The Harrisburg Line is a
rail line
Rail or rails may refer to:
Rail transport
*Rail transport and related matters
*Railway track or railway lines, the running surface of a railway
Arts and media Film
*Rails (film), ''Rails'' (film), a 1929 Italian film by Mario Camerini
*Rail ( ...
owned and operated by the
Norfolk Southern Railway
The Norfolk Southern Railway is a Class I freight railroad operating in the Eastern United States. Headquartered in Atlanta, the company was formed in 1982 with the merger of the Norfolk and Western Railway and Southern Railway. The comp ...
(NS) in the
U.S.
The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 contiguous ...
state of
Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...
. The line runs from
Philadelphia
Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...
(HP 5.2) west to
Harrisburg
Harrisburg ( ; ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), U.S. commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat, seat of Dauphin County, Pennsylvania, Dauphin County. With a population of 50, ...
(HP 112.9).
The Harrisburg Line was formed the day
Conrail
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 busine ...
began operations, April 1, 1976, from two former
Reading Company
The Reading Company ( ) was a Philadelphia-headquartered railroad that provided passenger and freight transport in eastern Pennsylvania and neighboring states from 1924 until its acquisition by Conrail in 1976.
Commonly called the Reading Railro ...
lines, the original
namesake main line to
Reading, Pennsylvania
Reading ( ; ) is a city in Berks County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. The city had a population of 95,112 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census and is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, fourth-most populous ...
, and the
Lebanon Valley Branch.
Today, the Harrisburg Line is owned by Norfolk Southern Railway under their Harrisburg Division. The Harrisburg Line runs through two tunnels, the
Flat Rock Tunnel in
Lower Merion Township and the
Black Rock Tunnel in
Phoenixville.
History

The Harrisburg Line, as a single rail line, was formed on April 1, 1976. However, under the Reading Company, the Harrisburg Line was two rail lines: the original main line from
Reading
Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of symbols, often specifically those of a written language, by means of Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch.
For educators and researchers, reading is a multifacete ...
to
Philadelphia
Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...
and the
Lebanon Valley Railroad from Reading to
Harrisburg
Harrisburg ( ; ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), U.S. commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat, seat of Dauphin County, Pennsylvania, Dauphin County. With a population of 50, ...
.
The Reading Company main line was established on July 16, 1838 between Reading and
Norristown by the Reading Company’s
Philadelphia and Reading Rail Road. The Reading to Norristown route is the Reading Company main line's original route/right of way. The Reading Company main line was extended to
Philadelphia
Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...
, Pennsylvania from Norristown on December 9, 1839. The Reading Company main line was later extended to the north from Reading to
Port Clinton.
The
Lebanon Valley Branch was opened by the
Lebanon Valley Railroad from Reading to Harrisburg, and the line and its railroad were purchased by the
Reading Company
The Reading Company ( ) was a Philadelphia-headquartered railroad that provided passenger and freight transport in eastern Pennsylvania and neighboring states from 1924 until its acquisition by Conrail in 1976.
Commonly called the Reading Railro ...
on March 20, 1858. The Lebanon Valley Railroad built the Lebanon Valley Branch a few months before it was purchased by the Reading Company.
"PRR Chronology, 1858"
March 2005 Edition.
The Reading Company's railroad properties along with the Reading Company main line and the Lebanon Valley Branch became part of the Consolidated Rail Corporation
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 Conrail Shared Assets O ...
(Conrail) on April 1, 1976 and the Reading Company main line’s Reading to Philadelphia trackage and all of the Lebanon Valley Branch were combined into a new rail line which became known as the Harrisburg Line. The Reading to Port Clinton trackage was separated from the Reading Company main line and was later sold to Reading Blue Mountain and Northern Railroad. The newly created Harrisburg Line continued under Conrail until the late 1990s.
The Harrisburg Line became part of Norfolk Southern Railway
The Norfolk Southern Railway is a Class I freight railroad operating in the Eastern United States. Headquartered in Atlanta, the company was formed in 1982 with the merger of the Norfolk and Western Railway and Southern Railway. The comp ...
on June 1, 1999, after the breakup of Conrail. Other Conrail lines such as the Lehigh Line, which was previously the main line of the Lehigh Valley Railroad
The Lehigh Valley Railroad was a railroad in the Northeastern United States built predominantly to haul anthracite, anthracite coal from the Coal Region in Northeastern Pennsylvania to major consumer markets in Philadelphia, New York City, and ...
. On the same day, the Central Railroad of New Jersey
Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object.
Central may also refer to:
Directions and generalised locations
* Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known as ...
used trackage, the Pittsburgh Line
The Pittsburgh Line is the Norfolk Southern Railway's primary east–west artery in its Pittsburgh Division and Harrisburg Division across the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and is part of the Keystone Corridor, Amtrak-Norfolk Southern's combine ...
, Reading Line, Buffalo Line, Lurgan Branch, and Royalton Branch became Norfolk Southern lines.
Connections
At its east end, near the East Falls
East Falls (also The Falls, formerly the Falls of Schuylkill) is a neighborhood in Lower Northwest, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. It lies on the east bank of the "Falls of the Schuylkill," cataracts submerged in 1822 by the Schu ...
neighborhood in Philadelphia
Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...
, the Harrisburg Line junctions with CSX Transportation
CSX Transportation , known colloquially as simply CSX, is a Class I freight railroad company operating in the Eastern United States and the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec. Operating about 21,000 route miles () of track, it is the lead ...
's Trenton Subdivision and the Philadelphia Subdivision
The Philadelphia Subdivision is a railroad line owned and operated by CSX Transportation in the U.S. states of Pennsylvania, Delaware, and Maryland. The line runs from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, southwest to Baltimore, Maryland, along a forme ...
. Its west end in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
Harrisburg ( ; ) is the capital city of the U.S. commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the seat of Dauphin County. With a population of 50,099 as of 2020, Harrisburg is the ninth-most populous city in Pennsylvania. It is the larger of the two pr ...
is at a junction with the NS Pittsburgh Line
The Pittsburgh Line is the Norfolk Southern Railway's primary east–west artery in its Pittsburgh Division and Harrisburg Division across the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and is part of the Keystone Corridor, Amtrak-Norfolk Southern's combine ...
, the NS Lurgan Branch, the NS Royalton Branch, and Amtrak
The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, Trade name, doing business as Amtrak (; ), is the national Passenger train, passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates intercity rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous United Stat ...
's Keystone Corridor
The Keystone Corridor is a 349-mile (562 km) railroad corridor between Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, that consists of two rail lines: Amtrak and SEPTA's Philadelphia to Harrisburg Main Line, Philadelphia-to-Harrisburg main li ...
(Philadelphia to Harrisburg Main Line
The Philadelphia to Harrisburg Main Line is a rail line owned and operated by Amtrak in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. This is the only electrified Amtrak line in the United States outside of the main line of the Northeast Corridor. The line ...
).
The line junctions the Morrisville Line (indirectly) at Norristown, Pennsylvania
Norristown is a Borough (Pennsylvania), borough with Home Rule Municipality (Pennsylvania), home rule status and the county seat of Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States, in the Delaware Valley, Philadelphia metropolitan area. Located ...
and the Reading Line near Reading, Pennsylvania
Reading ( ; ) is a city in Berks County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. The city had a population of 95,112 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census and is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, fourth-most populous ...
. Also at Norristown, the line junctions with SEPTA
SEPTA, the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority, is a regional public transportation authority that operates bus, rapid transit, commuter rail, light rail, and electric trolleybus services for nearly four million people througho ...
’s Manayunk/Norristown Line.
See also
* List of Norfolk Southern Railway lines
The Norfolk Southern Railway owns and operates A vast network of rail lines in the United States east of the Mississippi River. In addition to lines inherited from predecessor railroads, Norfolk and Western, and the Southern Railway, it acquir ...
References
{{Authority control
Norfolk Southern Railway lines
Norfolk Southern Railway
Conrail lines
Conrail
Rail infrastructure in Pennsylvania
Transportation in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
Rail transportation in Philadelphia
Transportation in Reading, Pennsylvania