[4K] CSX Arrives on Pan Am Railways - New Power & Symbols [June 2022]

My name is Dan, and I am a railfan based mainly on Pan Am Railways’ Districts 2 and 3. On June 1st, 2022, CSX officially took over Pan Am Railways and its assets as a subsidiary, officially ending the reign of Pan Am as an independent company. With change inevitably on the horizon, many wondered what changes would be the first to surface despite CSX’s claims of “no major operational changes” prior to 2023. On the second day of ownership, CSX would send Pan Am-bound Q426 east out of Selkirk for Worcester with a pair of ACSES PTC-equipped AC44s on the consist. Definitely a more unusual consist to come out of Selkirk as the non-ACSES CSX power usually had been swapped out for ACSES-equipped Pan Am power in Ayer, many began to speculate what would become of that train after it got to Ayer. Sure enough, in the late morning hours on June 3rd, 2022, what had previously been Pan Am train AYPO departed Ayer eastward with the two CSX YN2 AC44s, numbers #487 and #488 under the symbol Q426. Change had arrived, and we set out to document it. Seeming like a classic CSX-powered SEPO from the early 2010s, the pair of numerical AC44s made their way over to Lowell where they’d tie down for the afternoon, and continue east to Rigby yard in Portland, ME overnight. Returning the following day, we’d set out to find the return trip of what once was POAY, now Q427 with the same duo of matching YN2 AC44s, now with the #488 leading the #487. With Q426 having tied down in Lawrence yard with its own pair of CSX AC44s and a trio of MEC Dash 8s, we’d continue north until we found Q427 in North Berwick, ME. With a handful of holdups along the way, we’d have plenty of time to get ahead of the job to several locations on its way west. Ending up in Tewksbury, MA after dark, we concluded what was a very successful first two-day chase of the first signs of change on Pan Am Railways post acquisition. Enjoy! This is my two hundred and seventy-first video of many more to come, so please feel free to like, comment, and subscribe.

Time stamps:
00:00 Intro

00:30 6/3/22 Q426 CSXT 487/488 Train Information

00:37 Q426 at Harvard Depot in Harvard, MA

03:30 Q426 at Groton Harvard RD, CPF-AY in Ayer, MA

05:21 Q426 at Willow RD, CPF-WL in Ayer, MA

09:15 Q426 at Middlesex ST, CPF-303 in North Chelmsford, MA

13:17 Q426 at the Ballardvale MBTA Station in Andover, MA

19:43 Q426 at Cross RD in Haverhill, MA

22:58 Q426 at Depot RD in East Kingston, NH

25:19 6/4/22 Q427 CSXT 488/487 Train Information

25:26 Q427 at Elm ST in North Berwick, ME

28:31 Q427 at the Dover Amtrak Station in Dover, NH

29:40 Q427 at Swamscott ST in Newfields, NH

38:29 6/4/22 Amtrak 687 AMTK 145/5 Cars/AMTK 123 Train Information

38:36 Amtrak 687 passing Q427 at Swamscott ST in Newfields, NH

39:35 Q427 at Cross RD in Haverhill, MA

41:24 Q427 at Sutton ST in North Andover, MA

47:21 Q427 at North ST in Tewksbury, MA

51:36 Photo Collage
First clip should read “Ayer - 11:36 - Royal Hudson Rail Videos”
Second clip should read “North Berwick - 15:18 - Royal Hudson Rail Videos”

51:55 Outro