Vermont Railway

Last updated
Vermont Railway
VTR logo.png
Vermont Railway locomotive -303 crossing downtown White River Junction VT October 2017.jpg
A Vermont Railway locomotive with a hopper car in White River Junction, Vermont.
Overview
Headquarters Burlington, Vermont
Reporting mark VTR
Locale Vermont, New Hampshire, and New York
Dates of operation1964 (1964)–present
Technical
Track gauge 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
Other
Website www.vermontrailway.com

The Vermont Railway( reporting mark VTR) is a shortline railroad in Vermont and eastern New York, operating much of the former Rutland Railway. It is the main part of the Vermont Rail System, which also owns the Green Mountain Railroad, the Rutland's branch to Bellows Falls. The trackage is owned by the Vermont Agency of Transportation except in New York, where VTR operates a line owned by the Boston and Maine Corporation. [1] The rail line employs about 150 people in Vermont. [2]

Contents

History

The Rutland Railway was the only north-south line through western Vermont. A strike in 1953 precipitated the company's ending passenger service. [3] [4] Another strike shut down freight operations on September 25, 1961. The government of Vermont purchased the main line south of Burlington, as well as a branch to Bennington, 128.6 miles (207.0 km) total, and the new Vermont Railway, incorporated on October 25, 1963, began operations on January 6, 1964. [5] The company's first president was Jay Wulfson, who came from the Middletown and New Jersey Railroad. [6]

During the early years of the Vermont Railway, money was spent replacing old locomotives and rolling stock the railroad had inherited from the Rutland. It bought several locomotives, both new and used. It also leased several hundred freight cars.

The railroad continued to expand, entering the intermodal business in 1965, and acquiring the Clarendon and Pittsford Railroad in 1972, which gave VTR access to a limestone plant near Florence, Vermont. VTR retained the Clarendon and Pittsford name as a separate legal entity operating the acquired trackage. In the late 1970s several senior officials died, including Wulfson. The railroad grossed more than $2 million in revenues for the first time. Net earnings were about $20,000 a year, which was spent in improving the railroad. [6]

In 1982, VTR repaid the state of Vermont for the trackage the state had bought in 1964 to allow VTR to begin operations. A year later, VTR bought 23.7 miles (38.1 km) of track between Rutland and Whitehall, New York from the Delaware and Hudson Railway and assigned it to its Clarendon and Pittsford subsidiary. The track was severely deteriorated at the time of purchase, with track speeds as low as 6 miles per hour (9.7 km/h) over the entire line. During the first years after the purchase, a rehabilitation project was begun, upgrading the roadbed as well as the track and ties. Since the line was upgraded to higher standards, Whitehall has become a major interchange point between VTR and the D&H (now Canadian Pacific after its acquisition of the D&H). [6] Since 1996, Amtrak's Ethan Allen Express has been operating on the Rutland - Whitehall section.

In 1997, the Vermont Railway purchased the Green Mountain Railroad, which ran 52.2 miles (84.0 km) from Rutland to Bellows Falls. This led to the formation of an umbrella company, named the Vermont Rail System, which owned both railroads, as well as several other shortlines in Vermont and New York. [6]

VTR has been the designated operator of the New York & Ogdensburg Railway for over a decade (as of 2021) . This short line was once the western end of the Rutland Railway Ogdensburg Division and operates over the 26-mile line segment between Ogdensburg and the CSX connection at Norwood, NY. [7]

VTR planned to construct a new 3.3-mile (5.3 km) spur line in Middlebury, Vermont, to serve a quarry. [8] In early 2011, the company created a new subsidiary railroad called the Otter Creek Railroad to purchase land and construct trackage in preparation for construction to begin in early 2013, with a late 2014 completion date. [8] The quarry cancelled the project in August 2012 because it was no longer economically viable. [9]

Routes

The VRS owns and operates the following additional rail line:

Traffic

The Vermont Railway moves a wide variety of freight, as well as furnishing track to an Amtrak passenger train, the Ethan Allen Express . VTR moves large amounts of stone products from quarries in western Vermont, largely limestone in the form of slurry from OMYA mines north of Rutland. VTR also moves large amounts of petroleum products into Vermont, including unit trains of fuel oil from Albany, New York, to Burlington. [6] VTR operates the Champlain Valley Dinner Train, which runs from Burlington to Middlebury. [10]

Locomotive fleet

Current fleet

Locomotive details [6] [11]
TypeNumbersManufacturerBuiltNotes
GP38-2 201, 202 EMD 1972-1974Built for VTR
GP38 204EMD1969
GP38205EMD1969
GP38-3206EMD1969
GP38-3207EMD1969
GP38-2208 - 212EMD1971-1972
GP40-2 307, 313EMD1972-1984
SD70M-2 431, 432EMD2006bought from FEC
GP18 801EMD1951
GP16 802EMD1950
GP9R 804EMD1950

Former fleet

Locomotive details [12]
TypeNumbersManufacturerBuilt
GP38 203 EMD 1964

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">BNSF Railway</span> American freight railroad

BNSF Railway is the largest freight railroad in the United States. One of six North American Class I railroads, BNSF has 36,000 employees, 33,400 miles (53,800 km) of track in 28 states, and over 8,000 locomotives. It has three transcontinental routes that provide rail connections between the western and eastern United States. BNSF trains traveled over 169 million miles in 2010, more than any other North American railroad.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rutland Railroad</span> Former US railway company

The Rutland Railroad was a railroad in the northeastern United States, located primarily in the state of Vermont but extending into the state of New York at both its northernmost and southernmost ends. After its closure in 1961, parts of the railroad were taken over by the State of Vermont in early 1963 and are now operated by the Vermont Railway.

<i>Ethan Allen Express</i> Intercity rail service in the United States

The Ethan Allen Express is a daily passenger train operated by Amtrak in the United States between New York City and Burlington, Vermont, via Albany, New York. One daily round trip is operated on a 310-mile (500 km) north–south route with a 7-hour 35 minute scheduled running time. The train is subsidized by New York and Vermont for the portion north of Albany. It is named for Vermont cofounder and American Revolutionary War hero Ethan Allen.

The Central Vermont Railway was a railroad that operated in the U.S. states of Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, and Vermont, as well as the Canadian province of Quebec.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Maine Central Railroad</span> Defunct American Class I railway

The Maine Central Railroad was a U. S. class 1 railroad in central and southern Maine. It was chartered in 1856 and began operations in 1862. By 1884, Maine Central was the longest railroad in New England. Maine Central had expanded to 1,358 miles (2,185 km) when the United States Railroad Administration assumed control in 1917. The main line extended from South Portland, Maine, east to the Canada–United States border with New Brunswick, and a Mountain Division extended west from Portland to St. Johnsbury, Vermont, and north into Quebec. The main line was double track from South Portland to Royal Junction, where it split into a "lower road" through Brunswick and Augusta and a "back road" through Lewiston, which converged at Waterville into single track to Bangor and points east. Branch lines served the industrial center of Rumford, a resort hotel on Moosehead Lake and coastal communities from Bath to Eastport.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Middletown and New Jersey Railroad</span>

The Middletown and New Jersey Railroad is one of two railroads in the city of Middletown, New York; the other being its interchange partner, Norfolk Southern Railway. The MNJ consists of 43 miles (69 km) of track in southeastern New York serving Orange County and the Hudson Valley. The railroad also operates and has trackage rights on three additional branch lines totalling 40 miles (64 km) leased from Norfolk Southern in Orange County. It was known as the Middletown and New Jersey Railway until 2009, when East Penn Railroad parent Regional Rail, LLC bought the line through a new subsidiary. In 2015, Regional Rail was in turn acquired by Levine Leichtman Capital Partners ("LLCP").

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Green Mountain Railroad</span> Class III US railway

The Green Mountain Railroad is a class III railroad operating in Vermont. GMRC operates on tracks that had been owned by the Rutland Railroad and Boston and Maine Railroad. The railroad operates on a rail line between North Walpole, New Hampshire, and Rutland, Vermont. GMRC's corporate colors are green and yellow.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Connecticut Southern Railroad</span> Freight railroad in Connecticut and Massachusetts

The Connecticut Southern Railroad is a 90-mile (140 km) long short-line railroad operating in Connecticut and Massachusetts. The company was formed in 1996 as a spinoff of Conrail by shortline holding company RailTex and subsequently acquired in 2000 by RailAmerica. Since 2012, it has been a subsidiary of Genesee & Wyoming. CSO is headquartered in Hartford, Connecticut, site of its Hartford Yard. The company also operates East Hartford Yard.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">New England Central Railroad</span> Railroad company

The New England Central Railroad is a regional railroad in the New England region of the United States. It began operations in 1995, as the successor of the Central Vermont Railway (CV). The company was originally a subsidiary of holding company RailTex before being purchased by RailAmerica in 2000. In 2012, the company was purchased by Genesee & Wyoming, its current owner.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Minnesota Northern Railroad</span>

The Minnesota Northern Railroad is a Class III shortline railroad that operates over 224 miles (360 km) of track in northwestern Minnesota. The railroad is co-owned by KBN Incorporated and Independent Locomotive Service and is headquartered in Crookston, Minnesota.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">New England Southern Railroad</span>

The New England Southern Railroad is a Class III shortline railroad that operates out of Canterbury, New Hampshire, and serves industries in central New Hampshire, in the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Iowa Northern Railway</span> US shortline railroad

The Iowa Northern Railway is a Class III shortline railroad operating in the U.S. state of Iowa.

The Ogdensburg and Lake Champlain Railroad was founded in 1849 as the Northern Railroad running from Ogdensburg to Rouses Point, New York. The 118-mile (190 km) railroad was leased by rival Central Vermont Railroad for several decades, ending in 1896. It was purchased in 1901 by the Rutland Railroad and became its Ogdensburg Division.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Central New York Railroad</span> Railway line in the United States

The Central New York Railroad is a shortline railroad operating local freight service along ex-Southern Tier Line trackage in New York and Pennsylvania.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">East Penn Railroad</span> Railway line in the United States of America

East Penn Railroad is a short-line railroad that operates a number of mostly-unconnected lines in Pennsylvania and Delaware. Except for two industrial park switching operations, all are former Pennsylvania Railroad or Reading Company lines, abandoned or sold by Conrail or its predecessors.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oil Creek and Titusville Railroad</span>

The Oil Creek and Titusville Railroad is a tourist railroad that runs from Titusville to Rynd Farm north of Oil City in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. The Oil Creek and Titusville Lines is the designated operator of the railroad, as well as the freight carrier on the line.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arizona and California Railroad</span> Short line railroad in the Southwestern United States

The Arizona and California Railroad is a class III short line railroad that was a subdivision of the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway (ATSF). The ARZC began operations on May 9, 1991, when David Parkinson of the ParkSierra RailGroup purchased the line from the Santa Fe Railway. ParkSierra Railgroup was purchased in January 2002 by shortline railroad holding company RailAmerica. The Genesee & Wyoming shortline railroad holding company purchased RailAmerica in December 2012. ARZC's main commodities are petroleum gas, steel, and lumber; the railroad hauls around 12,000 carloads per year.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Grenada Railroad</span> American railroad

The Grenada Railroad is a 228-mile long (290 km) shortline railroad that runs from Southaven, Mississippi to Canton, Mississippi, along the former Illinois Central Railroad trackage operated by Gulf & Atlantic Railways LLC.

The Green Mountain Flyer was an international day train between Montreal, Quebec, Canada, and the Northeast United States, with sections to New York City and Boston. It was operated in cooperation between the Rutland Railroad, the Canadian National Railway and the New York Central Railroad. The train carried the number 65 running north, and number 64 running south. The Mount Royal was the night train counterpart to the Green Mountain Flyer. Following years of cutbacks, both trains were discontinued in 1953 when the Rutland Railway ended all passenger service.

References

  1. ↑ Vermont Agency of Transportation, Vermont Rail Network, accessed February 2009
  2. 1 2 Usatch, Brad (November 23, 2016). "Railroading sees a bit of rebirth". The Chronicle. Barton, Vermont. pp. 1A. 27A. Retrieved December 1, 2016.
  3. ↑ "An Eastern Regional Railroad - 1930's - 1940's, Rutland Railroad" http://www.r2parks.net/RUT.html
  4. ↑ Lindsell, Robert M. (2000). The Rail Lines of Northern New England. Branch Line Press. pp. 35–46, 175. ISBN   0942147065.
  5. ↑ Edward A. Lewis, American Shortline Railway Guide, 5th edition, Kalmbach Publishing, 1996, p. 322
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Jones, Robert C. (2006). Vermont Rail System: A Railroad Renaissance. Evergreen Press. ISBN   0-9667264-5-6.
  7. ↑ "NYOG Railway". Ogdensburg Bridge and Port Authority.
  8. 1 2 ""Otter Creek Railroad" to Build Middlebury Spur in 2013". Vermont Rail Action Network. 7 February 2011. Archived from the original on 6 October 2011. Retrieved 9 April 2011.
  9. ↑ Edwards, Bruce (28 August 2012). "Omya rail spur sidetracked indefinitely". Times Argus. Retrieved 27 May 2016.
  10. ↑ "Champlain Valley Dinner Train". plan.vermontvacation.com. Retrieved 2023-10-09.
  11. ↑ "Vermont Rail System acquires six-axle EMD power". Trains Magazine. 31 August 2015. Retrieved 22 August 2015.
  12. ↑ "Conway Scenic Acquires Second Maine Central GP38". 19 October 2021.

Commons-logo.svg Media related to Vermont Railway at Wikimedia Commons

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.