Port Sebago & Southern Railroad

Al Oneto

The PS&S is a freelanced short line bridge route that "Serves the HEART of New England" as our motto goes. It operates on a long summer day sometime in the 1950's. The motive power is late steam and early diesel. From Port Sebago (ME) to Ossippee Falls (NH) we have trackage rights on the Maine Central line that runs west out of Portland. We then turn south serving the industries of West Nashua (NH) and then into Gardner (MA). There we intersect the Fitchburg Division of the Boston and Maine RR - a two-track east-west mainline from Boston to Mechanicsville (NY). Continuing south to Belchertown (MA) we interdict the Central Vermont RR, where we pick up trackage rights south (on the route to New London, CT). The PS&S terminates at Rockville Junction where we also meet and exchange cars with the New Haven RR.

Contact Info Al Oneto
Southwestern CT
203-0255-1331
aloneto@optonline.net

Layout at a glance Name: Port Sebago & Southern Railroad
Scale: HO
Size: 21' x 24'
Locale: New England
Era: 1950's
Mainline run: 110'
Turnouts: #6 & #8 (Peco and Shinohara)
Mostly hand throws.
Benchwork: open grid + L girder
Height: 49" to 59"
Roadbed: Homabed over ½" plywood
Track: Micro Engineering code 100 weathered
Scenery: plaster over Styrofoam
Backdrop: commercial
Control: DCC - NCE
Staging: 25 staging tracks (4 on elevator)

Operating positions: Rockville Junction (2) Yardmaster/engineer and crew/conductor/brakeman/switchman
Gardner (3) Yardmaster, B&M tower/engineer, crew (brakeman/switchman)
Freight (4) northern div. (2) + southern div, (2) [engineer & conductor/brakeman]
Switcher (4) northern div. (2) + southern div, (2) [engineer & conductor/brakeman]
Passenger (2) [engineer and conductor/brakeman]
Dispatchers (2) (one on PS&S main, one on foreign road (CV, B&M, NH) staging)
Trainmaster (1) assigns crews to trains
We use two man crews

Comments: The PS&S is primarily a switching railroad. Runs between the towns are short and for the most part hidden. There is one duck under, but only the passenger crew and southern division freight crew will need to deal with it. Trains are assigned by the Trainmaster as crews are available. Trains are run in a sequential order and there is no time schedule to deal with. Crews move from town to town on Dispatcher's permission. At each town there is a full page of guidelines hanging on the fascia. It spells out the control quirks of each town (turnout control, uncoupling, etc). Freight cars are moved according to the typical car card/waybill system. Each train assignment is spelled out in detail on an 8 ½ x 11 page given to the crew conductor on a clipboard. This layout is NOT handicap accessible.

Most recent update: 2009 March 13
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