Need help with idea for industry(s)

[rsn48]

When I designed my layout, what seems like decades ago, in reality roughly around 2000, I had plans to run passenger trains out of my reversing loop.  But over time, I "ixnay'd" that idea for reasons I won't bore you with; I will still be running passenger but more as a through the layout guest kind of deal.

So I created three stub ended tracks which were going to hold two passenger trains and a service track, but now I still have the stub ended track but no passenger service there.  I am a contemporary modeler and love Auto-Max's and auto rack cars, so I decided I could use one or two tracks for the automobile car carriers.  But I can't think of how to utilize the third track, there is also the possibility I could only use one track for my "car" carriers and use two track for industry(s).

The most industry or drop points I would like is two but I'm open to suggestions on this as well.

My problem is I can't think of any industry that would compliment the auto industry in the yard.  I'm posting a pic, but the three stub ended tracks were shortened by about 14 inches after the picture was taken; I didn't need the length anymore and the shortening opened up the yard for more scenic possibilities.  The current three tracks are approximately 6 feet long starting from the ends of the curves, and I'm talking about the three tracks to the left in the image:

[tehachapifan]

I believe it is common for autoracks to be loaded/unloaded at intermodal facilities. Perhaps one of the tracks could be used for trailer or container loading/unloading onto spine, well and/or TOFC cars. You have lots of space where an intermodal yard would look pretty cool.

Looking more at your picture and seeing the water in the background, you could even make it a container port-type intermodal facility...maybe by modeling a small area in the lower left corner to suggest that's the area that ships are unloaded. I think it's the container ports where it is pretty common to see autoracks and intermodal cars together.

[rsn48]

On the other side of the layout, still on the first deck I am already doing a kind of Koester layout design element where you get two birds with one stone, sort of; in the image you will see (barely) a piggy packer working with containers, and grainery distributing grain all in a small space in the Vancouver bc wharves area.  The blue you see in the background is sky not water in the first image illustrating my reversing loop area...lol.

[tehachapifan]

OK, well, maybe a refinery then? Can't say that goes with autorack unloading but maybe the tracks can be separated a little more?

Also, what I thought was water was the greenish area along the bottom of the backdrop. Perhaps that's a field(?) but it looked like it might be water.

[C855B]

I believe it is common for autoracks to be loaded/unloaded at intermodal facilities. ...

Maybe. The handful of unload facilities I've seen are dedicated. There is a bit of a conflict in handling, where intermodal is done with straddle buggies and monster lifts, and vehicles are unloaded circus-ramp style. Not that they can't necessarily coexist, but the unfortunate porters unloading plebian automobiles would be squashed like bugs in any conflict with container handling equipment. You sorta want to keep the ground traffic for each separated.

[wcfn100]

There's a yard south of Denver on the Joint Line that's just several parallel tracks.

http://binged.it/1Gs5cyV

You can see on the map the transloading of hopper cars and tank cars.  That's what I saw in the yard for the last few years until my last couple trips.  If that map image was updated for today, you'd see a ton of autoracks.



Jason

[nkalanaga]

Russ:  That's a field of hay(?) or similar vegetation.  I have the same backdrops, and hid it behind 3D hills, as it looked a little out of place in my Montana mining town.

An oil terminal would work well enough with the autoracks.  Put the tanks in the open area, and use the first track for loading or unloading, as the case may be.  Many of those facilities are a single track anyway, with multi-car loading racks on the side nearest the tanks.  The other two tracks could still be used for auto racks, with no conflict between the two.

Given the scenery, a wood chip plant would also work.  You'd have "trash" logs, ones that wouldn't make good lumber for whatever reason, coming in, probably by truck.  They would then go through an industrial scale wood chipper, possibly inside, and into an elevated bin straddling the track.  The bin isn't much wider than the cars, just enough that a chip car will fit between the legs, and is fed by a large pipe from the building.  Many western sawmills have such loaders, but they can also be found at chip-only facilities.  Republic Locomotive Works has a kit for such a loader.  Again,, only one track needed, and it wouldn't interfere with the use of the other tracks.

[Rossford Yard]

One half could be incoming parts, like auto frames on flats and other stuff mostly in those high cube boxes, and the other side shipping of final cars in auto racks.

Or, with some creative separation, could be just about anything.

[RockGp40]

How about a transload facility? It seems excessive to have 3 tracks though.

[Kentuckian]

Along the Ohio River in northern KY there are several small steel plants that are served by rail.  There is a small yard a few miles away from most of them where gons of scrap metal are stored for recycling, and sometimes finished coiled steel.  This could be any kind of industrial service yard to serve an off line industry, or group of similar industries.

Or what about an automobile factory support yard; steel coils and parts containers come in, auto racks go out?

[Scottl]

In Montreal there are compact facilities that take in grain and load it into containers by tipping them with the open door up and filling with conveyors.  Your photo reminds me of the set up.  Probably for specialty export grains like lentils and the like.  I've always thought it would be a great small industry and would fit in Vancouver as well.

[rsn48]

Scott, you might have helped solve a mystery as I couldn't figure out why that structure that looks to handle grain is there.  For the wider audience, there are massive granaries on both sides of the water, shipping grain all over the world, I couldn't figure out how this small structure fit into the larger picture as a whole.

My lower deck's inspiration is from the Vancouver Wharves although it looks nothing like it.  The Vancouver Wharves is really a series of smaller yards joined together along the "main" (not really the main).  And that is what I set out to design.  So wood chips is already in the mix, might be coal, not sure yet.

I also toyed with a "broken bulk" area, much like a modern day, much larger team track, but a bustling large structure along the track - Vancouver Wharves does have one of these.

I had toyed with an ethanol plant beside the auto area but wasn't sure there was some obscure rule that prohibited any other cars being shunted around ethanol cars.  Any opinions on this?  I'm wondering if "break bulk" is a form of transloading.

Also toyed with a slough off track, but I plan to have that on one of the other set of three tracks on the right.

[u18b]

I think a scrap yard would look good.

The three tracks on the left of the photo.
The track on the right-- curve into the open space more.

That will be the middle of the yard outside.
The left two track can go into and out a building.

Sabel Steel (I think is/was its name) in Montgomery AL
has changed a lot over the years.

But what a great operation to model.

GPS:

32.386821, -86.310030

https://www.google.com/maps/@32.3869755,-86.3103032,297m/data=!3m1!1e3

[randgust]

No matter how many times I look at that shot I keep coming back to the same thing.    "Where have I seen that?"   And it's one place in particular - Harrisburg, PA - the ex-Conrail intermodal yard on the east side of the Susquehanna, where I-81 crosses right over top of it.

There are just a few long, straight, parallel tracks.   Length is critical, it's for entire trains.   I point out Harrisburg because it's interesting there are two major intermodal yards there - the one on the east side of the Susquehanna, and Rutherford yard further east along Rt. 322.   You can see this all very clearly on Google Earth.   They are truly massive facilities, just not many tracks - a few really long ones.

One thing I really like about the Susquehanna side yard is that the I-81-overpasses break it up visually - they go right over top of the center.

Also note that the main line fueling racks, yard office, etc. are at the south end.    More railroad facilities than a typical intermodal yard out by itself.    Trains originate there, power is stored there, etc.

There's a tendency that big intermodal yards like this are at seaports; I just want to point this out that you can accomplish the same thing where you have this major interstate crossing over top.    This is pretty much the yard that makes I-81 into the trucker logjam that it has become.   This is the eastern terminal for a lot of NS and western domestic intermodal traffic now, and it is well inland.