Ever since I was maybe four or five years old, I have been railfanning in Westfield, NY all my life. Whether it was with my grandparents, my mom or dad, my friends, we always enjoyed making the 45 minute drive from Jamestown.
For years the iconic former New York Central Union Switch & Signal tri-lights mounted on a bracket would welcome you to the crossing at North Gale Street. They governed CSX’s Erie West Subdivision, and was known as CP 58. The signals have been up for a while, and have seen a lot in their years of service.
With Positive Train Control forcing out many of the old signals, the old bracket was soon to be replaced. All of the signal bridges in the Buffalo area were falling. I was expecting that they would go down the Erie West from Buffalo all in succession. I was wrong.
My dad and I drove up to Westfield on January 22, 2017. After catching NS 309 in downtown, we mosied over the bridge that traverses CSX, hung a left, then turned onto North Gale and drove to the tracks. I looked to the west, and saw a silver box. Uh oh.
We parked in our usual spot and saw more signs of changes - a pile of ballast, another silver relay box, and a base for the new signal. I was distraught - CP 58 was bound to be replaced SOON. I have plenty of pictures to share of CP 58, and those will be posted as an album on “Worldwide Railfan Productions” on Facebook, including the progress of the replacements.
I hope to cover the transformation of this life-long memory of mine. It will look different from now on, and even myself am not quite ready for this change to come. Progress always has to happen, whether we like it or not.
The new relay box next to the crossing.
Fiber optic cable.
CP 58 lined for a westbound train.
The "A" box for CP 58.
Ballast used to lay foundation for the relay boxes and the signal bracket.
The signals from our parking spot.
The signals from the side.
Rear view of the signal.
Overall rear view of the signal.
The box and the base.
CP 58 "A"
The new signal will go here.
