Once crossing the river at Hastings - there are two routes - the KCP river route thru St. Paul Park and the
BNSF (hi-line) thru Cottage Grove - both of these merge at Newport - this is sometimes a chock point - then
further towards St. Paul at The Pigs Eye freight yard of KCP the tracks diverge into 4 tracks leading into the
Division Street Wye just east of SPUD (St Paul Union Depot) - this also presents a MAJOR problem for ease
of access to SPUD - 2 of these 4 tracks follow the river and 2 hug the bluff and these split off north of the
Wye - one to the BNSF Midway Division and the other the UP to points east in Wisconsin (Eau Claire) - there are some 60 plus trains daily transiting the Wye some simple short way-freights and others 100 or more cars
of various commodities. The 2 river tracks KCP and UP do not connect to the SPUD tracks - of the other 2
ONLY the inside track goes to SPUD the other does not.
Threading the needle here is the final piece de la resistance in delaying Amtrak Borealis from schedule !
No matter how timely the progress has been made up to and passed Pigs Eye - - -
WAIT FOR IT !
CLEARANCE TO TRANSIST THE WYE TO SPUD !
Google Map image detail zooom in/out for more definition:
https://www.google.com/maps/@44.950...try=ttu&g_ep=EgoyMDI0MTAyMy4wIKXMDSoASAFQAw==
Exasperating to come this far timely and snatch delay from the jaws of timeliness - - -
Crews and Agents catching heat from this - not their problem - - -
Certainly a slot for a 5 car 2 engine train should be made available with priority - - -
Safety issues concerns not withstanding
(Criticism includes a YouTuber visiting from another nation who took the Cascades and called the Horizons "prison cars" and whatnot)
