The Callahan Subdivision is a

CSX Transportation CSX Transportation , known colloquially as simply CSX, is a Class I freight railroad operating in the Eastern United States and the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec. The railroad operates approximately 21,000 route miles () of track. ...

railroad Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...

subdivision within the

Jacksonville Division The Jacksonville Division is a railroad division operated by CSX Transportation in the U.S. states of Florida, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia, and Alabama. The Jacksonville Division has 36 subdivisions. The subdivisions within the Jacksonville Divi ...

on the former

Seaboard Air Line Railroad The Seaboard Air Line Railroad , which styled itself "The Route of Courteous Service," was an American railroad which existed from April 14, 1900, until July 1, 1967, when it merged with the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad, its longtime rival, t ...

. The sub extends northward 20 miles from Baldwin,

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

, where the

Jacksonville Terminal Subdivision The Jacksonville Terminal Subdivision is a group of railroad lines owned by CSX Transportation in and around Jacksonville, which was historically a major railroad hub. The Jacksonville Terminal Subdivision includes about 13.0 miles of track. Line ...

's S Line and

Florida Gulf & Atlantic Railroad The Florida Gulf and Atlantic Railroad is a Class III railroad owned and operated by RailUSA in the Florida Panhandle. The line consists of 373 miles (600 km) of track running from Baldwin, Florida (just west of Jacksonville) west through Tallah ...

meet just north of Baldwin Yard, a

classification yard A classification yard (American and Canadian English ( Canadian National Railway use)), marshalling yard (British, Hong Kong, Indian, Australian, and Canadian English ( Canadian Pacific Railway use)) or shunting yard (Central Europe) is a railway ...

. According to Jacksonville Division Timetable Number 4 published in 2005, the sub runs from milepost SM 0.18 to milepost SM 20.0, where it joins the

Nahunta Subdivision The Nahunta Subdivision is a railroad line owned by CSX Transportation in Florida and Georgia. The line runs along CSX's A Line from Ogeechee, Georgia, to Dinsmore, Florida, for a total of . At its north end it continues south from the Savannah ...

, a former

Atlantic Coast Line Railroad The Atlantic Coast Line Railroad was a United States Class I railroad formed in 1900, though predecessor railroads had used the ACL brand since 1871. In 1967 it merged with long-time rival Seaboard Air Line Railroad to form the Seaboard Coast L ...

, in

Callahan, Florida Callahan is a town in Nassau County, Florida, United States, adjacent to Duval County. The population was 1,123 at the 2010 census. It is one location of the Northeast Florida Fair. The Battle of Alligator Bridge took place around Callahan on J ...

. The line serves as a bypass to Jacksonville.

Operation

The sub has three

direct traffic control Direct traffic control (DTC) is a system for authorizing track occupancy used on some railroads instead of or in addition to signals. It is known as "direct" traffic control because the train dispatcher gives track authority directly to the train ...

blocks (DTC),

double tracks A double-track railway usually involves running one track in each direction, compared to a single-track railway where trains in both directions share the same track. Overview In the earliest days of railways in the United Kingdom, most lin ...

on its full entire route and two

defect detector A defect detector is a device used on railroads to detect axle and signal problems in passing trains. The detectors are normally integrated into the tracks and often include sensors to detect several different kinds of problems that could occur. ...

locations over its length. The first defect detector is at milepost SM 1.3 and the first siding, Fouraker, at a length of , extends from milepost SM 3.5 to SM 5.0. The second defect detector is found at milepost SM 12.3 and the second siding, Crawford, a siding, runs from milepost SM 13.3 to SM 15.4. The three DTC blocks are Baldwin from milepost SM 0.18 to SM 5.0 followed by Fouraker from the SM 5.0 to SM 15.4 and last is Crawford from SM 15.4 to SM 20.0. The sub crosses the

Norfolk Southern Railway The Norfolk Southern Railway is a Class I freight railroad in the United States formed in 1982 with the merger of Norfolk and Western Railway and Southern Railway. With headquarters in Atlanta, the company operates 19,420 route miles (31 ...

at milepost SM 15.5. The subdivision's

dispatcher A dispatcher is a communications worker who receives and transmits information to coordinate operations of other personnel and vehicles carrying out a service. A number of organizations, including police and fire departments, emergency medical s ...

is known as the JE Dispatcher on channel 14 and 32: 160.320 MHz and 160.590 MHz respectively.

History

The line was originally built by the

Florida Railroad The Florida Railroad was the first railroad to connect the east and west coasts of Florida, running from Fernandina to Cedar Key. The line later became part of the Seaboard Air Line Railroad, and, where still in use, is operated by CSX Transport ...

as part of a line that ran from

Fernandina Beach Fernandina may refer to: *Fernandina Beach, Florida **Original Town of Fernandina Historic Site *Fernandina Island, Galapagos Islands *Fernandina (fruit), a citrus ''Citrus'' is a genus of flowering trees and shrubs in the rue family, Rutaceae ...

Cedar Key Cedar Key is a city in Levy County, Florida, United States. The population was 702 at the 2010 census. The Cedar Keys are a cluster of islands near the mainland. Most of the developed area of the city has been on Way Key since the end of the 19th ...

. The first train ran in 1861. The Florida Railroad would be acquired by the

Florida Central and Peninsular Railroad The Florida Central and Peninsular Railroad was the final name of a system of railroads throughout Florida, becoming part of the Seaboard Air Line Railway in 1900. The system, including some of the first railroads in Florida, stretched from Jacks ...

by 1899. The line would later become part of the

, who acquired the FC&P, in 1903. In 1925, the Seaboard Air Line built the

Gross Cutoff The Gross Cutoff (sometimes referred to as the Gross-Callahan Cutoff) was a rail line built by the Seaboard Air Line Railroad in northern Florida. It ran from the Seaboard Air Line Railroad’s Main Line (Seaboard Air Line Railroad), main line at ...

which ran from northeast from the line in Callahan to Gross. The line was then designated as the Gross Subdivision from Gross to Baldwin. The Seaboard Air Line became the Seaboard Coast Line Railroad in 1967. In 1980, the Seaboard Coast Line's parent company merged with the Chessie System, creating the CSX Corporation. The CSX Corporation initially operated the Chessie and Seaboard Systems separately until 1986, when they were merged into CSX Transportation. Track east of Callahan to Yulee was abandoned in 1954, and the

was abandoned in 1985. The remaining Gross Subdivision from Callahan to Baldwin was then renamed the Callahan Subdivision as it is today.

References

{{Reflist CSX Transportation lines Rail infrastructure in Florida Seaboard Air Line Railroad Transportation in Duval County, Florida Transportation in Nassau County, Florida

Operation

History

See also

References