Railroad Company Discontinuing Hamburg-Leesport Line
By Michelle Park
Reading Eagle
8/6/2009
- Plans to discontinue service on a rail line between Leesport and Hamburg will bring an end to train rides at the fledgling Reading Railroad Heritage Museum in Hamburg, at least for now.
The Reading Blue Mountain & Northern Railroad Co. in Port Clinton is going to file a federal notice of its plans for the nearly 9-mile stretch today, company attorney Eric M. Hocky said.
The museum had offered occasional train rides on part of the line to visitors, most recently in May, James H. Adams said. Adams is treasurer of the The Reading Company Technical & Historical Society, the nonprofit that founded the museum in 2008.
"There's no doubt that that (being able to ride a train) is an attraction," Adams said. "Sure, we're disappointed, but we also understand the economics of it.
Adams said railroad officials have told him that they have contracts to store rail cars on the line, and cars are parked there now.
"We couldn't possibly afford to pay as much money as they're taking in to store these cars," he said. "We're just kind of landlocked for some period of time."
Adams said he hopes the museum will be able to offer train rides again in the future. It located where it did because of the rail line.
A woman who answered the phone Tuesday at Reading Blue Mountain said officials had no comment. Attempts to reach them by e-mail were unsuccessful.
The rail line had been used for freight service but not since early 2006, Hocky said.
Hocky said the formal notice of the company's plans to stop service over the line will be filed with the federal Surface Transportation Board.
"In general, if you don't file a discontinuance, someone has the ability to ask you to provide service along the line," Hocky said.
Berks County transportation planner Alan D. Piper said he would rather see the company discontinue service than abandon the line. Abandonment often entails removal of the track.
"At least that means the tracks stay and they have the right to come back at some point," he said.
The railroad museum will continue to offer guided tours of historic Reading Railroad equipment stored on its property at 500 S. Third St.
http://www.readingeagle.com/article.aspx?id=151304
By Michelle Park
Reading Eagle
8/6/2009
- Plans to discontinue service on a rail line between Leesport and Hamburg will bring an end to train rides at the fledgling Reading Railroad Heritage Museum in Hamburg, at least for now.
The Reading Blue Mountain & Northern Railroad Co. in Port Clinton is going to file a federal notice of its plans for the nearly 9-mile stretch today, company attorney Eric M. Hocky said.
The museum had offered occasional train rides on part of the line to visitors, most recently in May, James H. Adams said. Adams is treasurer of the The Reading Company Technical & Historical Society, the nonprofit that founded the museum in 2008.
"There's no doubt that that (being able to ride a train) is an attraction," Adams said. "Sure, we're disappointed, but we also understand the economics of it.
Adams said railroad officials have told him that they have contracts to store rail cars on the line, and cars are parked there now.
"We couldn't possibly afford to pay as much money as they're taking in to store these cars," he said. "We're just kind of landlocked for some period of time."
Adams said he hopes the museum will be able to offer train rides again in the future. It located where it did because of the rail line.
A woman who answered the phone Tuesday at Reading Blue Mountain said officials had no comment. Attempts to reach them by e-mail were unsuccessful.
The rail line had been used for freight service but not since early 2006, Hocky said.
Hocky said the formal notice of the company's plans to stop service over the line will be filed with the federal Surface Transportation Board.
"In general, if you don't file a discontinuance, someone has the ability to ask you to provide service along the line," Hocky said.
Berks County transportation planner Alan D. Piper said he would rather see the company discontinue service than abandon the line. Abandonment often entails removal of the track.
"At least that means the tracks stay and they have the right to come back at some point," he said.
The railroad museum will continue to offer guided tours of historic Reading Railroad equipment stored on its property at 500 S. Third St.
http://www.readingeagle.com/article.aspx?id=151304
