Southwest Road, Sanford, FL

[freebrickproductions]

*originally recorded on 6-23-25*

Signal on the left: 2 pairs of Safetran 12x24 inch lights with General Signals LEDs, a General Signals Type 3 electronic bell, a Siemens gate mechanism, and NEG LED gate lights.
Signal on the right: 2 pairs of Safetran 12x24 inch lights with General Signals LEDs, a General Signals Type 3 electronic bell, a Siemens gate mechanism, and NEG LED gate lights.
Pedestrian signal on the right: 2 pairs of WCH 12x20 inch lights with GE Uniform Look LEDs, a US&S Model 95 gate mechanism, and NEG LED gate lights.
This crossing is located in a quiet zone. Trains do not usually blow their horns at this crossing.

After getting the southbound SunRail at Country Club Road, I hopped-up to the nearby pair of crossings at Southwest Road and 18th Street to see about catching another couple of trains there. After a bit of waiting, I was able to get my fifth train of the day: a northbound SunRail commuter train with an MP32PH-Q for power pulling and another friendly crew aboard.

This crossing is a pretty decent one, which shares its relay case with and appears to operate with the neighboring 18th Street crossing just to its north. The signals here appear to have been originally installed by the SCL back in the late-1970s, though in the mid-90s, CSX replaced all of the lights here with the current Safetran 12x24s (which were originally incandescent). At about the same time, I believe, both bells here were replaced by WCH mechanical bells, which honestly made this crossing look a lot like a 90s CSX install. The crossing remained largely unchanged for over a decade, but then, sometime between 2011 and 2013, SunRail added the second track here, and replaced the relay case from between the two crossings with a new one in the east corner of this crossing. At the same time, the far signal here was moved slightly and all of the lights here were upgraded to LED, along with the pedestrian signal here being installed, though originally it featured a short mast and no lights on it other than the gate lights. Then, sometime between 2015 and 2019, SunRail replaced the mast of the ped signal here with a taller one, reusing the same gate mech and base, and added the WCH 12x20s to it. Next, sometime between 2019 and 2021, both bells here were replaced by the current GS Type 3 e-bells. Finally, sometime after 2022, SunRail replaced both of the original Safetran gate mechs here with the current Siemens gate mechs. Thankfully, the (well modernized) late-70s SCL signals still remain here, and hopefully they continue to serve for many more years to come. Admittedly, this definitely ain't the most interesting crossing on the SunRail, far from it in fact, but I do quite like the angle here TBH.