United States Railway Association

Last updated

The United States Railway Association (USRA) was a government-owned corporation created by United States federal law that oversaw the creation of Conrail, a railroad corporation that would acquire and operate bankrupt and other failing freight railroads. [1] USRA operated from 1974 to 1986.

Contents

Legislation and establishment of USRA

In the Regional Rail Reorganization Act of 1973, also known as the "3R Act," Congress provided interim funding to bankrupt railroads and authorized creation of the Consolidated Rail Corporation (Conrail), another government corporation. [2]

The 3R Act authorized the USRA to take over the powers of the Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC) with respect to allowing the bankrupt railroads to abandon unprofitable lines. The USRA was incorporated February 1, 1974, and Edward G. Jordan, an insurance executive from California, was named president on March 18 by President Richard Nixon. Arthur D. Lewis of Eastern Air Lines was appointed chairman April 30, and the rest of the board was named May 30 and sworn in July 11.

The U.S. Supreme Court affirmed the constitutionality of the 3R Act in deciding the Regional Rail Reorganization Act Cases on December 16, 1974. [3] [4]

Mandate to create plan for Conrail

Under the 3R Act, the USRA was to create a "Final System Plan" to decide which lines should be included in the new Consolidated Rail Corporation. Unlike most railroad consolidations, only the designated lines were to be taken over; the others were to remain with the old companies along with non-rail related properties. The plan was formulated by the Association of American Railroads (AAR), an industry trade group. USRA announced a preliminary plan on February 26, 1975, and the ICC then conducted public hearings on the draft plan. [5] USRA published the Final System Plan on July 26, 1975. [6] The plan called for Conrail to consist of the complete Penn Central network (a conglomerate of three massive former northeastern systems — the Pennsylvania Railroad, New York Central Railroad and New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad) as well as the following six railroads:

Controlled railroads and jointly owned railroads such as Pennsylvania-Reading Seashore Lines were also included. (See List of railroads transferred to Conrail.) The final plan also identified certain commuter rail lines (not designated for freight service) that could be purchased by state transportation agencies from Conrail following the initial transfer. [7] Congress approved the final plan on November 9, 1975. President Gerald Ford signed the Railroad Revitalization and Regulatory Reform Act of 1976 (the "4R Act") on February 6 of that year, which included this Final System Plan, into law. [8]

USRA published a supplementary report in 1986 which provides a complete overview of the disposition of the affected rail lines and related properties. [9]

Dissolution

Congress abolished the USRA effective January 1, 1987. [10]

See also

Related Research Articles

The Railroad Revitalization and Regulatory Reform Act of 1976, often called the "4R Act," is a United States federal law that established the basic outlines of regulatory reform in the railroad industry and provided transitional operating funds following the 1970 bankruptcy of Penn Central Transportation Company. The law approved the "Final System Plan" for the newly created Conrail and authorized acquisition of Northeast Corridor tracks and facilities by Amtrak.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Penn Central Transportation Company</span> American class I railroad company in operation from 1968 to 1976

The Penn Central Transportation Company, commonly abbreviated to Penn Central, was an American class I railroad that operated from 1968 to 1976. Penn Central combined three traditional corporate rivals, all united by large-scale service into the New York metropolitan area and New England and Chicago. The new company failed barely two years after formation, the largest bankruptcy in U.S. history at the time. The Penn Central's railroad assets were nationalized into Conrail along with the other bankrupt northeastern roads; its real estate and insurance holdings successfully reorganized into American Premier Underwriters.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of rail transportation in the United States</span> Railroad and train-related history of the United States

Wooden railroads, called wagonways, were built in the United States starting from the 1720s. A railroad was reportedly used in the construction of the French fortress at Louisburg, Nova Scotia, in New France in 1720. Between 1762 and 1764, at the close of the French and Indian War (1756–1763), a gravity railroad called Montresor's Tramway was built by British military engineers up the steep riverside terrain near the Niagara River waterfall's escarpment at the Niagara Portage in Lewiston, New York.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Erie Lackawanna Railway</span> Transport company

The Erie Lackawanna Railway, known as the Erie Lackawanna Railroad until 1968, was formed from the 1960 merger of the Erie Railroad and the Delaware, Lackawanna & Western Railroad. The official motto of the line was "The Friendly Service Route".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">United States Railroad Administration</span> WWI-era temporary railroad nationalization program

The United States Railroad Administration (USRA) was the name of the nationalized railroad system of the United States between December 28, 1917, and March 1, 1920. It was the largest American experiment with nationalization, and was undertaken against a background of war emergency following American entry into World War I. During its brief existence, the USRA made major investments in the United States railroad system, and introduced standardized locomotive and railroad car classes, known as USRA standard. After the end of World War I, while some in the United States advocated for continuing nationalization, ultimately the railroads were returned to their previous owners in early 1920.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Conrail</span> Former American Class I railroad (1976–1999)

Conrail, formally the Consolidated Rail Corporation, was the primary Class I railroad in the Northeastern United States between 1976 and 1999. The trade name Conrail is a portmanteau based on the company's legal name. It continues to do business as an asset management and network services provider in three Shared Assets Areas that were excluded from the division of its operations during its acquisition by CSX Corporation and the Norfolk Southern Railway.

The Perth Amboy and Woodbridge Railroad was a railroad company in the state of New Jersey. It was incorporated in 1855, and completed its line between Rahway and Perth Amboy, New Jersey, in 1864. The company became part of the Pennsylvania Railroad system and was merged into the United New Jersey Railroad and Canal Company in 1958. Its line is part of the New Jersey Transit's North Jersey Coast Line.

The Lehigh and Susquehanna Railroad is a defunct railroad that operated in eastern Pennsylvania during the 19th and 20th centuries. The company was a subsidiary of the Lehigh Coal & Navigation Company (LC&N). For much of its lifetime, however, it was leased by the Central Railroad of New Jersey.

The Lebanon Valley Branch was a railway line in Pennsylvania. Built between 1857–1858, it linked the cities of Harrisburg and Reading. It was part of the Reading Company system from its completion until 1976, when it was conveyed to Conrail. Under Conrail, the branch was merged with part of the former Reading Main Line to become the Harrisburg Line. It remains an important freight route.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Flemington Branch</span>

The Flemington Branch was a railroad line in Hunterdon County, New Jersey. It was owned and operated by the Lehigh Valley Railroad. It connected the borough of Flemington, New Jersey, with the Lehigh Valley's main line. It was opened in 1884 and abandoned in 1982.

The Wilmington and Northern Branch is a partially-abandoned railway line in the states of Delaware and Pennsylvania. It was constructed between 1869 and 1870 by the Wilmington and Reading Railroad, a predecessor of the Wilmington and Northern Railroad. At its fullest extent it connected Reading, Pennsylvania, with Wilmington, Delaware. The Philadelphia and Reading Railway leased the line in 1900. With the Reading Company's bankruptcy and the creation of Conrail in 1976 the line's ownership fragmented, and the section between Coatesville, Pennsylvania, and Birdsboro, Pennsylvania, has been abandoned.

The Port Reading Secondary, also known as the Port Reading Branch, is a railway line in New Jersey. It runs 16.0 miles (25.7 km) from a junction with the Lehigh Line in Bound Brook, New Jersey, to Port Reading, New Jersey, on the Arthur Kill. Originally built by the Port Reading Railroad and part of the Reading Company system, today the line belongs to Conrail Shared Assets Operations (CSAO).

The Allentown branch, also known as the Kutztown branch or the Kutztown industrial track, is a railway line in Pennsylvania. It runs 4 miles (6.4 km) from a junction with the Reading Line at Topton to Kutztown. The line was built in 1870 by the Allentown Railroad and was part of the Reading Company system until 1976. The Kutztown Transportation Authority has owned the line since 2000. The Allentown and Auburn Railroad is the current operator.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Colebrookdale branch</span> Railway line in Pennsylvania, U.S.

The Colebrookdale branch, also known as the Colebrookdale spur, Colebrookdale industrial track or Colebrookdale line, is a railway line in Pennsylvania. It runs 8.6 miles (13.8 km) from a junction with the Harrisburg Line in Pottstown to Boyertown. At its fullest extent, the line continued another 4 miles (6.4 km) to Barto. The line was built between 1868 and 1869 by the Colebrookdale Railroad and part of the Reading Company system until 1976. Berks County has owned the line since 2009. The Eastern Berks Gateway Railroad operates freight service; heritage passenger services are run under the Colebrookdale Railroad name.

The Cornwall Railroad, formerly the North Lebanon Railroad, was a railway company in the state of Pennsylvania. It was incorporated in 1850 and opened its initial line between Lebanon and Cornwall, Pennsylvania, in 1855. The Reading Company bought the Cornwall Railroad in 1968. The line passed to Conrail on the Reading's bankruptcy in 1976 and has since been abandoned. The line ran parallel to that of the Cornwall and Lebanon Railroad, later part of the Pennsylvania Railroad system.

The Fort Wayne and Jackson Railroad was a railway company in the United States. It was incorporated in 1879 to reorganize the Fort Wayne, Jackson and Saginaw Railroad, which owned a railway line between Fort Wayne, Indiana, and Jackson, Michigan. The Lake Shore and Michigan Southern Railway leased the company in 1882. Most of the company's line has been abandoned.

The Lehigh and Lackawanna Railroad was a railway company in the United States. It was incorporated in 1864 and opened its initial line between Bethlehem, and Chapman, Pennsylvania, in 1867. At its peak, the company's line extended 25.3 miles (40.7 km) from Bethlehem to Wind Gap, Pennsylvania. The company and its line became part of the Lehigh and New England Railroad in 1904. Part of the line was abandoned in 1962; the remainder is part of the Norfolk Southern Railway's Cement Secondary.

The Catasauqua Branch was a short railway line in Lehigh and Northampton Counties in the state of Pennsylvania. It was part of the Lehigh and New England Railroad and ran from a point south of Bath to Catasauqua, where it interchanged with the Central Railroad of New Jersey and Lehigh Valley Railroad. The line opened in 1914 and was partially abandoned in 1961 on the Lehigh and New England Railroad's bankruptcy and closure. Conrail abandoned the remainder in the 1990s.

American railroad company Penn Central Transportation Company declared bankruptcy on June 21, 1970, two and a half years after its formation by the merger of the New York Central Railroad and the Pennsylvania Railroad. At the time, this was the largest bankruptcy in American history. Penn Central was responsible for a third of the nation's passenger trains and much of the freight rail in the Northeastern United States, and its failure would have devastating impacts on the Northeast's economy.

References

  1. ↑ Keeffe, Arthur John (July 1974). "Current Legal Literature: Hear That Whistle Down the Line?". ABA Journal. American Bar Association. 60: 860.
  2. ↑ Regional Rail Reorganization Act of 1973, Pub.L. 93-236, 87 Stat. 985, 45 U.S.C.   § 741. Approved 1974-01-02. Note: The approved bill was also called the "Northeast Region Rail Services Act." Section 1 of Pub.L. 93–236 provided that the law may be cited as "Regional Rail Reorganization Act of 1973." See 45 U.S.C. 701 note.
  3. ↑ U.S. Supreme Court. Regional Rail Reorganization Act Cases, 419 U.S. 102 (1974).
  4. ↑ Young, Rowland L. (January 1976). "Supreme Court Report: Court Upholds Rail Act". ABA Journal. 62: 115.
  5. ↑ U.S. Railway Association (USRA), Washington, DC (1975-02-26). "Fact Sheet: The Preliminary System Plan for Restructuring the Railroads of the Northeast and Midwest."
  6. ↑ USRA (1975-07-26). Final System Plan for Restructuring Railroads in the Northeast and Midwest Region pursuant to the Regional Rail Reorganization Act of 1973. ("FSP"):
    Vol. 1. Vol. 2
  7. ↑ USRA. FSP, Vol. I, Appendix to Part II, Section D: "Designations to ConRail for Acquisition by Transportation Authorities."
  8. ↑ Railroad Revitalization and Regulatory Reform Act, Pub. L. 94-210, 90 Stat. 31, 45 U.S.C.   § 801. Approved 1976-02-05.
  9. ↑ USRA (1986-12). "The Conveyance Process: A Supplement to the Final Report of the United States Railway Association."
  10. ↑ Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1986, Pub.L. 99-509, title IV, Sec. 4031, 100 Stat. 1906. Approved 1986-10-21. 45 U.S.C.   § 1341.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.