Harrisburg Line
| Harrisburg Line | |
|---|---|
 The Harrisburg Line's Flat Rock Tunnel | |
| Overview | |
| Type | Freight rail |
| System |
Norfolk Southern Railway (1999–present)
|
| Status |
Operational (1838–present)
|
| Locale | Eastern Pennsylvania |
| Termini |
CP-River in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (was Norristown, Pennsylvania) CP-Harrisburg in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania (was Reading, Pennsylvania) |
| Operation | |
| Opened | July 16, 1838 between Reading, Pennsylvania and Norristown, Pennsylvania, 178 years ago (The line was extended from Norristown to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on December 9, 1839 and extended from Reading to Harrisburg, Pennsylvania by the absorption of the Lebanon Valley Railroad on March 20, 1858) |
| Owner |
Norfolk Southern Railway (1999-present)
|
| Operator(s) |
Norfolk Southern Railway (1999-present)
|
| Technical | |
| Number of tracks | 1-2 |
| Track gauge | 1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in) |
The Harrisburg Line is a railroad line owned and operated by the Norfolk Southern Railway (NS) in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. The line runs from Philadelphia west to Harrisburg, and it is the former main line of Reading Company.
The Harrisburg Line was established in 1838 as the first rail line of the Reading Company between Reading, Pennsylvania and Norristown, Pennsylvania with an extension to Philadelphia from Norristown in 1839 and an extension to Harrisburg from Reading in 1858. The line is 178 years old as defined with its Reading to Norristown route which is the line's original route. The Harrisburg Line still has its original right of way representing its original route.
The Harrisburg Line was also once part of Conrail; today it is part of Norfolk Southern Railway under their Harrisburg Division.[1] The Harrisburg Line runs through two tunnels, the Flat Rock Tunnel and the Black Rock Tunnel.
History
The Harrisburg Line and the Philadelphia and Reading Rail Road opened on July 16, 1838, between Reading, Pennsylvania, and Norristown, Pennsylvania. The line's Reading to Norristown route is the Harrisburg Line's original route and the Harrisburg Line's original route still has its original right of way.
The line was extended to Philadelphia from Norristown on December 9, 1839.[2]
The Harrisburg Line was extended from Reading to Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, on March 20, 1858, when the Reading Company absorbed the Lebanon Valley Railroad and added the Lebanon Valley Railroad to the Harrisburg Line since the railroad was only one rail line; Lebanon Valley Railroad built the Harrisburg Line's Reading to Harrisburg right of way a few months before it got absorbed into the Harrisburg Line.[3]
The Reading Company's railroad properties along with the Harrisburg Line became part of the Consolidated Rail Corporation (Conrail) on April 1, 1976, and continued that way until the late 1990s.
The Harrisburg Line became part of Norfolk Southern Railway on June 1, 1999, after the breakup of Conrail. Other Conrail lines such as the Lehigh Line (former main line of the Lehigh Valley Railroad with Central Railroad of New Jersey used trackage), the Pittsburgh Line, Reading Line, Buffalo Line, the Lurgan Branch and the Royalton Branch also became lines of the Norfolk Southern Railway on the same date.
Today, the Harrisburg Line is 178 years old as defined by its original route between Reading and Norristown.
Connections
At its east end, near the Falls of the Schuylkill in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the Harrisburg Line junctions with CSX Transportation's Trenton Subdivision. Its west end in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania is at a junction with the Pittsburgh Line, the Lurgan Branch, the Royalton Branch, and Amtrak's Philadelphia to Harrisburg Main Line.
The line junctions the Morrisville Line (indirectly) at Norristown, Pennsylvania and the Reading Line near Reading, Pennsylvania.
See also
References
- ↑ Norfolk Southern (2008). "Harrisburg Division". Track chart.
- ↑ "PRR Chronology, 1839." June 2004 Edition.
- ↑ "PRR Chronology, 1858". March 2005 Edition.