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Thanks for the update Arthur

Hello everyone, here are some updates about the railroad (as of 9:30AM CDST on 8/22/2022)

Unfortunately the demand for woodchips has outstripped the capacity of  the railroad's two 40' grain-loading boxcars, and forced the company to make an insert for one of its 50' gondolas. This device hasn't been used yet, but there are plans to begin using it to transport the aforementioned load as soon as physically possible.

Please stay tuned for further updates as the Phoenix Line Railroad's story continues.

Hello everyone, here are some updates from the railroad to share (as of 3:50PM CDST on 8/29/2022).

The insert added to one of the PLRX's 50' gondolas has been put into use now, and successfully transported a load of woodchips to the paper mill in Arlee. Its been returned to Oakdale now, but will be used to transport another bulk load of woodchips soon.

Please stay tuned for further updates as the Phoenix Line Railroad's story continues.

Hello again everyone, here are some more updates from the Phoenix Line Railroad (as of 11:10AM CDST on 8/31/2022).

While the railroad has managed to handle the demand for woodchips so far, there's been rumblings that it will be making an insert for a 2nd 50' gondola at some point in the near future. Its also been said that the PLRX is looking for some woodchip hoppers as well, but such has yet to be confirmed.

Please stay tuned for further updates as the Phoenix Line Railroad's story continues.

Hello everyone, here's a few more updates from the Phoenix Line Railroad (as of 10:25AM CDST on 9/2/2022).

The previously mentioned rumor has been confirmed as a woodchip insert for a 2nd 50' gondola has been made now. This will be put into use very soon too, as the demand for woodchips has grown. The PLRX's pair of 40' grain-loading boxcars are still used in this role as well, but have been reduced to a secondary role as a result of the aforementioned events.

Please stay tuned for further updates as the Phoenix Line Railroad's story continues.

Thanks for all of the updates Arthur

DJJosh wrote:Thanks for all of the updates Arthur

Its good to know that all of my efforts are appreciated.

Hello again everyone, got some more updates to share (as of 10:40AM CDST on 9/6/2022(.

The 2nd woodchip insert has been put to use now, and the car using it ,a former Great Northern Railway (U.S.) 50' gondola, has been loaded as well as spotted for unloading at Arlee's paper mill. The car will be collect soon though, as the demand for woodchips remains high.

Please stay tuned for further updates as the Phoenix Line Railroad's story continues.

Hello again everyone, here is an update on the PLRX's situation (as of 6:30PM CDST on 9/16/2022).

Operations on the road have been suspended, out of respect for the loss of HRH Queen Elizabeth II. They will resume on Tuesday, September 20th.

Hello everyone, here are some updates on the PLRX's situation (as of 9:15AM CDST on 9/22/2022).

There's not a lot of information to share at present but operations have resumed now.

Please stay tuned for further updates as the Phoenix Line Railroad's story continues.

Hello again everyone, have some updates to share (as of 9/25/2022)

The railroad has managed to find a flatcar to replace its former ATSF one now. This car, former BN road no. 613209, will replace the 90806 at some point but other plans have forced the PLRX to put this project on hold for the time being. The railroad has also managed to acquire a former CB& gondola (83115) which has taken over from its 2nd  340203.

It also has a 2nd tank car numbered as 2266, but this one is in much better shape than its predecessor. Unfortunately I have no information as  to if/when it will be used in a train at present, but will do what I can to gather some when possible. Two other things of note are that the railroad has another locomotive as well as an actual woodchip hopper now.

While the latter (former SP road no.566880, which is the outside braced version of this type of car) can be used as is, the locomotive (former CP Rail SD40-2 no.6017) is of no use due its need of major repairs. From what I've been told, the railroad has expressed interest in reselling this unit to a scrapyard (as a result of its inability to do such work), but didn't provide me with an actual timeline. As with the 2nd 2266, I will do what I can to provide information on this as soon as possible.

The fact that the 6017 cannot be used means that the railroad continues to only have 7 EMD SD40-2 locomotives operational and available for use on its trains. Such is an unfortunate situation, but it can't be helped. Admittedly I was wanting to share an update about the railroad's three former CP Rail heavyweight maintenance of way cars in this post but, frustratingly, nothing has changed with them in the past year.  

Please stay tuned for further updates as the Phoenix Line Railroad's story continues.

Thanks for all of the updates Arthur

Hello everyone, here are some updates that I've been authorized to share with you (as of 2:45PM CST on 10/27/2022).

1). Sadly there's not a lot going on with the railroad as of late, due to other priorities and an unexpected illness. While some trains have operated on the road, all of these have been westbound ones and weren't without problems.

2.) The railroad's other former Soo Line flatcar was involved in a wreck recently, but has been fixed now.

3.) The new flatcar remains in storage at New Roanoke at present but such can't be helped due to the issues mentioned earlier.

Please stay tuned for further updates as the Phoenix Line Railroad's story continues.

Hello all!
Sorry for the long delay in updates but there's been a lot going on for me as of late.
Anyway, here are some fascinating updates (as of 4:10PM CST on 11/9/2022)

1.) the PLRX' new flatcar has gone into service now, while the old modular track car has been moved into storage at New Roanoke. There are rumors that it may see use as an entertainment car, but nothing has been confirmed at this time.

2.( The bulkhead flatcar used in the track maintenance train has been freed up for use in regular freight service now.

3.) While the road's other former Soo Line flatcar remains stored out of service in its repair yard at present, there's been news that the PLRX has managed to secure replacement parts for it.

4.) Unfortunately, the road's three former CP Rail heavyweight MOW cars and its newest crane (as well as its accompanying tender car) also remain in storage at New Roanoke but the latter pair will be added to the Track Maintenance Train as soon as physically possible.

5.) As the train mentioned in the previous note will be getting longer (as well as heavier), the railroad has assigned its other F9B to the train. Such isn't needed for the moment however.

6.) The road's two former TTX Corporation 72' center beam flatcars, and several others, have yet to operate on the railroad at present. Such may change as time permits, but nothing is guaranteed at this time.

7.) The plan to add the former New Haven combination car to the Wreck Train and return the streamlined former ATSF coach to regular passenger service once the three former CP Rail heavyweight MOW cars enter service (with the Track Maintenance Train) remains in place, but other priorities mean that this won't be happening for the immediate future.

Please stay tuned for further updates as the Phoenix Line Railroad's story continues.

Thanks for all of the updates Arthur

Hello everyone, here are some more updates to share (as of 4:10PM CST on 11/28/2022).

1.) The railroad's other former Soo Line Railroad flatcar has been repaired, and is back in service with help from the replacement parts mentioned in the previous update.

2.) Construction of the building to be used by Import Motors has been completed now, but the company has said that they will make a further expenditure to install a new parking lot before officially opening for business however,

3.) There's been some talk of the railroad purchasing more intermodal cars in the very near future as of late, but such isn't guaranteed.

Please stay tuned for further updates as the Phoenix Line Railroad's story continues.

Hello again everyone, here are some more updates (as of 9:15AM CST on 12/5/2022).

1.) The railroad has two new 50' flatcars as well as a new 40' triple-dome tank car on its equipment roster now. While one of the flatcars wears the colors and markings for the now former Great Northern Railway (U.S), the other one displays ownership by the Milwaukee Road (reporting mark MILW). The railroad hasn't decided what to do with them as yet, so it's anyone's guess as to what's actually going to happen to/with them.

The usage of the tank car, which wears the colors and markings of the company known as Shell Oil, also remains in question at this time.

2.) The railroad can transport at least one carload of potash now as a freight car formerly owned by Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan (aka PotashCorp) has been leased to it from Nutrien. This car, which uses the road number 944, continues to wear the colors and markings of its previous owner. Unfortunately, it's unknown when this will actually happen as there are no operational potash mines in the railroad's operating vicinity.

Please stay tuned for further updates as the Phoenix Line Railroad's story continues.

Thanks for all of the updates Arthur

Hello again all, here are some more updates (as of 3:30PM CST on 12/15/2022).

1.) The railroad has entered into negotiations with TTX Corp, to purchase a 50' flatcar from the aforementioned company. The purchase has not been completed yet however and may he the last flatcar to be purchased.

2.) While the railroad was trying to rent another spin car from TTX Corp. recently, I'm sorry to say that this has been a complete failure. The railroad has told me that it will try and manage with what intermodal equipment that it currently has though.

Please stay tuned for further updates as the Phoenix Line Railroad's story continues.

Hello everyone, have a few more updates to share (as of 9:50AM CST on 12/17/2022).

1.) For reasons that are still beyond me, the railroad has purchased yet another 50' flatcar. This car, former TTX Corp. 90117 (with an HTTX reporting mark), the purpose of this car remains unknown at present. Its also going to be known as 1st 90117 as the railroad plans to purchase its identical twin from TTX Corp. at some point in the very near future.

One of these two cars may be used to create a "kitchen" car for the railroad's wreck train, but I honestly don't know at present.

2.) There's also been some talk of the railroad resurrecting one of its old open hoppers, as the demand for woodchips has grown again. Unfortunately, I can't speak to the validity of this talk but such remains out of my hands in terms of control.

3.) Import Motors has changed its mind about the plan for a paved parking lot now, and has opened for business without said lot. Such has probably been done out of necessity, as paving a parking lot usually costs a lot of money and this business doesn't have much right now.

Please stay tuned for further updates as the Phoenix Line Railroad's story continues.

Thanks for the update Art!

Hello again everyone!
Sorry for the lack of updates but the priorities of life have kept me away from the railroad for a while. Anyway, the said railroad's situation looks like this (as of 9:925AM CST on 2/7/2023):

Unfortunately, there's not a lot of new information to share but the railroad has been having some electrical issues as of late. The Phoenix Flyer has taken at least one spin around the line recently as well. It plans to operate a westbound merchandise freight at some point but I'm not sure when this will happen.

Please stay tune for further updates as the Phoenix Line Railroad's story continues.

Hello everyone, here is the PLRX's situation (as of 9:35AM CST on 2/13/2023).

Unfortunately the railroad had another one of its power packs conk out recently, but a replacement one has been wired up now. Another note of frustration is that a cleaning fairy with OCD (or so it would seem) somehow managed to discover the layout and remove some boxes that were being used for storage. On the plus side, the electrical issues  mentioned in a previous update have disappeared for now but, admittedly, these may come back at some point in the future.

Please stay tuned for further updates as the Phoenix Line Railroad's story continues.

Hello again everyone.
Sadly a loose electrical feed wire forced the railroad to close down recently but such was a short-lived situation. All has been fixed now and the PLRX has been restored to full operation. 

Please stay tuned for further updates as the Phoenix Line Railroad's story continues.

Hello everyone, have some sad news to share at present (as of 6:35PM CST on 2/19/2023).

Former CP Rail SD40-2 5415 has had a mechanical issue recently and, at least for the moment, I'm not sure when this will be fixed. Admittedly there's some added frustration in this matter, but I won't get into it right now. Aside from this, things on the railroad are 100% ok. 

Please stay tuned for further updates as the Phoenix Line Railroad's story continues.

Hello again everyone, here are some more updates about the Phoenix Line Railroad (as of 1:50PM CST on 2/20/2023). 

1.) The 5415 has been returned to service now, as it was only a minor mechanical issue.

2.)  The PLRX has decided to sell one of its open hoppers. This car, former CP Rail 40' quad hopper 359163, sees very little use on the railroad and the road's board of Directors feels that the space it uses could be used in a different manner.

Please stay tuned for further updates as the Phoenix Line Railroad's story continues.