of foreign power and rare/older lead locomotives makes an appearance in this 25 minute video, which features 15 trains ranging from a variety of unit trains to mixed freights and hot shot intermodals. So sit back and enjoy the action of big freights grinding the former Reading mainline between Harrisburg and Reading, Pennsylvania.


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Train information and video time stamps for navigation can be found below.

5/4/14 - Ethanol empties head west at the last light of day with a nice ex-Conrail leader still sporting its original Leslie horn.
0:00 - 65E - Linden, NJ - Chicago, IL
NS SD60 6704
UP AC45CCTE 7352
UP SD70M 4308

5/5/14 - Hot intermodal train 20K works its way east through one of many railroad towns along the Harrisburg Line.
1:25 - 20K - Chicago, IL - Croxton, NJ
NS ES44AC 8014
NS C44-9W 9645
NS C44-9W 9446

5/6/14 - 15T utilizes the crossover at DORF, having a totally unexpected surprise in the form of one of Canadian National's "smurfs" leading the train. The lead unit was originally part of the Locomotive Management Services, which also leased a batch of blue Dash-8's to Conrail, notice the Leslie RS3L horn. H31 follows closely behind, with only one car, running push-pull.
3:05 - 15T - Allentown, PA - Birmingham, AL (Irondale)
IC C40-8W 2462
CN SD70M-2 8865
NS C44-9W 9792

4:20 - H31 - Reading, PA - Local
NS SD40-2 3419
NS GP38-2 5351

5/19/14 - The morning Roadrailer is seen passing through a rock cut just east of Milepost 77. These trains seem to be getting shorter as more Triple Crown trailers are enabled for TOFC service. These Roadrailers may soon be a thing of the past.
5:05 - 262 - Chicago, IL - Bethlehem, PA
NS ES44AC 8115
BNSF ES44DC 7745

Later that morning, an empty Herzog ballast train heads east with a trio of standard cab EMD's from different generations.
5:55 - 933 - NS System - Birdsboro, PA (Dyers Quarry)
NS SD70 2504
NS SD60 6694
NS SD40E 6347

5/24/14 - In the nice evening light, 15T with another mixed consist of spartan GE's and a Canadian National locomotive head west past the feed mill in Richland.
7:15 - 15T - Allentown, PA - Birmingham, AL (Irondale)
NS C40-9 8808
CN SD75I 5644
NS C40-8 8701

5/26/14 - 34A starts west after stopping at PRESCOTT. There is a lot of power in tow, including a rare Union Pacific SD60.
8:45 - 34A - Allentown, PA - Baltimore, MD (Bayview)
NS SD70 2516
NS SD60I 6744
NS C40-9 8879
NS C40-9W 9923
UP SD60 2212
NS SD40-2 6131

Later that afternoon, 38G works its way down the lower Harrisburg Line with a Canadian National "barn" leading.
11:55 - 38G - Allentown, PA - Camden, NJ (Pavonia)
CN SD60F 5515
CN C44-9W 2202
NS ES44AC 8131

6/2/14 - Coal empties race into the rock cut at Milepost 77.5.
13:25 - 507 - Carney's Point, NJ - Shire Oaks, PA
NS C40-8W 8457
NS C44-9W 9400
NS C40-8 8742

6/6/14 - Another uncommon leader finds its way east on the Harrisburg Line on morning manifest train 36Q.
15:00 - 36Q - Linwood, NC - Allentown, PA
BNSF SD70MAC 8933
UP SD70M 4877
NS C44-9W 8959

That afternoon, 19G takes the crossover at BURKE as it nears the Harrisburg Terminal.
17:00 - 19G - Oak Island, NJ - Conway, PA
NS SD70M 2634
NS C40-9 8839


6/7/14 - Morning hot intermodal train 24K passes one of the many rural scenes along the Harrisburg Line—the thoroughbred train passing a group of horses.
19:15 - 24K - Rutherford, PA - Morrisville, PA
NS ES44AC 8124
NS C44-9W 9564
NS C44-9W 9445

Not far behind 24K, 212 passes under the 81 signal bridge with another foreign leader.
20:55 - 212 - Atlanta, GA - Croxton, NJ
CSX ES40DC 5433
NS ES44DC 7642
NS C44-9W 9322

That evening, 15T passes the feed mill in Sinking Spring with a solid EMD lashup.
22:35 - 15T - Allentown, PA - Birmingham, AL (Irondale)
NS SD60M 6763
NS SD70M-2 2707

As always, thanks for watching!