Mike's Railroad Crossing Forum

*originally recorded on 6-24-25*

Busway crossing:
Signal on the far left: 2 pairs of Safetran 12x24 inch lights with GE Uniform Look LEDs, a General Signals Type 3 electronic bell, a US&S Model 95 gate mechanism, and NEG LED gate lights.
Signal on the near left: 2 pairs of WCH 12x24 inch lights with GE Uniform Look LEDs, a Siemens gate mechanism, and NEG LED gate lights.
Signal on the far right: 1 pair of WCH 12x24 inch lights with GE Uniform Look LEDs, a Siemens gate mechanism, and NEG LED gate lights.
Signal on the near right: 2 pairs of Safetran 12x24 inch lights with GE Uniform Look LEDs, a Safetran gate mechanism, and NEG LED gate lights.
Pedestrian signal on the left: a US&S Model 95 gate mechanism and NEG LED gate lights.
Livingston Street crossing:
Signal on the far left: 2 pairs of Safetran 12x24 inch lights with GE Uniform Look LEDs, a Safetran gate mechanism, and NEG LED gate lights.
Signal on the near left: 1 pair of WCH 12x24 inch lights with GE Uniform Look LEDs, a Siemens gate mechanism, and NEG LED gate lights.
Signal on the far right: 1.5 pairs of WCH 12x24 inch lights with GE Uniform Look LEDs, 1 Safetran 12x24 inch light with a Dialight Low Wattage LED, a Siemens gate mechanism, and NEG LED gate lights.
Signal on the near right: 2 pairs of Safetran 12x24 inch lights with GE Uniform Look LEDs, a Safetran Type 3 electronic bell, a US&S Model 95 gate mechanism, and NEG LED gate lights.
Pedestrian signal on the right: a US&S Model 95 gate mechanism and
These crossings are located in a quiet zone. Trains do not usually blow their horns at these crossings.

After catching the southbound SunRail at Church Street, I walked a few blocks back north to Livingston Street for my next train. After a little bit of waiting, I was able to catch my eighth train of the day: another southbound SunRail commuter train with an MP32PH-Q for power, shoving on the rear.

This is definitely a rather cool set-up, and I'm quite glad I got to record it. It appears that, at some point, I'm assuming in the mid-90s, the city of Orlando decided to add a busway along Livingston Street here. As a result, CSX installed a quartet of gated signals here in the mid-90s, two protecting the busway and two protecting Livingston Street, with both crossings operating together (unsurprisingly). Honestly, the set-up here kinda reminds me of the Pont Croesor Level Crossings over in Wales (over there in the UK), which I know Nathan_A_RF, JTCrossingsUK, and SouthEastLevelCrossings all filmed at different points.
Anyways, in the late-90s or 2000s, CSX replaced both bells here with GS e-bells, though I don't know what "type" they were. The crossings here remained largely unchanged for a few years after that, though, sometime between 2008 and 2011, CSX replaced the bell on the Livingston Street crossing with the current Safetran Type 3 e-bell. Then, sometime between 2013 and 2014, SunRail replaced the gate mechs on the signals with the bells with the current US&S Model 95 gate mechs. At about the same time, both pedestrian signals here were installed as well. Then, sometime between 2018 and 2019, in preparation of this becoming a quiet zone, SunRail installed all four exit signals on both crossings. At the same time, the crossbucks were moved from the two entry signals in the median between the crossings to the two exit signals mounted in front of them. After that, sometime between 2021 and 2022, the bell on the busway crossing was replaced with the current GS Type 3 e-bell. Finally, sometime between 2022 and 2024, all of the lights on the mid-90s CSX signals here were upgraded to LED, while at about the same time the front-right light on the right-hand exit signal on the Livingston Street side was replaced with the current Safetran 12x24 inch light with a Dialight Low Wattage LED. Thankfully, since then, nothing has changed to this neat pair of crossings. I will admit, it's nice to see that the two entry signals in the median between the two crossings still retain their original gate mechs, which are honestly probably the oldest gate mechs left on the SunRail in downtown Orlando. All in all, this is a rather neat set-up, and I'm glad I was able to record it. I believe this is technically the first time I've ever filmed a crossing on a busway, TBH. Interestingly, the bells here also shut off when the entry gates have lowered.