Two things I had not seen before I happened to stop at the Second Avenue railroad crossing in Albany on Tuesday afternoon. One was the remarkable mural visible from the track. The other was the crossing gates coming down again and almost nailing a couple of cars after the train had passed. You’ll see what […]
On a leisurely bike ride through old Albany the other day, I noticed something that wasn’t there. Where the Portland & Western Railroad crosses Sixth Avenue, there are no warning lights, bells or arms that come down when a train comes through.
It is mid-day on Tuesday, and this is one small part of the passing Albany scene: The Portland & Western is doing a routine track inspection on the Water Avenue line.
In the Age of Corona and General Upheaval, you take your amusement where you can. So here’s something about an odd little sign. Actually two signs that looked about the same.
Waiting at Albany’s Queen Avenue railroad crossing gives you plenty of time to contemplate one of the riddles of our time, such as why it takes ODOT so many years to get going on a simple project that doesn’t seem all that necessary in the first place.
Big stacks of rail ties stored along the Water Avenue railroad tracks near Burkhart Street in late February now are gone, and so is the aroma of creosote they gave off.
Rail bridge reaches its century mark
Watching a freight train crossing the river on the “Toledo District Willamette Bridge” on Tuesday made me realize something: This is a big anniversary year for that steel structure spanning the river at Albany. It was built 100 years ago, in 1921.
Tags: 100 years, Albany railroad bridge, Dave Clark Path, Portland & Western, rail bridge anniversary, Southern Pacific, Union Pacific