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Caption: A rainy spring day finds four of CP's 6-axle MLW fleet handling an extra slag train west through Toronto's Summerhill neighbourhood. Per Ron Bowman, slag from the Sudbury area was being laid as ballast along the Galt and Windsor subs in 1979, replacing the old stone ballast in the process.
The train is seen crossing over the former Toronto Belt Line railway. Begun by the Toronto Belt Land Corporation in 1890, the project would be completed by the Grand Trunk Railway in 1892. Low ridership resulted in passenger service ending in 1894 after only two years of service, and the stretch seen here from Rosedale to to Moore Avenue being abandoned. The remainder of the line would see local freight service while being abandoned in stages into the 1970s.
Scan and editing by Jacob Patterson.
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This is astounding
Great shot John, and some history I was unaware of. I don’t recall any of the slag trains requiring that much power, so I’m guessing that Windsor was in need of power, and they likely ran at least some or all of the units through. CP sometimes ran short trains from Quebec Street to Windsor mostly in order to ferry one or more of: crew, power, or caboose needed at Windsor. When the slag programs were underway, there were all day track blocks which made a big mess of the normal flow of power & crews.Trains would sit all day in Toronto, London or Windsor depending on where the track block was at the time. When the track was opened up, there floods of trains and lots of long trips.
Thank you for your comments. Today, 46 years later, with all the leaves out on the trees, this picture is not possible with the trees having grown higher and more dense, blocking the view of the bridge.