Caterpillar moved hydraulic excavator production to Victoria, Texas about a
year ago so shipments from Montgomery have declined. Also, demand for mining
equipment is down (temporarily) and inventory has been reduced with
frequent, week-long plant shutdowns.
Normally, outbound rail shipments are heavy. Much of the current output
(wheel loaders, wheel dozers and soil compactors) is shipped to ports of
Portsmouth, Virginia and Savannah, Georgia. Routing is BNSF-(Peoria)-NS.
Such shipments are sent via Galesburg to the Tazewell & Peoria Railroad's
East Peoria Yard, then to Norfolk Southern's Good Yard at Normal. There, all
high-wide loads are switched out of the regular train and operated as high
wide train O55 to Savannah, Georgia. Additional loads are added at Decatur.
Also, a small number of cars bound for the Dundalk Marine Terminal in
Baltimore, MD can be handled by this train on the segment between Normal and
Decatur.
Check out this video from about a year ago, and you'll see what I mean.
About 25 of 51 Caterpillar loads were from Montgomery.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qAB8F-jS9yU
With the downturn, O55 either doesn't operate, or it originates at Decatur.
My guess is the former. That means rail shipments must move in regular
manifest train service (on Norfolk Southern). This significantly increases
transit times, and perhaps freight rates as well. So Caterpillar may be
sending what few shipments there are by truck.
I've noticed the same thing at East Peoria. When production and demand
return to normal (hopefully, by later this year), Caterpillar should return
to primarily rail shipments, at least for exports.
REQUIRED "Q" CONTENT -
Since this is the CB&Q, I'm curious how Caterpillar machines shipped from
Montgomery (which opened in 1958) were routed to East Coast ports for export
to Europe, Africa and Asia, etc in the 1960s era. There's some reason to
believe CB&Q handed off Caterpillar loads to the Southern Railway at
Centralia, but these may not have been for export. Caterpillar began its
relationship with Georgia Ports Authority in 1980.
David P. Jordan
Dunlap, Illinois
>The only tie in with the Q in this email is the plant in question was
orginally served by the Q and located there in 1956-57 as part of the Qs
effort to develop >industry along the lines. Please feel free to forward
this to any other group that may be able to answer the question.
>I have submitted an article for future publication by the BRHS on the
history of the CAT plant at Montgomery and the Q's service to it. But my
interest was picked >today when I travelled from Yorkville,IL to Montgomery
and met 3 semis with high wide loads coming from the plant. I see this
everday about every 10-15 minutes or >less as Yorkville is on the main route
to interstate 80 from the plant. In the 1970s I worked the job for 3 months
and we pulled 25-30 loads of earth moving equip. >every day on flats headed
primarily to the west coast for export at $2K plus in charges. Currently as
I pass thru Eola and look over at the track that the job >comes in on; there
might be 5-8 cars of CAT loads each day.
>What I really want to understand is how can the trucks haul these
montsters, almost all w/high wide permits and often with one or two escort
drivers at a rate >lower than BNSF ? There are TTX flats assigned to a CAT
pool and many of them have cradles welded in place for specific tractor
models. Yet it's clear the truckers >with their "low boy" trailers are
taking the lions share of the business. On each of the westbound loads I met
tonight the tractors had their wheels,hydraulic arms >and buckets
removed,just like they would be on a RR flat. Since only the tractor itself
was on the highway trailer I met;there has to be one or two more with the
>other parts. Just like on the RR.
>Can anyone explain how the truckers are beating BNSF out of this business ?
>Yes curious minds work in strange ways...................
>Leo Phillipp
>Ps-Dont even get me started on the outbound scrap loads or inbound parts
via RR. I was there to see what happened first hand.
------------------------------------
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