Shannon-Oxmoor Road, Shannon, AL

[freebrickproductions]

*originally recorded on 1-16-20*

Signal on the left: 2 pairs of Safetran 12x24 inch lights with Dialight Ball LEDs, a Safetran Type 2 electronic bell, a Safetran gate mechanism, and NEG LED gate lights.
Signal on the right: 2 pairs of Safetran 12x24 inch lights with Dialight Ball LEDs, a Safetran gate mechanism, and RECO LED gate lights.

After I caught the southbound coal train, I decided to head on down to the southernmost crossing on this part of the S&NA North Sub for my next train. After a good 1 & 1/4 hour of waiting, I finally saw what wound-up being my last train of the day: a short southbound CSX mixed freight with an ET44AH leading an ES44AH.

This crossing is another pretty nice one. It features a pair of CSX signals from the mid-2000s, which haven't had any major changes to them since they were installed, outside of both gate arms having been replaced. This crossing is a bit of a scenic one being located within the small unincorporated town of Shannon, AL, right outside of the cities of Birmingham and Hoover. In fact, the sign for Hoover's City Limits can be seen just beyond the crossing.
This crossing made the news in 2016 when a Birmingham City Schools school bus was filmed (with several other drivers) going around the lowered gates here during what was an apparent malfunction, leading to an investigation by the city school board. CSX apparently inspected the crossing after the incident and found that the signals were in "perfect working order".
A few news articles about the incident can be seen here:
https://www.wbrc.com/story/31006993/vid ... ing-gates/
https://www.al.com/news/birmingham/2016 ... nvest.html
https://www.al.com/news/birmingham/2016 ... g_whe.html