Santa Fe Semaphores Slated for Replacement in New Mexico

By Justin Franz

LAS VEGAS, N.M. — If you wish to see one of many final stretches of working semaphore alerts in the USA, now’s the time. 

Greater than two dozen former Santa Fe semaphore blades are anticipated to get replaced in northern New Mexico within the coming weeks on BNSF Railway’s Glorieta Subdivision and the State of New Mexico’s Albuquerque Subdivision. 

In current weeks, new infrastructure has been put in alongside the right-of-way and the brand new alerts might be put in service in October or November. Over time, the previous Santa Fe semaphores have been changed as they failed. Simply final yr, a pair of three-position, higher quadrant alerts close to Springer, N.M., got here down after mechanical points developed with considered one of them. However this fall might see a mass extinction of the century-old Union Swap & Sign blades on the Glorieta and Albuquerque Subs. 

If all of the semaphores are changed, solely those north of Las Vegas (railroad east), on the Raton Subdivision, will stay. Presently, solely two trains a day run on the Raton Sub: Amtrak’s westbound and eastbound Southwest Chief. 

Amtrak’s Southwest Chief splits a pair of semaphores at Springer, N.M., in July 2021. This pair was taken down a couple of months after this picture was taken. Picture by Justin Franz.