NERR 5938 - Nashville, TN - 12-12-18
Despite the forecast predicting the weather would be mostly sunny and mild all day, the chilly and cloudy weather over Nashville, TN, on the morning of December 12th, 2018, seemed almost fitting. With all of the sad news about untimely demises within the past couple of weeks, it can sometimes be rather somber during the holiday season. However, despite all of this, I happened to see NERR 5938 hard at work organizing the Nashville & Eastern Railroad's yard near downtown Nashville, proving that despite all of the negative news, life just soldiers on as usual. In a way though, the patched-paint scheme of the locomotive's former owner, does almost seem fitting, with how the paint job was nicknamed "Dark Future" after CSX started putting it on their locomotives in the early-2000s.
But even this scene won't be around for much longer. Back in early November, news broke that RJ Corman, with the FRA's approval, had just purchased the NERR and associated operations (including the Nashville & Western Railroad and Music City Star commuter trains), and would be taking over operations on this part of the former Tennessee Central Railway on January 1st, 2019. While the fact that the NERR (and NWR) will be joining the "'fallen flag' club" with countless other railroads may make the paint scheme's nickname rather fitting, it does have a hint of irony to it as RJ Corman likely wouldn't have bought the lines had they not seen a potential for profit with them. There's also the fact that RJ Corman has a dedicated marketing department, something which the NERR never had, which should make acquiring new customers along the line easier for the railroad.
So as we head on into 2019, while the future may seem dark right now, we've most likely got a brighter one ahead.
NERR 5938 - Nashville, TN - 12-12-18
Despite the forecast predicting the weather would be mostly sunny and mild all day, the chilly and cloudy weather over Nashville, TN, on the morning of December 12th, 2018, seemed almost fitting. With all of the sad news about untimely demises within the past couple of weeks, it can sometimes be rather somber during the holiday season. However, despite all of this, I happened to see NERR 5938 hard at work organizing the Nashville & Eastern Railroad's yard near downtown Nashville, proving that despite all of the negative news, life just soldiers on as usual. In a way though, the patched-paint scheme of the locomotive's former owner, does almost seem fitting, with how the paint job was nicknamed "Dark Future" after CSX started putting it on their locomotives in the early-2000s.
But even this scene won't be around for much longer. Back in early November, news broke that RJ Corman, with the FRA's approval, had just purchased the NERR and associated operations (including the Nashville & Western Railroad and Music City Star commuter trains), and would be taking over operations on this part of the former Tennessee Central Railway on January 1st, 2019. While the fact that the NERR (and NWR) will be joining the "'fallen flag' club" with countless other railroads may make the paint scheme's nickname rather fitting, it does have a hint of irony to it as RJ Corman likely wouldn't have bought the lines had they not seen a potential for profit with them. There's also the fact that RJ Corman has a dedicated marketing department, something which the NERR never had, which should make acquiring new customers along the line easier for the railroad.
So as we head on into 2019, while the future may seem dark right now, we've most likely got a brighter one ahead.