Ottawa Central "Beachburg Bullet" 5 October 2008

Portage du Fort, Ottawa River
On Sunday 5 October 2008 the Ottawa Central Railway ran a two car passenger train between Ottawa, Walkley Yard and Beachburg, ON.  It was sponsored by the Counties of Pontiac and Renfrew spearheaded by the executive director of the SADC (Société d'aide au développement de la collectivité) Louise Donaldson.  The objective was to foster the concept of a commuter train using the Beachburg subdivision between Ottawa, Kanata, Bristol, Portage du Fort and Pembroke.  Some 60 elected representatives, members of the press and other invited guests rode the train.



Click the image above for a slide show illustrating the trip (some images by Raymond Farand, Harry Gow and David Jeanes).
The bottom right icon will go to full screen.

Equipment

M26.5 Beachburg Sub

In order to avoid having to run round the train at Beachburg, two Ottawa Central locomotives were used, RS18 1838 on the west end and RS18 1828 on the east end.  Two passenger cars, painted in Canadian National green, yellow and black, were used.  WCXX 3223 and WCXX 3218 (both Cafe-coaches built by CC&F in 1954 for CN), are owned by the West Coast Railway Association and currently stored in Walkley Yard.  There were no toilet facilities but there was a stop at the Norway Bay Golf Club in both directions.  In lieu of coffee, which could have caused bladder problems, the organizers thoughtfully provided chocolate covered coffee beans for those who need a morning caffein fix.

The Trip

The entire trip went smoothly.  There was a 15 minute late start in the morning because the welcoming speeches took a little longer than anticipated and we waited almost ten minutes to clear an O Train at the Walkley Diamond but apart from that the train ran well.  Because of its proximity to work on the Queensway overpass, the Corkstown Road crossing was flagged even though the protection was working properly.  The Beachburg subdivision was in good condition.  It had been upgraded in the 1980s with a good deal of welded rail and this provided a good ride for the passengers.  The maximum speed authorized was 55 mph and the train was timed at 51 mph at one point on the return.  At this speed the cars provided a very comfortable ride.

A stop was made at the Norway Bay Golf Club in both directions.  Some gravel had been thoughtfully placed so that detraining and entraining could be made easily.  A fleet of golf carts was available to take participants the very short distance to the Golf Club.  An excellent light lunch was provided.  On the train, as well as admiring the fall colors, we were entertained by a number of Valley personalities including Dai Bassett (the Singing Farmer), a well known Welsh radio announcer. 

At Beachburg, arrangements had also been made to ensure easy detraining and entraining.  The train was foul of the crossing circuits so the lights and bells continued to operate while we were there.  This had been anticipated and the crossing was protected by a member of the train crew while pedestrian safety was assured by the Ontario Provincial Police.  As we left Beachburg on the return, the lead locomotive, which had been idling for several hours, erupted a plume of Alco smoke.
Timings
Outbound (read down)
 Location
 Inbound (read up)
10.16
 Walkley Yard
 17.10
Stop 10.18 - 10.25
 Old Bank Street
10.28
 Walkley Diamond
 17.03
1031
 Wass
 16.59
10.35
 Rideau River
 16.58
10.38
 Merivale Road
10.39
 Woodroffe Avenue
 16.51
10.41
 Greenbank Road
 16.48
10.46
 Moodie Drive
10.48
 Queensway Underpass
 16.44
10.50
 Nepean Junction
 16.41
10.55
 Klondike Road, Kanata
 16.37
10.59
 Constance Lake Road

Dunrobin Road
 16.30

Torbolton
 16.24
11.11
 Regional Road 20

Woodlawn
 16.22
11.21
 Mississippi River
 16.17

Fitzroy
 16.15
11.22
 Stony Creek
 16.12
11.26
 Crossing mp 37
 16.10

Ottawa River

Pontiac mp 41
 16.01
dep 12.47
 Norway Bay
 15.30-15.55

Crossing mp 54.7
 15.11
13.13
 Crossing Portage du Fort mp 59.28
 15.06
13.18
 Ottawa River
 15.04
13.28
 Foresters Falls
 14.52
arr 13.42
 Beachburg
 14.38 dep

The Results

People left feeling that there was indeed potential for a commuter train on this route into Ottawa.  Now the hard part begins with the need to develop a business plan which will include an estimate of potential usage, a time frame for implementation and to come to maturity as well as sources of funding and finding suitable equipment.  The timings achieved, on what is currently a freight railway, demonstrated that a passenger train could provide an acceptable commuter service.  The results can best be described in the joint declaration that was published at the end of the day.


Click the image to see the Joint Declaration
 Cliquez l'image pour voir la Déclaration Conjointe

Beachburg
Left to right... Roy Murray (Shop Manager); Malcolm Dobie (Carman); Dave Watts (Marketing/Communications); Bernie Seguin (Engineer); Dan Mick (Conductor); Dennis Church (Carman); Ian Stewart (Student intern); James Allen (General Manager); Ian McCord (Customer Service).

Beachburg