Potomac Street

H0, Baltimore & Ohio Railroad, 16 @ 1 foot

Budd RDC    The Yard    Panoramas of the Layout

Layout under construction

Potomac Street is one of several North Downs Model Railway Circles H0 Baltimore & Ohio Railroad {B&O} layouts and is inspired by but is not a model of the George Town Branch of the B&O. The now closed George Town Branch was chosen as it used to terminate near 'foggy bottom' (the United States Capitol, legendary home of the US legislature!) Washington District of Columbia giving a rational for a passenger service connecting to Metrobus, the Washington Metro, and water buses on the Potomac. Into the 1980s the area served by the branch was surprisingly industrial with warehouses, light industry, building suppliers, and a small power plant that provided steam to some of the government buildings nearby. Till 1948-49 there had been a freight station and sand was delivered to the Filter Plant Siding. Industry left during the gentrification of the area in the 1970s & 1980s and the branch closed in 1985. The layout was planned to operate with one or two fiddle yards at twelve or sixteen feet long. During construction it was realised that with minor changes to the track plan would allow the layout to operate at eight foot as a switching (shunting) layout. Scenery is 'urban canyons' style. The plan is for Potomac Street to alternate with Earnest Creek another B&O RR layout at the Kenavon exhibitions.

Budd RDC



The Yard





















Panoramas of the Layout






The photos below are the layout under construction - next the buildings


 


The photos below are during construction.
The buildings come from and will return to another layout and the SD-40 is a gauging car.