Metro Jacksonville

A Day On The St. Mary's Railroad

(http://photos.metrojacksonville.com/Trains/St-Marys-Railroad/i-nCMmRp2/0/M/1003081-M.jpg)

While the greater Jacksonville region is the well known home of major railroad companies such as CSX and Florida East Coast, there are also several smaller class III railroad operations that call the First Coast home.  Today, Metro Jacksonville takes a look at the behind the scenes operation of the St. Mary's Railroad.

Full Article
http://www.metrojacksonville.com/article/2012-apr-a-day-on-the-st-marys-railroad

What a neat experience. Enjoyed the tour.

How often do they run? How much does it cost? Where does it go?

I hope Ock did not miss that...

Terrific article. Thanks for sharing guys!

Ock set it up. He was like a kid in a candy store out there.

I know Richard Long, the engineer. Used to work for Seaboard, then Amtrak, then he retired from there. Has a ride around model railroad in his yard. He was engineer on the Sunset Limited when it ran from Jacksonville to New Orleans in the good old days. Super nice man.

Great photos, even by MJ's high standards.

Quote from: thelakelander on April 23, 2012, 08:03:43 AM
Ock set it up. He was like a kid in a candy store out there.

Good to hear...

Yes, I was there, standing in the engine cab observing the operation and opportunities to increase business. It's always a bit entertaining to watch people with no railroad background or experience get their first taste of what it feels like to manage 248,000 pounds, 1,200 horsepower, 600 gallons of fuel and 35,000 pounds of tractive effort. You get a real appreciation for these crews when it dawns on you that you might not be handling the locomotive and that the locomotive might be handling you!

To answer one of the questions, "how much did it cost?" It only cost years of rubbing elbows with these guys, a railroad with some needs, and a proactive media group that usually has a lot of answers. We may be talking about MJ excursions in the future, when that happens, we'll post the fare.

A bunch of these railroaders go way back with me, Richard Long is one of them. We hadn't seen each other for about 30 years... or as Richard put it, a whole lot of pounds ago.

Creative business ideas is the key to the St. Mary's survival, and that port would be the key to it prospering again.

BOB

Yes, I was there, standing in the engine cab observing the operation and opportunities to increase business. It's always a bit entertaining to watch people with no railroad background or experience get their first taste of what it feels like to manage 248,000 pounds, 1,200 horsepower, 600 gallons of fuel and 35,000 pounds of tractive effort. You get a real appreciation for these crews when it dawns on you that you might not be handling the locomotive and that the locomotive might be handling you!

To answer one of the questions, "how much did it cost?" It only cost years of rubbing elbows with these guys, a railroad with some needs, and a proactive media group that usually has a lot of answers. We may be talking about MJ excursions in the future, when that happens, we'll post the fare.

A bunch of these railroaders go way back with me, Richard Long is one of them. We hadn't seen each other for about 30 years... or as Richard put it, a whole lot of pounds ago. It was like a family reunion, really great to see Richard and catch up on each others railroad adventures.

Creative business ideas is the key to the St. Mary's survival, and that port would be the key to it prospering again.

BOB

Another great story.

And once again: Abandoning the S-line was one of the stupidest things CSuX has ever done.

http://www.youtube.com/v/MPzZNQo8SyQ?version=3&hl=en_US"


On the train you get smaller, as you get farther away
The roar covers everything you wanted to say
Was that a raindrop in the corner of your eye?
Were you drying your nails or waving goodbye?

Cool!
I noticed some limited work on part of the S Line greenway on the east side of Main Street recently.

Sorry Billy, but anything east of Main on the old 'S' could only be more of the bike trail. There's a school right smack in the middle of the old 'S' and THAT will force any streetcar/rail use of a future 'S' to round the curve near Moncrief and Davis then jog north onto the Norfolk Southern right-of-way to get east of Main. Fortunately the city already owns the land, unfortunately at this moment, if you want to see rail transit development in Florida, drive south to Orlando. Jacksonville is digging it's own grave in the race to become a first tier 'world' city.

VERY COOL VIDEO, NOMEUS!

Sadly, I am aware no real transit is planned.

Quote from: Ocklawaha on April 29, 2012, 01:42:13 PM
VERY COOL VIDEO, NOMEUS!

appreciate it bob :)

Great article!  Love the videos and so jealous of those who got to enjoy the experience.  Luckily I have been in NYC for the past few months on business and have had the immense pleasure of riding subways, commuter rail and even their new BRT (They call it Select Service, it is great ... limited stops, easy access, hope JTA can achieve same) but can only imagine what its like sitting behind the "wheel" of those locomotives!

So my hypothetical from this is "in a perfect world where JTA has taken on the true spirit of rapid transit and has figured that people in Georgia do actually work in Jax, would this line serve as a light rail from St Marys (maybe even Kings Bay Naval Base) to Kingsland where they can access commuter rail and AMTRAK, or would this be an actual through service connection of the commuter rail, such as has been talked about for Fernadina from Yulee?"

Jay Bird, the first thing you need to understand is that NONE of this, not Subways, not the St. Mary's Railroad, First Coast Railroad, CSX or Amtrak, is light rail. It's not you fault for not knowing this, today's media is so ignorant of rail operations they scarcely know a coach from a crossing.  Light rail is often used as-if it were "conventional rail done light," but it's nothing like conventional rail. To further muddy the water, one of the benefits of light rail is that the physical plant actually CAN BE rail done light.  Rail is measured in pounds per yard, and traditionally the rails used in these projects have been in the 80 - 130 pound range. Modern freight rail usually runs from 120 - 156 pounds per yard.




In a perfect world it is not very likely that commuter rail would reach all the way into Kings Bay or St. Mary's. There is a remote possibility that at least a few daily runs could end in Kingsland, likewise Fernandina Beach could be a terminus for a couple of daily trains each way. Yulee is the most likely as it will have a station right off of the interstate, US 17 and SR200 easy to get to from Fernandina Beach, Kingsland or Callahan.

The trains would likely be self powered (diesel) conventional rail cars such as rebuilt Budd RDC's or the new DMU types.

The route has no connectivity to either Amtrak or the Florida East Coast's "All Aboard Florida" trains until they reach the old Jacksonville Terminal (The Prime Osborn to the unwashed masses) in downtown Jacksonville. There could be no "through" service on the Yulee/Kings Bay/Fernandina Beach lines as they are all dead end branchlines.

Lastly there is also a remote possibility that Southeast High Speed Rail would use the former Seaboard Air Line Railroad's abandoned right-of-way between Savannah and Kingsland, and upgrade the remaining line from Kingsland to downtown Jacksonville as it is considerably shorter then the current Amtrak/CSX route through Jesup.

Thanks Ock for the clarifications, I am definitely one of the "unwashed masses" however I do call it Jacksonville Terminal because it is not, nor has it ever been a convention center.  Looking through MetroJacksonville, Jax has some real Rail Heritage, I would even dare to say more than the "rail-dependent" northeast ... yet it has been brushed aside for roads and buses.  I had drinks with a city planner for New York City Transit (they operate the MTA subways and buses within the city limits) and was showing him your site.  The biggest thing he noticed was Jacksonville's space.  The high potential to plan a city around rapid transit instead of the other way around as most have to do.  So this got me to thinking, maybe the best thing for Jax is to get rid of Jax people.  Bring in the "outsiders" and see what ideas they have.  Currently in NYC they are spending billions to build the 2nd Avenue Subway ... a plan that has been there since the 1930's.  Jax definitely needs to change something before the chance to grow costs the taxpayers a lot more.

QuoteSt. Marys Railroad to begin passenger excursions

ST. MARYS | As a child, Paul Pleasant used to wake up his parents early.
He cried because he couldn't see the L&N train rumble past their backyard in Milton, Fla. They moved his crib over to the window, and the problem was solved, he said.

Now Pleasant, who left the Navy as a master chief, does more than watch. He's at the controls as the general manager and engineer of St. Marys Railroad, which hauls freight for some manufacturers in St. Marys and makes heavy deliveries to Kings Bay Naval Submarine Base.

Soon, he'll be hauling passengers when the St. Marys Railroad begins an excursion train service between Theatre by the Trax in St. Marys and a turnaround in the woods to the north. The first excursions are Oct. 5 during the annual Rock Shrimp Festival in St. Marys.

QuoteThe Oct. 5 trips will leave St. Marys at noon, 2 p.m. and 4 p.m.

On Oct. 12, the train will leave at 10 a.m., noon, 2 p.m. and 4 p.m.

Tickets are $17 for adults, $11 for ages 3 to 12 and free for ages 2 and younger.

Other trips are planned for Christmas, Mardi Gras in March and July 4.

http://jacksonville.com/news/georgia/2013-09-21/story/st-marys-railroad-begin-passenger-excursions

A natural use for the old Durango-Georgia paper mill site in St. Mary's.... :)

(http://photos.metrojacksonville.com/photos/1804286118_pjpVVSR-M.jpg)
Former Durango-Georgia paper mill site in 2012.

QuoteST. MARYS | A developer says his plans for the former Durango-Georgia paper mill site will be built in phases over a 10-year period and will dedicate 1,000 feet of the waterfront to barge berths and will include some light industry.

Christopher Ragucci, president of Worldwide Group, said during a Monday news conference that he will be the development advisor for Knights of the Green Shield, a company that is working on an agreement with bankruptcy trustee Mike Newsom to buy the 700-acre site.

QuoteAmong the needs for development are remediation along the waterfront including the construction of a 5,000-foot bulkhead along the North River, Ragucci said.

That waterfront work alone could cost $20 million to $50 million, and the site also needs a lot of work because of the rubble left behind by the demolition of the old mill, waste on the site, ponds and other disturbances of the land.

The site is ideal for barge traffic because it is only eight miles from the deepwater port at Fernandina Beach and it has possible links with CSX Transportation and Norfolk Southern railroads, he said.

"This is one of a few properties that includes the opportunity for deepwater, rail and industrial usage,'' Ragucci said.

Full article: http://jacksonville.com/breaking-news/2014-11-17/story/st-marys-barge-port-development-will-take-10-years-cost-20-million-50

Railexciting in my book. Good reuse and the spark of an economic node of infill that will spur future organic growth and development for that area.

I have to say that the tracks did not seem to be in very good repair. Not sure if they were just unused sidings or what, but there were places where the ties looked to be in an advanced stage of decay. I certainly hope this is not the condition of the main line and wish the railroad all the best.