A Nice Morning/Early Afternoon on the NS W-Line! (feat. BNSF power)

Train 1: NS 242 Mixed Manifest/Intermodal Combo
-Atlanta, GA - Charleston, SC
-Locomotives:
BNSF #4167 D9-44CW
NS #4728 AC44C6M
-34 manifest & 6 intermodal buckets (36 ‘cars’)
Train 2: NS 243 Intermodal/Empty BMW Auto Racks
-Charleston, SC - Atlanta, GA
-Locomotives:
NS #4821 AC44C6M
NS #3668 ET44AC
-36 intermodal buckets & 2 auto racks
Train 3: NS 18D Loaded BMW Auto Racks
-Greer, SC - Charleston, SC
-Locomotives:
NS #4446 AC44C6M (K5LLA)
NS #4450 AC44C6M
-22 cars (~2,068’)
-220 BMW’s
*With this 18D, I'm not sure if there was a heat speed restriction or anything. There probably weren't any. Even with auto control, this short 18D should've been moving much quicker than that... That speed was truly pathetic. I wish I ended off this outing with 243!
-NS Coastal Division/Columbia District/W-Line

[@joshpack7330]

Nice catches on all the trains. I'm surprised you waited for that short 18D. I could definitely tell a huge difference with the speeds of 242-14 and this 18D. Man, that Auto control just sucks. I had calculated the times it took for both trains to enter this crossing after it was activated, and it's about a 10 second difference. 26.6 seconds with 242 and 35.9 for 18D.

[@anscrailfanner6812]

Thanks Josh. I was VERY disappointed when I saw how short that 18D was. The slow speed on the Spartanburg cam can be deceptive, because a train can seem much longer than it actually is. I was debating on whether or not I should've waited for it. I wish I didn't and just ended things with 243! Despite that 18D still under auto control, it should've gone much faster than it actually did. Like, that was just sad. I had no words. 243 even went closer to track speed when I watched them come up through here on this day!

[@joshpack7330]

@@anscrailfanner6812 I agree. Plus, those auto racks can often trick you, since they're larger than your traditional well cars and manifest freight. I'm starting to believe the auto control is put on random trains, like those hotshot intermodals on the main. I mean, 22 cars isn't going to burn lots of fuel, even if one unit was online. These are big modern diesels we're talking about here, not old EMDs.