Marquette Rail is a

short line railroad A shortline railroad is a small or mid-sized railroad company that operates over a relatively short distance relative to larger, national railroad networks. The term is used primarily in the United States and Canada. In the former, railroads are ...

operating in Michigan. It is based in Ludington and as of 2024, operates of trackage north from

Grand Rapids, Michigan Grand Rapids is the largest city and county seat of Kent County, Michigan, United States. With a population of 198,917 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census and estimated at 200,117 in 2024, Grand Rapids is the List of municipalities ...

, where connections with

CSX CSX Transportation , known colloquially as simply CSX, is a Railroad classes, 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 trac ...

and Grand Rapids Eastern Railroad are located. It serves chemical, paper products and various general freight customers. In 2012, the railroad expected an annual profit of about $4 million on income of $13 million. The company was founded in November 2005 by Kevin Ruble, a nationally active railroad consultant, who purchased a

line running north from

Grand Rapids Grand Rapids is the largest city and county seat of Kent County, Michigan, United States. With a population of 198,917 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census and estimated at 200,117 in 2024, Grand Rapids is the List of municipalities ...

to Ludington and Manistee. The railroad maintains its trackage to standards, and operates, as of 2008, seven

EMD GP38-2 The EMD GP38-2 is an American four-axle diesel-electric locomotive built by General Motors, Electro-Motive Division. Part of the EMD Dash 2 line, the GP38-2 was an upgraded version of the earlier EMD GP38, GP38. Power is provided by an EMD 645E 1 ...

and

EMD SD40-2 The EMD SD40-2 is a AAR wheel arrangement#C-C, C-C diesel–electric locomotive built by Electro-Motive Diesel, EMD from 1972 to 1989. The SD40-2 was introduced in January 1972 as part of EMD's ''EMD Dash 2, Dash 2'' series, competing against t ...

locomotives. On 8 February 2012,

RailAmerica RailAmerica, Inc., based in Jacksonville, Florida, was a holding company of a number of short-line railroads and regional railroads in the United States and Canada. In 2007, RailAmerica was acquired by Fortress Investment Group. Before that, it t ...

, a national short-line operator, announced that it planned to purchase Marquette Rail for $40 million. RailAmerica and Marquette Rail were subsequently purchased by

Genesee & Wyoming Genesee & Wyoming Inc. (G&W) is an American short line railroad holding company, that owns or maintains an interest in 122 railroads in the United States, Canada, Belgium, Netherlands, Poland, and the United Kingdom; and formerly in Australia. ...

. Prior to its acquisition, Marquette Rail was an employee-owned company.

References

External links

Marquette Rail official webpage - Genesee and Wyoming website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Marquette Rail Llc Michigan railroads Railway companies established in 2005 RailAmerica