Ernestine Street, Orlando, FL

[freebrickproductions]

*originally recorded on 6-24-25*

Signal on the left: 3 pairs of Safetran 12x24 inch lights with Dialight Ball LEDs, a General Signals Type 3 electronic bell, a Siemens gate mechanism, NEG LED gate lights, and a RECO LED gate light.
Signal on the far right: 2 pairs of WCH 12x20 inch lights with GE Uniform Look LEDs, a Siemens gate mechanism, and NEG LED gate lights.
Signal on the near right: 1 pair of RACO 12 inch lights.
This crossing is located in a quiet zone. Trains do not usually blow their horns at this crossing.

After catching the Auto Train, I decided to hop on down to Orlando to finish-out my day with some SunRail foaming. I decided to head for this crossing between downtown Orlando and the Amtrak station first where, 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.

This crossing is a rather nice one, and features a very unusual install at it. The signals here were originally installed by the SCL back in the late-60s/early-70s. Interestingly, likely due to having three tracks at the time right next to a parallel street, the SCL installed this originally as a "one-gate wonder" with the gated cantilever on the left, and the unusual mast-arm set-up with two RACO 12 inch lights mounted to it, with signs mounted around the lights that state "No Left/Right Turn When Flashing". It appears that, in the 1980s, either the SBD or CSX replaced the gate mech here with a WCH one. Then, sometime in the late-90s or 2000s, CSX replaced the bell here with either a General Signals e-bell or a Safetran Type 2 e-bell. After that, sometime between 2007 and 2008, the cantilever had all of its lights replaced with the current LED Safetran 12x24s, along with the bell here being replaced (again) at about the same time with a Safetran Type 3 e-bell. The crossing then remained largely unchanged for a few years after, before SunRail decided to try and squeeze a crossbuck in between the long-abandoned 3rd track and the road on the near side here. Then, sometime between 2016 and 2018, SunRail redid the grade here and decided to rip-out the remains of the long abandoned 3rd track here, though the one-gate wonder install remained. Not for long it'd turn-out, however, as not too long after between 2018 and 2019, SunRail finally installed a new gated mast signal on the west side of the crossing. After that, sometime between 2020 and 2021, the Safetran Type 3 e-bell here would get replaced as well, this time with the current General Signals Type 3 e-bell. Finally, sometime after 2024, SunRail would replace the WCH gate mech on the old Federal Signal cantilever here with the current Siemens one.
Thankfully, despite all of these changes, the unusual "no turn" signal on the west side of the crossing has remained largely untouched since being installed by the SCL over 50 years ago. The signal even still remains fully incandescent, which is great to see, and has some of the last few incandescent lights left on the SunRail's main. The next crossing south also features a pair of these as well, but I didn't get a chance to film them sadly. They do feature newer Safetran 12 inch heads as well, so not as big of a loss I suppose. Due to being squeezed in between a pair of active tracks and a road where a long-abandoned 3rd track was, the newer mast signal here from SunRail also has a bit of an unusual design. It completely lacks any front or rear lights, instead just having two pairs of side lights mounted on a small extension from the mast. Given that this is a T-intersection here, I suppose it doesn't need too many more lights than the two pairs of side lights.