NS Sunbury Line Guide
Note: This guide is for the Sunbury Line outside of Scranton. Please see the Scranton Guide for railfanning the line in Scranton.
The Sunbury Line has a complex and interesting history. Currently, it is owned and operated by [[ Norfolk Southern ]]. The line is certainly not in its prime, having its second track removed. However, the line still sees regular traffic today and there’s always rumors of expansion!
The Sunbury sees a very diverse range of traffic, although it’s common to see intermodal, sand/rock/hoppers, fuel/tankers, lumber/centerbeams, and boxcars. Autoracks are sometimes seen on southbounds, but never on northbound trains. In the summer months it’s also more common to see MoW related trains.
NS 11Z Southbound on the Sunbury Line in the Winter
by NEPATrains.org - All rights reserved
This is a photo of NS train 11Z running southbound on the Sunbury Line, near milepost 665.
[more info]Locations
From Binghamton to Clarks Summit:
Click map to zoom/pan.
Noteworthy Mileposts
These are mileposts you should pay attention to on your scanner.
| Milepost | Notes |
|---|---|
| Container | Binghamton Yard |
| 643 | Kingsley DED |
| 659 | Dalton Siding North |
| 661 | Dalton Siding South |
| 662 | Glenburn DED |
| 669-665 | Clarks Summit Hill |
| 672 | Taylor Yard North |
| 673 | Taylor Yard South |
| 676.9 | Minooka Junction DED |
Timetable
Since the start of PSR across all of Norfolk Southern’s systems, most trains have lost their “regularity”, and so the “Usual Time” column has been temporarily removed.
| Symbol | Starts | Ends | Frequency | Extra |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12Z | Roanoke, VA | Binghamton, NY | Daily | |
| 11Z | Binghamton, NY | Roanoke, VA | Daily | |
| K82 | Scranton, PA | Binghamton, NY | Sat-Sun | |
| K81 | Scranton, PA | Wilkes Barre, PA | Daily | Scranton/W-B Local |
| K79 | ? | ? | ? | |
| H97 | Binghamton, NY | Taylor, PA | Mon-Fri | |
| DL3 | Scranton, PA (Steamtown) | Scranton, PA (Steamtown) | Daily | Steamtown to Taylor and back DL runner. |
| PISB | Pittston, PA | Pittston, PA | Sun-Fri | RBMN Pittston to Taylor and back runner. |
Notes:
- A hi-rail usually inspects the track once a weekend.
- MoW crews are very active in the summer.
Clarks Summit Hill
CP-669 to CP-665, commonly known as the Clarks Summit Hill, is a 4 mile climb into Clarks Summit. This segment of rail is extremely steep for trains. So steep in fact, the once-daily train 37T (pre-PSR) would sometimes stall on the hill, holding up the whole line for the rest of the day!