Turning the corner on to Cemetery Road today, I saw the crossing gates coming down for an approaching train. Expecting one of the usual container trains or car carriers, I was surprised to see a fast moving passenger train, led by a trio of EMD F40 locomotives in a dark blue color scheme with about a dozen cars behind. I had no idea what it was and being too far away to get a close look it was gone before I got to the crossing.
I did a little quick web research and found it was the CSX executive train. I checked the live train cam video and was able to isolate it and grabbed the photos you see here. I don’t know how many executives travel on this CSX special, but it certainly has room for quite a large number. There’s even a dome observation car as part of the consist.
It was refreshing to see a train pass by without any graffiti adorning the sides. How often do you see that? Also apparent was the speed of the train. I imagine if you’re high enough in the CSX hierarchy to get a ride on this outfit, you can also get clear track ahead.
The numerous railfans in this area may have known this was coming, but I only noticed it by chance. If you keep your eyes open, you never know what you might see. You might even catch a caboose or a steam locomotive on its way through town.