Penn Eastern Rail Lines
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

The East Penn Railroad 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 ...
that operates a number of mostly-unconnected lines in
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 ...
and
Delaware Delaware ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic and South Atlantic states, South Atlantic regions of the United States. It borders Maryland to its south and west, Pennsylvania to its north, New Jersey ...
. Except for two
industrial park An industrial park, also known as industrial estate or trading estate, is an area zoned and planned for the purpose of industrial development. An industrial park can be thought of as a more heavyweight version of a business park or office par ...
switching operations, all are former
Pennsylvania Railroad The Pennsylvania Railroad ( reporting mark PRR), legal name as the Pennsylvania Railroad Company, also known as the "Pennsy," was an American Class I railroad that was established in 1846 and headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. At its ...
or
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, abandoned or sold by
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 ...
or its predecessors. The East Penn Railroad was formed in 2007 through a merger of East Penn Railways and Penn Eastern Rail Lines , each of which began operating in the 1990s. The railroad is owned by
Regional Rail, LLC Regional Rail, LLC is a company operating short-line railroads in Delaware, Florida, New York, and Pennsylvania. It operates 13 railroads: Burns Harbor Railroad, Carolina Coastal Railway, East Penn Railroad, Effingham Railroad, Florida Centra ...
, which also owns the
Middletown and New Jersey Railroad 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 of track in southeastern New York serving Orange County a ...
, Tyburn Railroad, Carolina Coastal Railway, Florida Central Railroad, Florida Northern Railroad, and Florida Midland Railroad.


History

In 2007, the East Penn Railroad (ESPN) was formed by the merger of East Penn Railway and Penn Eastern Rail Lines. Since the merger, the railroad has improved service and infrastructure on lines with customer growth potential; weaker lines were abandoned or sold off. of track was returned to service. A yard was also constructed in
Pocopson, Pennsylvania Pocopson is an unincorporated community in Pocopson Township in Chester County, Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, No ...
along the
Wilmington and Northern Branch 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 Ra ...
(W&N). ESPN has acquired additional locomotives and replaced older locomotives to handle increased traffic, including two rebuilt
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 ...
's from
GATX GATX Corporation is a railcar lessor that owns fleets in North America, Europe, and Asia. In addition, jointly with Rolls-Royce Limited, it owns one of the largest aircraft spare engine lease portfolios. It is headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. ...
used along the W&N and Octoraro lines. ESPN attempted to abandon the Colebrookdale line between Pottstown and
Boyertown Boyertown (Pennsylvania Dutch: ) is a borough in Berks County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 4,264 at the 2020 census. History A post office called Boyertown has been in operation since 1828. The community was named for its ...
in 2008; it was eventually purchased by Berks County. In 2010, the Chester Valley line between
King of Prussia The monarchs of Prussia were members of the House of Hohenzollern who were the hereditary rulers of the former German state of Prussia from its founding in 1525 as the Duchy of Prussia. The Duchy had evolved out of the Teutonic Order, a Roman C ...
and
Bridgeport Bridgeport is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Connecticut and the fifth-most populous city in New England, with a population of 148,654 in 2020. Located in eastern Fairfield County at the mouth of the Pequonnock River on Long Is ...
was abandoned and subsequently sold to Montgomery County and became part of the
Chester Valley Rail Trail Chester Valley Rail Trail is a rail trail which runs largely through the Great Valley of Pennsylvania (also known as the Chester Valley) in Chester and Montgomery counties in southeastern Pennsylvania. The west end is in Exton (Chester Cou ...
. On August 1, 2011, the East Penn Railroad took over operations from
Norfolk Southern 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 the York Industrial Track between
York York is a cathedral city in North Yorkshire, England, with Roman Britain, Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers River Ouse, Yorkshire, Ouse and River Foss, Foss. It has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a Yor ...
and Stonybook. In December 2012, the former Raritan River 40' boxcar #100, stored on East Penn tracks at its Quakertown depot, was restored, representing one of the few surviving pieces of equipment from the former
Raritan River Railroad The Raritan River Rail Road was a shortline railroad in Middlesex County, New Jersey, Middlesex County in the U.S. state of New Jersey, Founded in 1888, it was based in South Amboy, New Jersey, South Amboy, from which it ran west as far as Ne ...
. Since 2011, a total of eight derailments have happened along the East Penn Railroad in various locations, including northern
Delaware Delaware ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic and South Atlantic states, South Atlantic regions of the United States. It borders Maryland to its south and west, Pennsylvania to its north, New Jersey ...
,
Chester County Chester County may refer to: * Chester County, Pennsylvania, United States ** Chester County Council, boy scout council in Pennsylvania. * Chester County, South Carolina, United States * Chester County, Tennessee, United States * Cheshire ...
, and
Bucks County Bucks County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 646,538, making it the fourth-most populous county in Pennsylvania. Its county seat is Doylestown. The county is named after the English ...
. In August 2022, six cars derailed in Chester County, narrowly missing a home.


Operations

ESPN operates 114 miles of track in eastern
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 ...
and northern
Delaware Delaware ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic and South Atlantic states, South Atlantic regions of the United States. It borders Maryland to its south and west, Pennsylvania to its north, New Jersey ...
and 16 commercial locomotives. The railroad operates multiple disconnected segments with locomotives assigned to each segment. Two or three lines have service daily. They include the following lines:


Bristol

This line consists of industrial park trackage in the
Bristol, Pennsylvania Bristol is a borough (Pennsylvania), borough in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is located northeast of Center City, Philadelphia, Center City in Philadelphia opposite Burlington, New Jersey, on the Delaware River. Bristol was s ...
area, interchanging with
Conrail Shared Assets Operations Conrail Shared Assets Operations (CSAO) is the commonly used name for modern-day Conrail (reporting mark CRCX), an American railroad company. It operates three networks, the North Jersey, South Jersey/Philadelphia, and Detroit Shared Assets Are ...
(CSAO).


Lancaster Northern

This line, which is owned and operated by ESPN, runs from
Ephrata, Pennsylvania Ephrata ( ; ) is a borough in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is located east of Harrisburg and about west-northwest of Philadelphia and is named after Ephrath, the former name for current-day Bethlehem. In its early hist ...
northeast, interchanging with
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
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 ...
, using
trackage rights Railway companies can interact with and control others in many ways. These relationships can be complicated by bankruptcies. Operating Often, when a railroad first opens, it is only a short spur of a main line. The owner of the spur line may c ...
on NS between Sinking Spring, Pennsylvania and Reading.


Manheim

This line consists of owned trackage in the
Manheim, Pennsylvania Manheim is a borough in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 5,064 at the 2020 census. The borough was named after Kerpen- Manheim, Germany. History Manheim was laid out by Henry William Stiegel in 1762 on a land ...
area, interchanging with NS.


North East Philadelphia

The North East Philadelphia line consists of owned trackage in
Northeast Philadelphia Northeast Philadelphia, nicknamed Northeast Philly, the Great Northeast, and known colloquially as simply "the Northeast", is a section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. According to the 2000 census, Northeast Philadelphia has a population of betw ...
, interchanging with CSAO in the Bustleton area of
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 ...
.


Octoraro

The Octoraro line, which is owned and operated by ESPN, consists of trackage, the former
Octoraro Branch The Philadelphia and Baltimore Central Railroad (P&BC) was a railroad that operated in Pennsylvania and Maryland in the 19th and early 20th centuries. It operated a main line between West Philadelphia and Octoraro Junction, Maryland (near Port D ...
, from end-of-track in Sylmar east to
Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania Chadds Ford is a census-designated place (CDP) in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, Delaware and Chester County, Pennsylvania, Chester counties, Pennsylvania, United States, comprising the Unincorporated area, unincorporated communities of Chadds F ...
, where it connects to the
Wilmington and Northern Branch 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 Ra ...
.
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 ...
owns the passenger rights on the Octoraro Line.


Perkiomen

The Perkiomen line, which is owned and operated by ESPN, runs from
Pennsburg, Pennsylvania Pennsburg is a borough in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States. Its population was 3,889 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Upper Perkiomen School District. It is also part of the strip of small towns that run together along Rou ...
north, where it interchanges with NS in
Emmaus, Pennsylvania Emmaus ( ) is a borough in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, United States. As of the 2020 U.S. census, it had a population of 11,652. Emmaus is located in the Lehigh Valley, the third-largest metropolitan area in Pennsylvania and 68th-largest metrop ...
.


Quakertown

The Quakertown Line operates on the
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 ...
-owned Bethlehem Line from
Quakertown, Pennsylvania Quakertown is a Borough (Pennsylvania), borough in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, United States. As of 2020, it had a population of 9,359. The borough is south of Allentown, Pennsylvania, Allentown and Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, Bethlehem and nor ...
south, and interchanges with the Pennsylvania Northeastern Railroad in
Telford Telford () is a town in the Telford and Wrekin borough status in the United Kingdom, borough in Shropshire, England. The wider borough covers the town, its suburbs and surrounding towns and villages. The town is close to the county's eastern b ...
.


Wilmington and Northern Branch

The Wilmington and Northern Branch line, which is owned and operated by ESPN, runs from interchange 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 ...
in
Elsmere, Delaware Elsmere is a town in New Castle County, Delaware, United States, bordering the city of Wilmington, Delaware, Wilmington along Wilmington's western border. According to the 2010 Census, the population of the town is 6,131. History Elsmere dates ba ...
north, interchanging with NS in
Coatesville, Pennsylvania Coatesville is the only city in Chester County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 13,350 at the 2020 census. Coatesville is approximately 39 miles west of Philadelphia. It developed along the Philadelphia and Lancaster Turnpike ...
. The Octoraro Line connects with the Wilmington and Northern line in
Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania Chadds Ford is a census-designated place (CDP) in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, Delaware and Chester County, Pennsylvania, Chester counties, Pennsylvania, United States, comprising the Unincorporated area, unincorporated communities of Chadds F ...
.


York Industrial Track

The line operated by ESPN consists of trackage from interchange with NS in
York, Pennsylvania York is a city in York County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. Located in South Central Pennsylvania, the city's population was 44,800 at the time of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of cities in ...
to Stonybrook, Pennsylvania.


Former

*Colebrookdale: operated from
Boyertown, Pennsylvania Boyertown (Pennsylvania Dutch language, Pennsylvania Dutch: ) is a Borough (Pennsylvania), borough in Berks County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 4,264 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. History A post office call ...
south to interchange with NS in
Pottstown, Pennsylvania Pottstown is a Borough (Pennsylvania), borough in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States. Pottstown was laid out in 1752–53 and named Pottsgrove in honor of its founder, John Potts (Pennsylvanian), John Potts. The old name was abando ...
. ESPN attempted to abandon the line in 2008. The Berks County Redevelopment Authority purchased the railroad that same year, and appointed the Eastern Berks Gateway Railroad to operate freight service. The Eastern Berks Gateway Railroad has left the line in late 2013 due to no or very little freight on the line. The Colebrookdale Railroad Preservation Trust was also created in 2011 for
tourist railroad A heritage railway or heritage railroad (U.S. usage) is a railway operated as living history to re-create or preserve railway scenes of the past. Heritage railways are often old railway lines preserved in a state depicting a period (or periods) ...
purposes. Tourist rail service began in October 2014 as the Colebrookdale Railroad. *Chester Valley: owned and operated from
King of Prussia, Pennsylvania King of Prussia (nicknamed K.O.P.) is a census-designated place in Upper Merion Township, Pennsylvania, Upper Merion Township in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States. The community took its unusual name in the 18th century from a loca ...
north to interchange with NS in
Bridgeport, Pennsylvania Bridgeport is a borough in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States, north of Philadelphia on the Schuylkill River. Former industries included paper, flour, cotton, woolen mills, steel works, and brickyards. Bridgeport is east of Valley ...
. The line was abandoned by ESPN in 2010; tracks were dismantled in May 2011. The line will be converted into a portion of the
Chester Valley Rail Trail Chester Valley Rail Trail is a rail trail which runs largely through the Great Valley of Pennsylvania (also known as the Chester Valley) in Chester and Montgomery counties in southeastern Pennsylvania. The west end is in Exton (Chester Cou ...
by Montgomery County. *Kutztown: operated on trackage owned by the Kutztown Transportation Authority from
Kutztown, Pennsylvania Kutztown ( Pennsylvania German: ''Kutzeschteddel'') is a borough in Berks County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is located southwest of Allentown and northeast of Reading. As of the 2020 census, the borough had a population of 4,162. Kutzto ...
southeast to interchange with NS in
Topton, Pennsylvania Topton is a Borough (Pennsylvania), borough in Berks County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 2,041 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Geography Topton is located at (40.503049, -75.701764). According to the United S ...
. This line is now operated by the Allentown and Auburn Railroad, which hauls passengers in historic equipment and freight for local businesses. *Venice Island Industrial Spur: operated on trackage owned by Norfolk Southern from West Falls Yard to the end of Venice Island in the Manayunk neighborhood of
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 abandoned April 4, 2017.


References


External links

* at Regional Rail {{DEFAULTSORT:East Penn Railroad Delaware railroads Pennsylvania railroads Railway companies established in 2007 Switching and terminal railroads