Recent NB Southern Videos

Here are a few recent NB Southern videos featuring the "new" leased power.

Dave Dineen aka NBSRfan shot HLCX 6318 and HLCX 8144 leading a fairly short train out of Saint John. The big cars on the head end are trash cars for the steel recycling facility now located in the Port of Saint John.


Gary Lee was in the cab of GMTX 204 in McAdam. I'd really like to get back to McAdam at some point as it is really hopping now!


Jason aka NB Green Machine shot a transfer freight within Saint John. The MP15DC GMTX 203 was ahead of "huff and puff", NBSR 3702 and 3703, and Geep NBSR 2610 was there for extra muscle. Apparently they almost stalled trying to get up Mill Street from Island Yard. Great video!


Doubleiron shot an eastbound NB Southern freight through Harvey. It had a quite colourful consist.


Gary also shot this sizable westbound freight in McAdam, headed by NBSR 2319, HLCX 6200 and MEC 354 in Pan Am colours.

NB Southern Update

There are some good photos and video available of the new NB Southern leased power now, plus a few run-through engines!

Jody Robinson sent me these two snaps from McAdam, NB from Sunday February 12. First up are two run-through engines, MEC 380 and 381. Both of these engines are GP40s but MEC 380 is unusual as it is a high-hood GP40. You can't see that from this photo, alas.


Also on the freight were the two leased SD40-2 engines, HLCX 6200 and HLCX 6318. You can see that they now have the bay windows fitted. I think they give a bit more visibility and are warmer than the standard windows. 6318 has her nose chevron stripes now.


Jody says that traffic on the St. Stephen subdivision has picked up quite a bit, with a daily train every weekday with good size trains to St. Stephen and the Woodland mill in Maine. Good news. Thanks Jody for the news and the photos.

Matt aka Saintjohnrailfan got out to Enniskillen today to catch the westbound freight. As it happens, it had HLCX 6318 on the point with the aforementioned MEC 380 second and NBSR 2319 trailing. You can catch a glimpse of the high hood on 380. Great snow action!


Dave Dineen aka NBSRfan was out on February 9 to shoot both the eastbound and westbound freights. Each train had one of the leased Helm SD40s on it. It's a typical quality video from Dave.


It kinda makes me want to be back in New Brunswick to shoot the mean green trains!

More Photos of 6200

Dave Dineen posted some great photos of freshly-painted HLCX 6200 in Saint John. Please view his album.

UPDATE: He also posted a video of his chase of HLCX 6318 / HLCX 911 / HLCX 6200 - all leased power.

Photo of HLCX 6318

Jody Robinson shot HLCX 6318 on the eastbound freight train on Sunday evening, January 15. It sure looks cold and dark there!


It looks like one of the ex-UP Helm units is behind 6318 and an NBSR GP38 is ahead of it.

I understand HLCX 6318 was to lead but the train crew couldn't get it to talk to the SBU (Sense and Brake Unit, the "FRED"/"EOT" device on the last car of the train). Maybe next time.

Thanks for sharing, Jody!


In other news, I'm told HLCX 6200 is being repainted into John Deere NB Southern Railway green and yellow. I guess it was too ugly!

HLCX 6318 Update

HLCX 6318 was in Moncton, NB overnight. It was apparently supposed to go on CN 406 yesterday (Tuesday) but there was an issue and it had to stay in Moncton. Expect it to be on CN 406 on Wednesday.

NBSR SD40-2 Update

HLCX 6200 arrived in Joffre, Quebec today on train CN 310. Tomorrow it will go out on CN 308 to Moncton, then CN 406 to Saint John likely either Friday or Saturday, depending on when 308 arrives in Moncton.

HLCX 6318 is still in Toronto, according to CN's tracing system.

Here's a video of the two engines northbound through Illinois on a CN train, taken December 27.

Thanks to John and Ron for the information and Gerald for the link to the video.

NB Southern SD40 Update

The two "new" SD40-2 engines for the New Brunswick Southern Railway, HLCX 6200 and HLCX 6318, arrived in Toronto, Ontario Thursday morning, December 29. They had been traced through Effingham, Illinois on December 27 in the afternoon.

They are now traveling via CN and they may end up on CN 406 tomorrow (Tuesday) into Saint John.

EDIT: Well, that didn't happen... maybe on the weekend.

More Details on New NBSR Locomotives

More details have emerged on the "new" locomotives being leased by the New Brunswick Southern Railway. The two engines are HLCX 6200 and 6318, both SD40-2 engines being leased from Helm Financial Services. The engines were delivered by the Alton and Southern Railroad to CSX in St. Louis.

A CSX trace shows them in Duquoin Illinois at 07:50 on December 24, waybilled for Saint John, NB.

Joe Ferguson shot them in Duqoin on December 24. I encourage you to click on the link to the left or on the photo below to see the full image that Joe Ferguson took.

HLCX 6200 and 6318 - photo by Joe Ferguson - www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPicture.aspx?id=2852583

HLCX 6200 is ex Chicago and Northwestern 6822. At one time it had the CNW yellow and black livery before being painted into the hideous purple and blue HLCX livery. There are plenty of photos of HLCX 6200 online. HLCX 6318 also has many photos online.

I hope they are repainted when they arrive in the Maritimes, but given that the other Helm leasers are still wearing the ex-Union Pacific colours, I'm not holding my breath.

What do you think of the Helm colours?

Thanks to Jeremy and Dave Dineen, Jeremy and John J. for the news.