50 Years Trackside ...1986-91 Settling Down

Welcome aboard this year-long retrospective series celebrating my Fifty Years Trackside - watching trains and taking numbers. This is the Third in a year-long series celebrating those fifty years - each month's post is a time capsule; a five-year slice of those five decades. In the previous post it was the mid-1980s.  This month, my trainwatching enters the 1990s.

My May, 1986 western trip was challenging personally. As my relationship with my future wife progressed, I was ready to pop The Question. During that trip to SteamExpo at Expo86 in Vancouver, my note-taking took a dive. Being at station stops from here to the Pacific, watching young couples saying 'goodbye' or 'hello' just added to the pressure with pangs of separation. 

We were married in May, 1987 and we made a railfanning stop in Smiths Falls on the way home from our honeymoon at Ottawa's Chateau Laurier. CP 4741-Chessie 3719-4509 prepare to head west:

Being an accommodating newlywed, Karen let me set up a 4x8 Manitoba-themed layout in our apartment's spare bedroom. The driving of the Last Spike of the Manitoba Western Railway brought together two local railway tycoons. Dave of Happy Valley Railway Management/CP Rail and Laurence of the Delaware & Hudson. The grand (!?) occasion was marked by the signing of commemorative certificates, heartfelt speeches and refreshments. All this for a simple 4x8! My Dad and brother celebrate, the latter going 'full Roger Doucet':

In the prototype world, there were two local derailments at the time - one along outer Montreal Street on August 26, 1986 and another at the Counter Street crossing on March 28, 1987. The first site was not very accessible, just east of the switch linking the original and 1974 curve alignments along the Great Cataraqui River. The second was a major inconvenience for the preparations to load 1 Canadian Signal Regiment for the Rendezvous 87 major army exercise at CFB Wainwright, Alberta. 

In the summer of 1987, it was time to get documenting again after a five-year hiatus. Rather than keeping notes in notepads, I went back to transferring the numbers and notes, cars and consists into the first of many scribblers that I still use. 

It was a transitional time for VIA - grinding the last miles out of its cab units leading VIA consists. Although GM and MLW cab units were in charge of most VIA trains in the late eighties, the F40PH-2's, VIA's first new locomotives since the LRC, were about to arrive. The first of the 6400's arrived on December 15/86, with 25 delivered by the following September, and the last of the series in 1989. CN was running first- and second-generation power, and Western Flexicoil-equipped Geeps arrived, awaiting their chop-nosing dates at Pointe St Charles shops in Montreal. Cabooses' years were numbered - they would disappear in a hurry in 1990 once permission was granted to the railways, years after End of Train Units emerged in the U.S. An eastbound freight flies past Kingston's VIA station on September 20, 1987 with covered and open auto racks (below). 

In October, 1987 Karen came along on a trip to the Canadian Railway Museum at Delson/St-Constant, QC. Not so for a trip to the Halton County Radial Railway at Rockwood, ON. Another perennial favourite trip was the Toronto Railway Show in March, 1988. Usually a complete zoo [not the Toronto Metro one!], with a long line-up to get in, then having to ford a several attendee-deep crowd in front of every display or vendor table. From large venues like Exhibition Place and the Mississauga International Centre, the Toronto show would eventually contract to a much smaller one. 

Kingston was launching its own train show at the same time. Attending the meetings of a fledgling railfan club in the mid-1980s, at Royal Military College or St Lawrence College, the informal group later becoming the Kingston branch of the Canadian Railway Historical Association. 

We moved to our new (and current) house in August, 1988. It had a view of the CN Kingston Subdivision to the north, in season, and even read engine numbers with binoculars on a clear day! I even started a separate section in my sightings scribblers for such sights, abbreviated S.F.H. (Seen From House)! The view was obscured once leaves began budding on the trees, and eventually two new seniors' apartment buildings would be built in the gap. But on February 26, 1989 it was possible to see this CN westbound freight:

We visited Karen's parents at their home between Harrowsmith and Sydenham most weekends. On April 9, 1989 we checked out the dismantling of the moribund former CN Smiths Falls Subdivision there. This photo of me hoisting Karen onto my shoulders to dismantle a trackside sign (below) does not belie the fact that she was pregnant! Now it was time to paint that nursery a neutral yellow.

We made the first of several trips to Pennsylvania's pastoral Amish country, also stopping at the World Famous Horseshoe Curve on June 11, 1989 (below). This was in the pre-funicular days, and it was probably no fun for the pregnant lady to climb the nearly 200 steps to track level! We caught 14 movements in four hours: westbound Contrail coal trains and freights headed by two SD-40 helpers, as well as Amtrak passenger trains traversing the New York to Pittsburgh route, all on the remaining three of the original four Pennsylvania Railroad tracks on the Harrisburgh-Pittsburgh main line. 

Driving toward Harrisburg then Reading, we passed the Hollidaysburg car shops. Long lines of Contrail and predecessor road cars paralleled our route. There were gondola and hopper cars, N5 and transfer cabooses, a few Geeps and maintenance-of-way coaches. Sadly, since driving, not a single photograph was taken! Our son was born in October of 1989. 

In the early hours of January 15, 1990 my Dad and I made a point of doing our bit to document the massive cuts to VIA Rail, witnessing the last overnight Montreal/Toronto Cavaliers. Meanwhile, in the basement now expanding from the 4x8-footer, the fledgling Manitoba Western Railway layout eventually expanded to fill its full 23x10-foot basement layout room. A 1990 visit included my Dad unboxing his business car for a tour of the line.

Previous occupants had operated a home hair salon in the now-layout room. The walls were pink. The trim was pink. There was pink and silver wallpaper and rough-ins for sinks, etc. Just starting out, we bought just enough blue paint to cover the walls down to layout level! Door to layout room at left (above) and opposite side of the room (below) with the last gap and Last Spike not yet in place!

Trainwatching always seemed like a family-friendly activity to me. I'm not sure all other family members always felt the same way! Beyond spending time with kids trackside, collateral benefits included educational opportunities and nature studies trackside, and of course enjoying snacks or fast food together while waiting for the next train. Our new son's first trip to the Kingston station occurred when he was seven months old, on June 13, 1990. We caught four VIA trains and two freights in just over an hour! Posing with VIA No 63:

Steam still steamed, and Dad joined us when we travelled to Brockville on September 16, 1990. CPR 1201 was in town on an excursion, and this was one of our first multigenerational times trackside. We took our son on our first train ride together during a week-long trip to Pennsylvania in late-September, 1990. We rode behind Blue Mountain & Reading ex-GM&N 425 from South Hamburg to Temple (Reading) PA in ex-DL&W commuter coaches (below). By comparison, our daughter would not make her first train trip until she was 16!

Kingston's VIA station was always a good location for trainwatching with kids: long platforms ideal for toddling, walking or training-wheels bike-riding, plus on-site washrooms and food, benches, rain protection and ample free parking. Warm-hearted VIA engine crews would spot us cabside and throw us surplus packs of cookies or peanuts and cups of milk and juice. Andrew, in stroller or on foot, would engagingly play peek-a-boo. Here he is on April 27, 1990 with No 63 led by 6437-6411, pulling deadhead diner Princess and nine blue & yellow cars with SGU 15481 on the tail-end and those awful construction-style 'marker lamps':

We made a four-day trip to Pennsylvania in June, 1991 with Karen's parents. Visiting Steamtown, posing on L&NE caboose 580...

...and saying 'tanks' to one of the many former Canadian engines in the late-in-steam-era-assembled Steamtown collection:

We rode behind Strasburg steamers 89 and 90, the former running around our train at Leaman Place:

At Bird-in-Hand, PA along Route 340, a grab shot of an Amtrak westbound from Philadelphia led by 904 with three conventional coaches at speed:

Thanks for being aboard this year-long train of thought as we retrace, remember, and yes, wallow in nostalgia these fifty years trackside. Watch for an upcoming fourth part as we steam ahead into a third decade -  the 1990s.

Running extra...

Snowmobiling the Eastern Ontario Railbed Loop on YouTube. Kevin Gammon, whose parents taught with my Dad, included some images from my posts on Eastern Ontario railway history in this 345 km journey across former railway rights-of-way. Fun to watch, dashing through the snow!

The Canadian Coast Guard dispatched medium icebreaker CCGS Des Groseilliers, named after Médard Chouart des Groseilliers (1618–1669) a close associate of Pierre-Esprit Radisson in explorations west of the Great Lakes. The ship entered service in 1982 and is more impressive than the usual buoy tender seen here, to break ice at the Bath cement dock, allowing CSL's MV Tamarack to dock and load cement, the first of the season. Reportedly, cement from this local plant is sold two years ahead of its production. Both videos by Aerosnapper!

First past the post...

A great turnout at Tuesday's Bytown Railway Society April meeting Zoom presentation "VIA Consists - The Early Years 1976-1981". Dave Stremes, Program Chair (above) kindly invited me to present and others commented that the spirit of Earl Roberts, 30-year editor of Branchline, neighbour to uberVIAphile Jakob Mueller's mother-in-law, and former Lachine resident, was definitely there. He was a contributor to each and every issue writing the “Consists” and “Motive Power” columns, and as longtime editor of the CTSG, and I'm sure he would have enjoyed the VIAntage consists I was pleased to share. It was also great to 'talk to' Phil Jago, Mark Walton, Ray Farand, David Jeanes and other BRS luminaries! 

CN Transportation Department then VIA Project Manager for Development Roger Spack has some stories to tell. Very sharp, and just as knowledgeable about the 1970s passenger scene as he is VIA's current Venture challenges. I like his optimism, "...in something like 12 years, or maybe 10 if we're good at it, we will have a revitalized VIA Rail system. We will have a high-speed corridor central route. We will have VIA Rail paying for all or almost all of its costs." The only downside is that comment is from Roger's 1996 Parliamentary Transport Committee appearance!

Three Days in March 2026 AND LRC Buffer Cars

In late March, I encouraged my wife to participate in one of her regular online crafting sessions. My support and enthusiasm was genuine. It had, little or nothing, well actually everything, to do with getting me trackside because nothing ruins a crafter's concentration like a chatty husband who really has little to no subject knowledge about crafting and who really should be trackside, for the benefit of all concerned. Adding to my enthusiasm was the fact that over the previous month, VIA had received news that due to structural integrity issues, LRC-equipped trains would require buffer cars at either end of the consist. Do you feel like you've seen this movie before, as I have? Indeed, the HEP fleet required buffer cars back in October, 2022 and since that fleet was also used outside the Corridor and had no replacement planned for at least a decade, exhaustive testing was performed. 

In this case, the remaining lifespan of the 45+ year-old LRC fleet was considerably shorter. As in, months remaining. Notwithstanding that dead-train-walking horizon, the incomplete implementation of the Venture fleet would perhaps mandate a life extension for the LRCs. Back in September I noticed several cars not operating, and VIA sources hinted at structural inspections that were borne out by mechanical delay reports from that time due to inspections. The Venture fleet was purchased to replace the Legacy fleet seat-for-seat, and the LRC fleet is to be out of service by the end of January, 2027.

Here is the March 20 VIA bulletin:

The bulletin clearly sets out that buffer cars be unoccupied. So if is an end car and it is unoccupied, I'm calling it a buffer car! Who knows how long these trains will be so lengthened?

So, I had added increased impetus and an impending incentive to study the actual trains that VIA gave itself a week to buffer. The challenge for those of us rambling down the rabbit hole is that a buffered train using similar cars as buffers just looks like a longer train. But there are ways of telling! I decided the best way was to peer through the windows! Additionally, one car had a note taped on the vestibule door window, some had all their shades pulled. All first and last cars of a consist that I could were confirmed empty, denoted with a 'B'.

My three days' trackside were spent somewhat mundanely in one location - Kingston's VIA station. The sole purpose for this was the need to view the LRC trains up close and stationary! I decided not to publish photos of all trains in this post, but I will list all consists. Not surprisingly, VIA trains outnumbered CN trains 2 to 1. Yet CN maintains their mainline is SO busy that VIA is an annoyance. It is not that busy, the trains are longer and fewer than in decades past. With precision scheduled railroading, and all but intermodal trains passing through Toronto MacMillan Yard, train schedules are fairly evenly spaced throughout each day.

CONFIRMING BUFFERED LRC CONSISTS

In mid-March, I noticed VIA consists gradually changing:

• Mar.14 - No 65 had a polyglot consist: 4004-3334-3368-3307-4001-3325-3366-3308.

• Mar.16 - No 64 had a polyglot consist: 3340-3335-3351-4009-4000-3367-3343-3338 and No 65 had a polyglot consist:3307-3368-3334-4004-4001-3325-3366-3308 (previous  65 remarshalled). Two HEP2 Business Class cars marshalled together.

• Mar.17 - modification to Corridor rotation: No 67-79-72-66 now operating with 6 instead of 8 LRC cars while Nos 65-->75-->70-->64 keeps its polyglot consist. Was the move to 6 cars a preparatory step for addition of a buffer car on each end?

• Mar.23 - Buffer cars are very slowly being implemented, two days into the change period: No 61, 65 no buffer cars yet. No 67 had 3354, 3478 previously retired. No 64 had buffer cars.

• Mar.25 - No 643: 907-3306-3318-3359-3311-3475-3470-903 buffered consist. 

• Mar.26 - No 65 buffered 9-car polyglot consist: 6409-3305B-3307-3368-3467-4001-3325-3366-3308-3465B-6433; No 66 buffered 8-car consist: 915-3478B-3456-3463-3358-3337-3355-3370-3354B-913; No 67 buffered 8-car consist: 6416-33xxR-33xx-33xx-3363-3313-3469-3461-34xx-64xx. [B=Buffer car]

• Mar.27 I was successful in visually confirming buffered LRC sets : No 643: 920-3304B-3473-3365-3341-3352-3462B-6453; No 65: 6402-3464B-3338-3343-3367-4000-3466-3335-3340-3472B-901 [9 cars].

• Mar.28 still unbuffered LRC No 53: 6401-3471-3361-3324-3353-910, buffered overnight: now Mar.29 No 50: 918-3452B-3353-3324-3361-3471-3301B-6414.

• Mar.29 confirmed buffered LRC No 43: 6411-3455B-3458-3357-3336-3350-3459B; Confirmed buffered No 40: 910-3468B-3461-3469-3329-3363-3313-3333-3302B-6406 (complete consist of No 67 on Mar.26).

I'll keep tabs on the buffer car situation and post updates here.

Buffered consists now in service:

*

6-car

918-3452B-3353-3324-3361-3471-3301B-6414

907-3306B-3318-3359-3311-3475-3470B-903

920-3304B-3473-3365-3341-3352-3462B-6453

6411-3455B-3458-3357-3336-3350-3459B-900

*

8-car

910-3468B-3461-3469-3329-3363-3313-3333-3302B-6406

915-3478B-3456-3463-3358-3337-3355-3370-3354B-913

*

9-car

6402-3464B-3338-3343-3367-4000-3466-3335-3340-3472B-901 (4004 replaced 3466 on April 2)

6409-3305B-3307-3368-3467-4001-3325-3366-3308-3465B-6433

All the above buffer cars in use as of now were in the most recent group of LRC cars retired by January, 2026. Now, on to the trains I observed and photographed, and of course the consists...

The trains I observed will be listed in this post with by time, direction, train number, locomotive numbers or VIA Venture Set #'s. If unphotographed, "U".

DAY ONE - Friday, March 27, 2026

0845 EB CN No 368: 8346, DPU 3134 (above).

0917 EB VIA No 60/50: Venture Sets 13/17 as seen from the John Counter Boulevard overpass.

CN 9449 was not recovering. I recognized that locomotive number currently assigned as a Belleville yard engine along with CN 4958, ex-BNSF 2262 recently repainted. I deduced a rare daylight switch was underway. Upon arrival at the plant at 1008, I found the long train blocking the east plant entrance and briefly Front Road. The crew was not happy about the volume of cars they had to handle, both 'blacks' (tank cars inbound with hexamethylene diamond) and 'whites' (covered hoppers inbound with adipic acid) and even three cars of outbound pellet product. Having to return to catch more VIA trains at the station, I left around 1035. After three hours of switching challenges, the crew headed up the Cataraqui Spur to the mainline switch. I raced over to Tanner Drive to catch their ascent up the rolling topography paralleling Bath Road, just making it in time at 1143. Despite dire predictions about how many cars the Geeps, one ailing, there were 21 cars for Belleville and not 35 as predicted. Here's my YouTube video.

1044 WB VIA No 643: 920-3304B(uffer)-3473-3365F(uture)-3341-3352F-3462B-6453 Unphotographed.

1112 EB VIA No 62/52: Sets 9/8.

1157 WB CN No 271: 8862-2561 empty auto racks.

1233 WB VIA No 45: Set 28, U.

1248 WB VIA No 43: Set 23, running 77 minutes late after mechanical difficulties near Ottawa, U.

1255 EB VIA No 40: Set 3, U.

1336 WB VIA No 65: 6402L(one the way)-3464B-3338F-3343F-3367-4000-3466-3335-3340-3472B-901. I call this a polyglot consist, with one HEP2 Business Class car mid-train.

1406 WB VIA No 53: 6401-3471-3361F-3324R(en scheme)-3353F40(years)-910, U. Received two buffer cars overnight at Toronto.

1414 EB VIA No 64: 6433-3465B-3308-3366F40-3325-4001-3467-3368-3307R-3305RB-6409, U.

1421 WB CN No 305: 3950, DPU 3159, U.

1448 WB VIA No 47: 907-3306B-3318-3359F-3311R-3475-3470B-903. The female engineer ran back to microwave her lunch in the Business Class car then back up to the head-end. No more grilling lunch on the coal scoop held in the firebox! A sign of the times, aped to 3470's vestibule door:

1605 EB CN No 372: 3070-8312, DPU 3172.

1609 WB VIA No 67: 913-3354B-3370-3355F-3337-3358-3463-3456-3478B-915, U.

DAY TWO - Saturday, March 28, 2026

After pickleball...

1233 WB VIA No 45: consist same as Day One's VIA No 53, U.

1249 EB CN No 372: 3868, DPU 3224 (above).

1259 EB VIA No 40: Set 21 with VIA special constable.

1340 WB CN No 731: 3829-3125-8359-3434, DPU 8342 empty potash cars, lots of 'em.

1355 WB VIA No 65: consist same as Day One's VIA No 64, U.

1405 WB CN No 121: 3366-2849-2670-5695-5606, intermodal.

White temperature-controlled boxes lettered ZIMonitor, Hapag-Lloyd, Gold Star Line:

1409 WB VIA No 53: Set 14, running 15 minutes late, U.

1437 EB VIA No 64: consist same as Day One's VIA No 65. These folks were waiting for late VIA No 47, three generations:

1523 WB VIA No 47: Consist same as Day One's VIA No 47. Arriving for the station stop, CN No 271 came up on the south track.

1523 WB CN No 271: 2330-2653, empty auto racks:

1556 WB CN No 305: 2960-3086, DPU 3904, U.

1610 WB VIA No 67: Set 20, U.

DAY THREE - Sunday, March 29, 2026

0926 EB CN No 368: 2960, DPU 3086. Friendly wave from the engineer.

L-U-L-L

1116 EB VIA No 62/52: Set 29/31, U.

1125 WB CN No 121: 2786, DPU 3102, U.

1145 EB CN No 372: 2837-4716-4958 snow on walkway (below)

1150 WB VIA No 63: Set 32, U.

1155 WB VIA No 43/643: 6411-3455B-3458-3357-3336-3350-3459B/4119-4114D(&H scheme)-4112D-4002D-4005D. Delayed for unknown reasons, No 643 was held at Ottawa for an hour and J'd with 643. This is the last pure HEP2 consist still operating in the Corridor.

1215 EB CN No 276: 5644-8006, U.

1250 VIA No 40: 910-3468B-3461-3469-3329F40-3363-3313-3333-3302BR-6406, U.

1420 WB VIA No 64: Consist same as Day Two's VIA No 65, U.

1500 WB VIA No 47: Set 9, U. Delay with Venture car's lift so manual-crank lift brought from station.

1549 WB CN No 271: 3261-3033, empty auto racks (bottom photo)

1610 WB VIA No 67: Consist same as Day One's VIA No 67, U.

Happy Easter to Trackside Treasure's loyal readership

--Eric

Running extra...

In just under a week, I'll be making a Zoom presentation to the Bytown Railway Society's April meeting. (This new auto-correct never lets me type 'Bytown'. It always changes it to 'Baytown' then I have to go back and change it! Baytown is in Texas, and everything is big in Texas and this, too, is a BIG pain!) Notwithstanding that, Bytown's  Branchline is always excellent trackside reading treasure! I'm dedicating the presentation to my aunt and uncle who corresponded with the late Earl Roberts and thereby became longtime Branchline subscribers. My brother kindly gifted me subscriptions for many ensuing years, and now I obtain back copies at train shows from the ever-smiling Paul Bown and friends (and recently a few from blog partner Steve Boyko)!

First past the post...

When my son arrived to drop off our older grandson for a couple of hours, 20 Timbits also arrived! Quite a bit of battery-powered scooter riding in the expansive paved station parking lot in a cool wind, punctuated by a warming-up trip to Toys R Us. He was like a kid in a...well, you know the rest. He emerged with some Matchbox and Hot Wheels for himself, his brother, his cousin and "Grandpa's layout".

Breaking News! - Rapido Delays Dubai Expansion

Due to the scale of world events that make the future difficult to gauge, Rapido continues its quest to become supreme leader in the model railroad product marketplace, regrettably announcing it has postponed the most recent phase of its planned global expansion. With current operations Rapido Canada in Markham, Rapido United States in Buffalo and Rapido United Kingdom in Kent, the next to open was to be Rapido Dubai. With so much capital in the region, and so few trains, it seemed like a logical next step (Proposed slogan: Do buy some!) as well as a key part of Prime Minister Carney's Building at a Scale Never Before Seen and President Trump's We Don't Need Trains from Canada strategies. Recently-discovered planning documents reveal that Rapido presaged releases with a truly regional flavour, complete with North American prototype tie-ins:

• the Adtranz Flexliner operated by Israel Railways, also demonstrated by VIA Rail and equally at home at Merkaz-Savidor or Mississauga.
• the Alco MRS-1 operated by the US Army Transportation Corps in Mid-East, also seen in cold climate service in Canada between The Pas and Churchill, MB.
• the Lawrence of Arabia armoured train, an Ottoman supply train overseen by Major Chesterfield and the Hejaz Railway as part of the Antimacassar Campaign. So fa, so good, he famously said. Intended to reach Medina, the builders encountered a cold winter that put construction forces into somewhat of a funk (see Wikipedia entry Funky Cold Medina). With underbody detail that just begs to be reproduced - nobody turns modelling upside down like only Rapido can - plans were already afoot to send the about-to-be-hired Rapido Dubai staff to perform a 3D scan:

• the obscure ROFX (Railroad of Flies) freight cars used to transport camels to regional hump yards. This was to be a conditional release, partly due to a misunderstanding about just what 'a camel train' is and whether the project would fly. Rapido has already produced a Caravan trailer so this one remains tent ative.

President pro tem Jordan 'Regime Change' Smith said in a recent interview, "We plan to return to Dubai as surely as the sun rises in the east," before inexplicably shouting in French, "Laissez les puces de mille chameaux infester vos aisselles!", some sort of obscure North African/Middle Eastern curse humour.  Jason 'Nose in the Tent' Shron's whereabouts are currently unknown. Last proof of life...

A tiny HO scale version of him was last seen (drone image, below) through the arid landscape around Kingston's VIA station aboard a New York City Metro M3 subway train, heading for Washago where Rapido employees' careers seem to go to wash up, according to Jeremy 'Am I N Trouble?' Fleming. He would know. A plannedand very palatable product placement plan involved including Dubai Chocolate in the next round of Rapido mystery boxes. 

It remains to be seen how these changes will sheikh out. Oh man it will seem like emir moment when all this uncertainty finally ends. Hopefully oil will be well, and Rapido can save up some money for a bah rainy day. It seems I ran away with my imagination and I had haifa mind to babble on. Now I just want to bedouin with it and enjoy some desert.

Running extra...

Since this is a rather short post, I've decided to pad it with some recent model railway industry news.

After harbouring the verdict for months now, the NMRA has decreed that every North American model railway must feature at least one harbour scene with a car float. Most model railroaders are way ahead of this regulation.

Helixes are about to get bigger. (Helices? Helix'? Heliocastraneves?) The NMRA also decreed, after a circular debate,  that any helix worth its salt must be at least 10 feet across and at least eight feet in height. Your house doesn't need two bathrooms anyway, give a little!

Rapido's helium car project is up in the air, though hopes are rising for good sales. 

Rapido's other new project is the LRC, most notably the 'Structural Integrity' series. Along with car-specific numbers, purchasers can select 'hairline' or 'Bondo' and tiny cracks will be etched into the LRC coach underframes. Decried by some as just another way to sell more (buffer) cars (required on each end), if it's realism you're after...

First past the post...

Isn't it great there are people out there with healthy senses of humour? And so much positive feedback received on this post since it was posted a little early: "Modern-day Stephen Leacock!", "Can't wait for April 2", and from AriG "thank u, next". Thumbs up to these guys running up to the Belleville Railstream webcam, cameras in hand,  just in time to largely ignore a westbound CN freight, using their AI while not taking AIM at the April I Manifest train passing by: