Mainline Meet
Recently rebuilt and repainted F40PH-3C 1030 has quickly become a favorite of railfans as the newest and quite possibly prettiest 'heritage' unit to be found just about anywhere on rails!
After shooting her at West Concord I raced west and literally made it to Shirley 23 minutes later with seconds to spare just in time to see her pass Berkshire and Eastern train B101 right at the Benjamin Road crossing. She is seen leading Wachusett bound outbound Keolis/MBTA train 5427 slowing for a flag stop here on Main 1 of modern day the Keolis/MBTA Fitchburg Line main at MP 39.5 (measured from Boston North Station) which is also MP 319.5 (measured from Mattawamkeag, ME) on the ex Pan Am Freight Mainline.
Berkshire and Eastern is a Genesee and Wyoming owned company which was created to serve as the neutral third party operator of the former Pan Am Southern property as a condition of the sale of Pan Am Railways to CSX in 2022. B101 is the symbol B&E uses for this to Ayer to Park Manor Yard in Chicago intermodal which turns into Norfolk Southern train 263 at Mechanicville and used to be known as 23K. The train is led by the standard SD60E which is necessary due to it being one of a small fleet of this model equipped with ACSES for operation on the MBTA property between Ayer and Westminster.
This train is on borrowed time here because another condition of the sale of Pan Am was the granting of trakage rights to NS for the operation of one daily pair of premium trains (this one and its eastbound counterpart) over CSXT's former Boston and Albany route. These trains will leave their current routing via the Boston and Maine Fitchburg Route and instead depart Ayer south on the Worcester Main then utilize CSXT's, Boston, Berkshire and Castleton Subs to Selkirk then west to Voorheesville where they will hop onto NS's old Delaware and Hudson Albany main to Delanson where they will rejoin their current route to Binghamton and points west. Allegedly, that routing will commence anytime, so if you want shots of 'the pig train' on the old B&M the time is now.
Shirley, Massachusetts
Saturday September 27, 2025
Mainline Meet
Recently rebuilt and repainted F40PH-3C 1030 has quickly become a favorite of railfans as the newest and quite possibly prettiest 'heritage' unit to be found just about anywhere on rails!
After shooting her at West Concord I raced west and literally made it to Shirley 23 minutes later with seconds to spare just in time to see her pass Berkshire and Eastern train B101 right at the Benjamin Road crossing. She is seen leading Wachusett bound outbound Keolis/MBTA train 5427 slowing for a flag stop here on Main 1 of modern day the Keolis/MBTA Fitchburg Line main at MP 39.5 (measured from Boston North Station) which is also MP 319.5 (measured from Mattawamkeag, ME) on the ex Pan Am Freight Mainline.
Berkshire and Eastern is a Genesee and Wyoming owned company which was created to serve as the neutral third party operator of the former Pan Am Southern property as a condition of the sale of Pan Am Railways to CSX in 2022. B101 is the symbol B&E uses for this to Ayer to Park Manor Yard in Chicago intermodal which turns into Norfolk Southern train 263 at Mechanicville and used to be known as 23K. The train is led by the standard SD60E which is necessary due to it being one of a small fleet of this model equipped with ACSES for operation on the MBTA property between Ayer and Westminster.
This train is on borrowed time here because another condition of the sale of Pan Am was the granting of trakage rights to NS for the operation of one daily pair of premium trains (this one and its eastbound counterpart) over CSXT's former Boston and Albany route. These trains will leave their current routing via the Boston and Maine Fitchburg Route and instead depart Ayer south on the Worcester Main then utilize CSXT's, Boston, Berkshire and Castleton Subs to Selkirk then west to Voorheesville where they will hop onto NS's old Delaware and Hudson Albany main to Delanson where they will rejoin their current route to Binghamton and points west. Allegedly, that routing will commence anytime, so if you want shots of 'the pig train' on the old B&M the time is now.
Shirley, Massachusetts
Saturday September 27, 2025