2nd Street, Trafford, AL

[freebrickproductions]

*originally recorded on 8-24-21*

Signal on the left: 2 pairs of Safetran 12x24 inch lights with WCH 2nd Generation LEDs.
Signal on the right: 3 pairs of Safetran 12x24 inch lights with WCH 2nd Generation LEDs and a General Signals Type 2 electronic bell.

On August 24th, I went back down to the southern end of the CSX S&NA North Sub to try and get at least this crossing recorded. Thankfully, when I got here, there was a Q521 waiting at the siding to my north and not too long after, the dispatcher gave it permission to head south towards Birmingham. As such, I only had to wait a little bit before I would get my first train of the day: Q521 heading south to Birmingham with an ES44AH pulling on the head-end, and an ES40DC and another ES44AH working as the mid-train DPUs. Not sure why the engines were in a 1+2 arrangement like this, but it's certainly a bit different.

This crossing is the southernmost gateless crossing on the CSX S&NA North Subdivision, and I'm finally glad to have gotten it recorded. The signals here are an old L&N install, I believe from the 70s, though like the rest of the crossings along this line, CSX has modernized them over the years. It appears that in the early 2000s, CSX upgraded all of the lights here to Safetran 12x24s and replaced the bell with the current GS Type 2. Then, in 2013, the signals here were upgraded to LED. Since then though, thankfully no major changes have occured to this crossing, which honestly still looks pretty decent. I think it helps that the masts here look a bit rusted, which helps give this crossing more of an "aged" feel to it.

http://www.rxrsignals.com/Alabama/R-Z/Trafford/2/