I would take anything that newspaper publishes with a grain of salt. There is a point in the article where Bob Flannigan said something to the effect of the track being the county's issue but then nothing more is added by the reporter. Remember this is the same reporter that said a couple weeks back this was a non operating engine, which anyone that has seen the youtube videos knows is not true.

I was referring to the comments made by WMSR.

The wording in the article is highly suspect to me. A number of things stand out as highly unlikely to be factual. An "FRA" track inspector "requiring" all the ties be replaced and then giving out cost estimates are 2 major red flags that make me question the spin being placed on the story. As others have pointed out the tie numbers seem to be off as well.

Let's also not forget that WMSR, in the middle of the 1309 project, HAD to get those RDCs (which were known to be money pits at the time) and spend resources getting them in good order. Then, they came up short of funds on the 1309 project and now it appears they let the physical plant of the railroad suffer amidst all of this.

There seems to be a game being played here, I'm just not sure who is playing or what the real goal is.

“Let's also not forget that WMSR, in the middle of the 1309 project, HAD to get those RDCs (which were known to be money pits at the time) and spend resources getting them in good order.”

Boy did TVRM score big on that trade. I can’t wait to see the Man O War in person in her CofG paint.

Truly baffling decisions have been made. I’m not sure if there is an ego issue, or just total incompetence. Who owns WMSR?

They certainly did score big with such a historic car. They said they would also do similar work with a couple of other cars originally in the Nancy Hanks II. All they’d need is a grill car.

That’s not even mentioning N&W 540, also included in the trade. There’s a lot of opportunities with that car when considering options including the occasionally visiting Powhatan cars from the NRHS chapters.

What is the state of their passenger car fleet? Steam locomotive-recently rebuilt. Track-questionable (?)...anything else that might prompt requests for support? What's the next shoe to drop...

Here's a much better written article, with more facts than spin.

http://railfan.com/with-co-1309-almost- ... rack-work/

Yes, Justin Franz's article rings true. At today's prices Mr. Garner's estimate that he'll need $ 2.5 M to cover installing 16,000 ties ( about $ 150/tie installed and tamped) is ballpark correct.

The hurdle is that they've been back to the well repeatedly and at some point the state & county may well say enough already.

Let's hope they can sell the state & county that it's a good long term investment as it would be a crying shame to have struggled this hard to get the 1309 back to life only to have no railroad to run it on.

May I request that we steam lovers stay supportive and let the appropriate county & state officials know of our support.

Thanks, Ross Rowland

WMSR is for profit correct? How many handouts from the county / state should a for profit receive?

Do other for profit operations typically get large amounts of state / county money for routine maintenance?

Why do they have to correct the tie issue on the whole railroad to get the 1309 operating? How about focusing on bringing up shorter sections to Class 1 or 2 as money allows and slowly reopen the railroad. It's better to operate on a mile of track than on no track at all. Operate some excursions to generate more money to pay for the next section. It doesn't have to be an all or nothing thing.

When the PLA built the Niles Canyon Railroad, we didn't think we had to have the whole thing built before we could operate. We started small and as we extended the track we made the rides longer. Money from operations helped pay for the supplies the all volunteer track crew needed to push the track westward. It was interesting to see the number of people who would ride fairly regularly just to see our progress.

It seems like the the WM guys should invest in some MOW equipment. Replacing ties is not rocket science. It's hard work if doing it by hand but a lot easier if you have some key MOW equipment.

Not difficult to check before posting. From the WMSR home page:

In this case I think trying to get the entire Tourist line up to FRA Class 2 standards and reopened to paying customers as a package is the correct way to go. Since State and Local Government funding is required, I think it is important to be truthful about selling the entire Tourist package as the goal for this round of funding.

Once the initial heavy tie renewal -- that should done by contractors -- is completed and the line reopened, then one can move on to future planning. I agree that it would be a good idea for the railroad to acquire the minimum equipment for Inspection and a mini tie gang to keep the line open between the major tie renewal cycles. The above mentioned audit made it obvious that there will be major contracted renewal cycles needed in the future, just like every other railroad in existence.

Hopefully the future maintenance and renewal cycles will be able to be paid for from ticket revenue. If not, hopefully there will be statistics about how the tourist draw has benefited the entire geographic region to help with the political sales pitch.

Brian

Most of the questions asked on a forum could be answered with a google search.

It’s more interesting to me that I have ridden the WMSR multiple times and was under the impression that they were for profit.

You know to have the position that anyone may have had on this that it's Allegany County's railroad and therefore they should be on the hook for maintenance is really quite a position to have. If Allegany County is not smart enough to have that the operator is responsible for maintenance of all portions of the ROW then I guess they have a bigger problem.

Apples and oranges here but imagine CSX not keeping up ROW on the W&A subdivision and telling the State of Georgia, the owner, they let things go and now the State has to pay up to meet FRA requirements to operate trains again.

Not trying to be overly critical but not having a long-term vision is not a healthy thing. Sticking one's head in the sand is not a good business plan but it seems to be prevalent these days and isn't just limited to tourist railroads, museums, etc.

I wish only the best for 1309 and the WMSR but $2.5M is a lot for any government to swallow these days.

It would be great if the 1309 could run on another tourist line to earn money for the WMSR as well as the host line. Since the tubes are in, the clock is ticking. The logistics would be great (and cooperation needed from CSX).

My pipe dream choice would be the newly rebuilt line 14 mile line along the Greenbrier River from Cass to Durbin which is a former C&O line. I doubt if the big engine could make it down the switchbacks on Cass Hill though. The former WM line out of Elkins would also make an interesting ride.