Unused Tracks


Larry

Long Winded Old Fart
I was over in Sarasota(50 miles west of Arcadia)at Harbor Freight & the wife wanted to go to a Quilt Store on Bahia Vista. There's an Unused track that runs right next to the Quilt store & about 3 months ago when I was there I saw large tree's growing between the rails. The north/south CSX line hasn't been used for about 8 years. When Publix had their Warehouse just off of Hwy.72 there were always about 50 boxcars on sidings behind their buildings. The women in the Quilt store said the RR was moving box cars north past their store for the past 3 or 4 months w/a small switch engine.
yesterday I took some photo's of the old crossing looking south from where I was standing & then north where the tree's were before. I walked about 300 ft. north on those tracks & found all of these tracks that had been disconnected w/what looks like a grinder. Then some had been unbolted. Looks like someone had been back there trying to steal some rails.
So, I went in the store & told the owner what I had found about the rails, she said she would contact the RR because just last week a few more boxcars went north. When I started home I went by the old Publix bldg. & there's a bunch of boxcars that have been pushed out on the main from all of the sidings that looked like they were going to move them north again.
here's what I found. The 8ft. high Crossing Control Box sitting there had about 10 broken locks laying all around the base.
 
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I walked even farther down the tracks & found some rail that had been pulled over a little to one side. The control box had a diff. lock on the side facing the parking lot of the store.
 
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Why do people feel the need to destroy railroad property? It's very discouraging to know there are individuals in our society who think this is acceptable behavior. It's no wonder there are so many stories of railroad security officers coming across as aggressive and rude - they have to put up with crap like this.

The first picture in your first post is the kind of modeling I'd like to do. Trackage that is usable, but only just ;) It provides so much more character than immaculate mainlines with perfectly manicured ballast and no greenery obstructions.
 
Don't leave that up to some ladies at a fabric store! Call the local police and tell them, they will notify the railroad and probably direct officers to keep an eye out during their patrols.
 



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