Norton Avenue #2, Sylacauga, AL

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Norton Avenue #2, Sylacauga, AL

Post by freebrickproductions » Sat Feb 02, 2019 4:21 pm



*originally recorded on 1-30-19*

Signal on the left: 3 pairs of Safetran 12x20 inch lights with GE Uniform Look LEDs, a General Signals Type 3 electronic bell, a Siemens gate mechanism, and RECO LED gate lights.
Signal on the right: 2 pairs of Safetran 12x20 inch lights with GE Uniform Look LEDs, a General Signals Type 3 electronic bell, a Siemens gate mechanism, and RECO LED gate lights.

While documenting an old traffic light just up the street from this crossing, I saw that this crossing kept activating and deactivating, seemingly at regular intervals. So when I came over here to document the crossing (and nearby block signals), I left my camera running and recorded several of the activations. I called it in after recording the crossing, but later when speaking with a signal maintainer a bit further down the line, he said it was functioning normally. Apparently, the detection circuit for this crossing extends out from this crossing quite a ways, so even though the MOW crew was a good bit north of it, it was still close enough to activate the crossing as the equipment moved around, which is why I put the word malfunctions in quotation marks in the title.

The crossing itself isn't too unusual, being a pretty typical NS install from about 2017 or 2018 (it was certainly installed by August of 2018 according to Google Street View), having replaced a pair of crossbucks. However, a bit unusually, is that the crossing features a pair of extremely tall mast signals, likely due to the length of the gates. Gated mast signals this tall seem to be pretty typical on most NS lines, though usually not more than one or two crossings per line will have them, from my observations. One of the gate mechanisms is also a bit slower to raise than the other, for some reason.

Also, just north of this crossing, still stands an old Central of Georgia US&S Searchlight signal, guarding a short siding just north of the crossing. The other end of the siding has another pair of similar Searchlights, with both ends having some SOU-era dwarf signals protecting the siding track, but the signal for southbound trains on the main at the south end of the siding is a dwarf signal, interestingly enough. Typically, dwarf signals would've been used for siding tracks and not main tracks, but for some reason, one was used for the main track at this siding. The NS P Line is the only mainline in Alabama that still has Searchlight signals in use along it. In the past, even just 10 years ago, Searchlights were much more common across Alabama, along with the Southeast and pretty much the rest of the US & Canada as a whole, thanks to the fact that many railroads once used them, including the CofG, ATSF, L&N, ACL, SP, Wabash, NYC, and Frisco. However, thanks to the mandated PTC upgrades, along with the fact that many of these Searchlight signals getting up there in age, and with railroads moving towards one standard of signal for the most part, most of these Searchlights have long since disappeared. However, as the NS P Line doesn't see much traffic typically, these Central of Georgia Searchlights, along with the many SOU-era tri-light signals along the line, will likely continue to hang on for a while longer.
They/Them for me, please.

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freebrickproductions
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Re: Norton Avenue #2, Sylacauga, AL

Post by freebrickproductions » Fri Oct 14, 2022 9:24 am

No changes here as of 7-7-22, though I did get to film on the side with the searchlight signal this time around:


http://www.rxrsignals.com/Alabama/R-Z/S ... a/Norton2/
They/Them for me, please.

Click here if you want to submit crossing photos to the site!

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