Blair Sub Construction September Update

On Friday 21 Sept 2012 I explored the Blair Sub construction progress to see what was actually going on. Earlier in the month one of the local super foamers reported that all work was going to stop on this project, a rumor I could not find any confirmation of when I inquired on the internet. As I did the previous month I started out on the west end of the sub and headed east. The west end is were the most activity is currently occurring.

Arlington, NE
Contractors were actively driving piles for the new bridge over the creek on the east side of Arlington, west of CR P11. The sub grade work is completed through Arlington to the S 6th St crossing. No work has been started west from this crossing toward East Fremont.

Pile drivers and cranes at the new bridge installation in Arlington, NE.

Heading east from the CR P11 crossing the grade work is completed all the way to the west end of the old Kennard Siding.

CR P15 Arlington Hill
The short section of new ROW that was unfinished last month is now completed. A new drainage culvert was installed on the north side of the ROW under the road to allow run off from the hill to drain away from the new ROW.

Looking west the new ROW will cross the existing ROW and  be on the south side .

On the east side of the crossing the new ROW has been completed up to the crossing control box for the current main. The new crossing control box is located to the north (left in the pic) of the existing control box. The bases for the new crossing gates have been installed and the electrical work has also been completed from the control box to the gates.

Looking east at CR P15 the new alignment stops at the existing crossing control box.

CR P15 to Allen Creek
With the ROW construction nearly completed there is very little activity to be found from Arlington, NE to Missouri Valley, IA. This same lull in activities occurred with the first section of the double track over Blair Hill.

Contractors were noted adding rolls of soil stabilizers along the cuts on the east side of Arlington Hill. At the CR 121 crossing a set of new metal culverts have been positioned along with rip rap for installation in the area.

At the west end of the old Kennard siding, the contractor has completed the concrete wall on the south side of the Hwy 30 over crossing shoring this up for the new second main. The stagging area just south of the West Kennard switch has had a number of pre-stressed concrete bridge decks and metal pilings for a new bridge. These components maybe used in the replacement of the pile bridge on the main at this location.

Between Kennard and the Missouri River bridge no activity was noted.

When in Blair, NE be sure and stop by Fernadoe's and give the super foamer dish washer a shout out. It will put a smile on his face. 

On the Iowa side of the Blair Sub it appears that most work has stopped from the Missouri River bridge incline to the new junction on the east side of California Jct., IA. The ROW is completed but there has been no work on the installation of new crossing gate bases or electrical to connect those crossing bases to the control boxes.

The one bit of activity that was observed on the Iowa side was a track game working on connecting the third main to the existing main east of the Italy Ave crossing. The new main has also been connected to the existing main with the cross over that was just east of Italy Ave. Between Allen Creek and Italy Ave there is now a set of cross overs allowing movement between the two mains.

Until the next report.

Blair Sub Construction Update

Over the past couple of weeks I have been able to get out and explore the work being done on the new double track the UP is building on the Blair Sub. Since my last report there has been some significant progress made on the Iowa side as well as the area from Kennard to Arlington, NE.

On the 7th I as able to do some exploring on the Iowa side of the project. At that time the new second main had been ballasted and the new cross over switch east of Italy Ave had been installed installed. The main had been extended as far as Allen Creek but had not been cut into the existing second main. Westbound movements still had to take the switch at Allen Creek to access the single track sub.

MKCVP passing through Allen Creek by the end of the new double track.

New second main looking west toward California Jct., IA

On the 14th one of the areas infamous mentally and socially unstable super foamers reported that the new double track section from Allen Creek to just east of California Jct was now open. Interestingly (probably telling of his status) no one replied to his notice.

During my trip to this area on the 20th it was observed that the new second main was indeed completed and being used. While looking over the area west from Italy Ave, I noticed that the old main had a MOW mobile welding truck on it and the third main contained around 20 ballast cars parked on it. A curious observation on the third main is that the eastern most 20 feet of track had been cut and stacked on top of  the continuous track.

UP 6747 leads a eb empty auto rack train on the new second main at Italy Ave west of Missouri Valley, IA.

At California Jct., IA the old CNW search light signals have been retired and pointed away from the main in favor of the new UP Darth Vader signals. Track sub grade work has stopped short of the west Fremont Ave crossing. Utility poles are being installed that will clear the new ROW both horizontally and vertically. Once this is completed the little bit of remaining ROW work should be finished rather quickly.

Looking west from Fremont Ave at California Jct., IA.

Current junction for the end of double track east of California Jct., IA.

Old CNW search lights have been replaced by new signals at California Jct., IA.

On both sides of the Austin Ave crossing I noted that the UP had laid down asphalt on top of the sub grade fines. I had only seen this done once before by the BNSF in western TX on the double tracking of the transcon. I am guessing this was done to add more stability to the row as this is old river bottom land and can get water logged during wet times.

Another interesting item was noted on the east side of the Austin Ave crossing. Four corrugated pipes around 12 inches in diameter are sticking up about a foot out of the ground in a square grid pattern. I'm not sure what these are for and can only assume its for signals.

The bridge over the slough between Austin and Corning Avenues is completed and ready for ties and track to be laid. The row is also completed up to the Corning Ave from the east.

Asphalt sub base west of Austin ave crossing.

West of Corning Ave there has been another dramatic change in the past two weeks. On the 7th I noted that grading of the new row toward the river had started. On the 20th this work had progressed to the point were the new row has the sub base fines laid down. On the north side of the existing row grading is occurring and trucks hauling in dirt were noted dumping there loads about half way up the incline to the Missouri River bridge.

A look out sits on the freshly built row as grading continues on the northwest side of  the Corning Ave crossing.

It is difficult to see what is actually occurring on the north side of the row west from Corning Ave as roads are not readily available. There is a county road that does go under the Hwy 30 bridge to the north side but is it closed except to construction crews. A grader and trucks dropping loads were seen across the fields along the southwestern running tangent but no real detail could be seen.

From the Blair, NE side of the river I could not see any activity on the Iowa side. I did notice that there is excavation work and pilings be positioned just north of the public boat ramp. I do not know if this is work being done by the city or part of the UP project. A curious note is this work does line up with the old SC&P row that lead to the river ferries back in the late 1880's.

West from Blair no other work was noted until Kennard, NE. The bridge work that had been reported previously is now completed on the old Kennard siding. The old row has been regraded and sub base fines laid down and compacted. Ribbon rail has been laid next to the new row and the row is being prepped for ties and the rail to be installed.

Looking west along the old Kennard siding.

From the area of the old West Kennard siding to Co Rd 21, the row grading has been completed and the sub base fines laid down. Culvert and bridge work is also completed and the row is nearly ready for ties and rail to be installed. Looking west from the Co Rd 21 crossing the new row is clearly visible with the white rock sub grade laid down. It appears that the existing track will deviate into the new cut and the new track will cross the existing line. When the time comes for this cut over it will result in the line being shut down while for awhile. These typically occurs on Mondays when traffic on the sub is low.

Looking west from Co Rd 21 at new row.

Looking east toward Kennard from Co Rd 21.

On both sides of the Co Rd 19 crossing the row grading is completed and the sub base fines have been installed. At the top of Arlington Hill the excavation work on the cutting back of the hill to the east has been completed along with the installation of the bridge east of the hill. Grading and sub base fines have been laid and the row is nearing completion for ties and rail to be installed.

Looking up grade west from Co Rd 19.

The area around Co Rd 15 is still under construction. It is here where the line will be dramatically changed, The s-curve west of the crossing will be removed and the line shifted to the north from its present location at the crossing. Some of the sub grade has been completed west of Co Rd 15 heading down grade toward Arlington, but this section is not complete.

The s-curve west of Co Rd 15 that will be eliminated.

At Co Rd P11 heavy equipment was seen working the new row up to the creek. West from the creek up to the grain elevator on the east side of Arlington, NE, row work has started. 

From Arlington west to Fremont no work has begun.

Heavy equipment working west of Co Rd P11.

UP Blair Sub 05/05/12

I was able to do a quick recon of the construction progress on the east side of the Blair Sub today. I had hoped that the new mains had been installed but they hadn't started laying the track yet.

Missouri Valley
Signal crews are still working on the signalling with activity spotted east of the depot. The yard is full of construction materials. Many cast concrete bridge decks where noted loaded on bulk head flats. The concrete tie train was also spotted with the car that lays the ties on the west end of the yard.

Italy Ave.
No new work was noted at this crossing since my last report.

California Jct.
This is the current focus of activity. About 1/4 to 1/2 mile east of Fremont Ave the switches for the new main and the third main have been cut into the existing main. On the north side thier has been enough track laid to allow about 4 MOW track machines to be parked.

A nb empty grain train holding at California Jct., IA

Corning Ave.

The surprise of the day is the amount of process the UP is having in installing the new bridge over the slough to the east of Corning Ave. 

New bridge being installed west of California Jct., IA.

Since my last report the UP has the bridge installed half way across the slough. Lots of contractor dump trucks were seen running down to the slough dumping there loads and then back west to Nebraska.

The only other work observed is signals, drainage and some grading around California Jct.

Blair Sub Update 04/06/12

A continuation of the Feb 20, 2012 post of the ongoing changes being done to the Blair Sub between Missouri Valley, IA and E. Fremont, NE. For ease of reference I have created this Blair Sub changes map

Missouri Valley, IA

Crews continue to work on the configuration changes needed for the junction of the Boone, Omaha and Blair subs. Once completed the junction with be configured with the Omaha Sub east bound connections being moved further to the east in Missouri Valley and the west  bound connection curvature eased.

Switch heater gas lines and signal bases are currently being worked on. The signal boxes have all been moved further away from the current ROW to allow for the new alignments.

E. Missouri Valley, IA looking east.

E. Missouri Valley looking west.

Current Omaha Sub connector

Looking toward east Missouri Valley

A curious note is the land owner who owns the land section on the south side of the ROW have erected 'No Trespassing' signs and positioned large trees along the border to prevent incursion on to his land. This individual is a charmer as I have encountered him once (which was enough) while on the side of S. 6th St. video taping some east bounds. Like most isolated small town people he is more than opinionated about his vision of the world. He is also the owner of the local gun shop which makes him even more charming.

Allen Creek to California Jct., IA

Around Italy Ave, not much activity has occurred since February. The ROW has been mostly used as an access road. The new switch for main two just to the east of Italy Ave is now completed but has not been cut in. 

New signaling has been installed about half way between Italy Ave and Grover Ave.There are four signal masts positioned in this area for the new main two and main three tracks. It is unknown if there will be a set of cross overs at this location or it this will be a new interlocking.

New main two looking west from Italy Ave.

Looking est toward the Allen Creek interlocking.

New switch for main two just east of Italy Ave.

Most of the current activity  is currently occurring east of California Jct on this segment. A new switch has been installed from the current main to the new main 2 ROW about 100 yards east of Fremont Ave. This switch is currently leading to nowhere.

Looking east from Fremont Ave.

The new switch can be seen in this photo.

California Jct to Corning Ave.
Work has progressed on the new ROW from California Jct to Corning Ave since Febuary. Most of the work is currently concentrated at the slough to the west of Austin Ave. Bridge work has begun in earnest with the UP building a temp berm out into the slough to allow for pilings to be driven.

At California Jct. new CTC signals are being installed to replace the searchlight signals currently in place.

Looking west from Fremont Ave at new ROW. New signals can bee seen in the distance.

Looking east from Austin Ave. Drainage work is still ongoing in this section.

Looking west from Austin Ave.

The temp berm alongside the current bridge at the slough.

The work around Corning Ave is confusing as the northwest corner of the crossing are has ROW prep work occurring while the northeast corner does not. There is no evidence that this are will be used with this project as it is untouched.

Corning Ave northwest side looking west.

Looking east at the northeast side of Corning Ave.

Looking east at the work area where the new bridge over the slough will be.

Corning Ave to Hwy 92 Blair, NE
Crews are working on the Iowa side of the Missouri River bridge incline. This area is off limits and no work can be observed from the Blair side or Iowa side.

No activity or survey markers where noted between the Missouri River and CP Duffy.

CP Duffy to Kennard, NE
This section of double track is in use.

Kennard to Arlington Hill.
The old Kennard siding has been completely removed and realignment work begun west of the Papio Creek  bridge west of Kennard proper.This involves cutting into the hill along the south side of the ROW and moving the old siding ROW to this new alignment.

Looking west toward the old East Kennard siding switch.

Current start of double track looking east at Kennard.

New alignment for the old Kennard siding area.

Work continues on the two bridges over the Papio creek tributaries that were crossed by the old Kennard siding. No other work was observed on the new ROW that will replace the old Kennard siding though.

East crossing of the Papio creek

Removed Kennard siding looking west.

Bridge work on the west end of the old Kennard siding.

The access road that was used to gain access to the switches at West Kennard has been removed as crews are currently widening the "cut" under the Hwy 30 overpass. Heavy equipment is positioned in the field between the creek bridge and Hwy 30 for use on the ROW build west of Hwy 30 to Co Rd 21.

East of Co Rd 21 to Hwy 30 has not seen any work other than drainage and tree clearing. With the heavy equipment positioned east of Hwy 30 this may soon change. The excavation work west of  Co Rd 21 appears to be completed for now.This work is observable on the satellite image of the Blair Sub changes map. The curve will be changed in this are to allow for higher speeds.

Looking east from C Rd 21 toward Hwy 30

Drainage work at Co Rd 21.

New ROW between Co Rd 21 and Co Rd 19.

At Co Rd 19 rough excavation work was observed for drainage and signal cabling. A UP crew was also observed working on the CTC signal shack east of the Co Rd. 21 crossing.

Looking south at the Co Rd 19 crossing

Looking southeast at the Co Rd 19 crossing

Looking east toward the Co Rd 21.

The summit of Arlington Hill has had major excavation work done. The narrow cut is now widened and the south side of the hill contoured with a tapered slope. Just easy of Co Rd 34 drainage pipes have been staged for use in drainage work.

East of Co Rd 34 to Co Rd 21 no excavation work was observed. Tree and brush has been removed and rough access paths have been cut in though.

Looking west from Co Rd 34 at the summit of Arlington Hill.

Arlington Hill summit to Arlington, NE
The old tree farm at the summit of Arlington Hill appears to be UP property now. Material and equipment was noted staged on the property and the house is empty.

The west side of Arlington Hill has has a number of changes made to it. The cut atthe summit has been widened and the ROW shifted to the north.

Arlington Hill summit west side changes.

 West of Co Rd 15 the excavation work for the elimination of the s-curve is nearing rough completion. Culvert and drainage work was observed along the ROW heading west from this crossing.

Excavation work to eliminate the s-curve. 

From Co Rd 15 to Co Rd P11 the ROW is away from the road and can not be directly observed. It was possible to see through the trees culvert and drainage work being done and some excavation work for the new ROW.

At Co Rd  P11 excavation work was observed on the north side of the current ROW. The new main will shift over to this side somewhere on Arlington Hill as it will be on the south side of the existing ROW from Kennard to Arlington Hill.

Looking north east from the Co Rd P11 crossing.

Looking south west from the Co Rd P11 crossing.

Survey stakes are now seen through Arlington with the new alignment going between the existing main and the town. I had been lead to believe that the ROW would have used the old Elkhorn ROW through Arlington. No excavation work was noted through Arlington up to E. Fremont.