I stopped in downtown Roanoke this weekend to see firsthand some of the ongoing track work visible on the Roanoke Rail Cam. The Rail Cam gives only the "soda straw" affect and the entire scene was impressive to see. The MOW crews were removing whole sections, moving track sideways through ballast, replacing and ballasting elsewhere and taking down signals as new track goes through where the signal stands were.
According to a foreman who spoke with us along the Rail Walk, NS is taking out the famous kinks and crossovers and making signal upgrades to improve the overall flow along the mains. It will also be able to more safely handle passenger traffic by Amtrak, estimated in the fall of 2017.
Here are a couple of before and after perspectives that show the famous curving mains and the beginnings of their new appearance. The first is looking west just a couple of weeks ago. Here you can see the preliminary work and staging. Note the signals still in place.
This Sunday, the left-most track had been removed and reconnected to the middle line near where the closer signal bridge was located. Other work continues.
Here's a look in the opposite direction from the 1st Street bridge
As I mentioned, this was impressive to watch. Even further was the fact that trains were passing through on Sunday night.
Bryan
