ex-NH Maybrook Line - current usage

Is the Maybrook Line used much ? or is that going to be a walking trail too. ?

Th only portion of the Maybrook that is in active use is between Derby
Junction and Berkshire Junction by the Housatonic Railroad. There is still
some local freight business on this stretch. West of Danbury to Hopewell
Junction and Beacon is not in use but still intact and owned by Metro-North
and this faces an uncertain future at best.
Noel Weaver

The small yard in Hopewell Junction is used by Metro North as a training facility for track Maintenance crews. Beyond that, Metro North is just keeping the line for "possible future use".

A bridge in Brewster is in bad shape and not safe for a locomotive. They plan to fix it "when they get around to it".

The section from Hopewell Junction to Poughkeepsie belongs to Dutchess County and is now under construction being turned into a rail trail.

West of the Hudson River there are parts of the ROW that have been built over and parts are rail trail. Much of it is just abandoned in the woods.

Bernie Rudberg

Bernard Rudberg wrote:A bridge in Brewster is in bad shape and not safe for a locomotive. They plan to fix it "when they get around to it".

Conjecture: that and a possible/likely? lack of funds probably prevents DRM from running fan trips like they used to.

Bernard Rudberg wrote:The section from Hopewell Junction to Poughkeepsie belongs to Dutchess County and is now under construction being turned into a rail trail.

That's too bad. I believe there was an industrial connection from/to the Hudson line (was it the Hospital branch?) to the Maybrook main (as opp to the Beacon secondary) that might have allowed service from POK to White Plains, and served a growing area. All that's left now is the Beacon secondary. I think MNRR now refers to the entire section from the CT border to Beacon as the Beacon line (not branch ). I think the portion in CT is owned by the Housatanic.

Yes, I'm foaming, but this is the NH forum, not MNRR!

The tracks on the Hospital Branch were torn out a couple years ago. In any case it was not a very good connection between the Maybrook and the NYC. It used a switchback to get down the hill and the grades were steep. Local switchers could handle only a few cars at a time on that branch.

After the bridge burned, there was not enough customer revenue to pay for the line. The tracks to Hopewell Junction were torn out in 1983.
A rail trail is better than being built into a housing development. At least now we can preserve the ROW and the history.

Bernie

Thank You everyone for their responses.
Am I correct to say that if someone built on the right of way & the tracks were ever to be put back,then whomever built on the tracks would have to move ?

gawlikfj wrote:Am I correct to say that if someone built on the right of way & the tracks were ever to be put back,then whomever built on the tracks would have to move ?

If they illegally encroached on the land, yes, but if they bought the parcel from Conrail they can do whatever they like with it. Then again, if enough years go by there is also a general principle in law called "adverse possession" which basically says that if I build on your land and enough time goes by without you doing anything about it, you can no longer force me off since you are deemed to have consented to my presence. But I don't know the specifics of New York law on that point.

Metro-North calls the portion they own from Beacon to the CT state line the Beacon Line. There is a physical connection to the Hudson Line at Beacon and to the Harlem Line at Dykemans. A bridge over the Croton River is out of service, preventing any movements across. I am told there is a budget to make repairs to the bridge, but no firm plans as to when this might happen. The Beacon Line is not used for passenger movements, only equipment moves and training.

Here's a link to the map that appeared in Railfan back in the early 1990s:

http://homepage.mac.com/housatonic/HRRCmap1.1.jpg

TomNelligan wrote:
If they illegally encroached on the land, yes, but if they bought the parcel from Conrail they can do whatever they like with it. Then again, if enough years go by there is also a general principle in law called "adverse possession" which basically says that if I build on your land and enough time goes by without you doing anything about it, you can no longer force me off since you are deemed to have consented to my presence. But I don't know the specifics of New York law on that point.

Is it still owned by CR or is it now owned by the state? I believe the squatters years in NY is 20 like in NH. However NH's states that you can not squat on state owned land. I dunno what NY's says in that regard.

Bernard Rudberg wrote:The tracks on the Hospital Branch were torn out a couple years ago. In any case it was not a very good connection between the Maybrook and the NYC. It used a switchback to get down the hill and the grades were steep. Local switchers could handle only a few cars at a time on that branch.

After the bridge burned, there was not enough customer revenue to pay for the line. The tracks to Hopewell Junction were torn out in 1983.
A rail trail is better than being built into a housing development. At least now we can preserve the ROW and the history.

Bernie

Thanks, Bernie. I took a look at some old nuggets doing a search on the NYS Railfan Forum (probably where this topic belongs, not NE). I found a good track diagram, and searching google I found an article in Destination Freedom about the short line. It's fairly easy to see that this would not have been a good bypass from POK to White Plains had the line survived between POK and Hopewell JCT (combining the branch with the main). Clearly, given Poughkeepsie's plans and evolution of the area, a short-line was doomed from the start.

I'm guessing NYC would have re-routed via Chatham if they needed to.

Sarge wrote:[I took a look at some old nuggets doing a search on the NYS Railfan Forum (probably where this topic belongs, not NE)

Since we're talking about CURRENT usage of ACTIVE portions of the ex-NH Maybrook Line, and the majority if ACTIVE trackage is in Connecticut, into New England Forum this topic goes. If you want to discuss the HISTORY of INACTIVE or ABANDONED lines, then New York State Forum will have the info you seek.

-otto-

Kinda heavy handed there, Otto...don't make me talk to you again.....


work safe
derail

gawlikfj wrote:Is the Maybrook Line used much ? or is that going to be a walking trail too. ?

I don't think he was heavy-handed; I was not offended. The original poster did limit it to active portions (see above). Noel Weaver mentioned the active portions, and also discussed the NYS portions still in existence; active and inactive). Our resident expert on Maybrook, Bernard Rudberg, discussed the entire line as well.

If you look at the entire thread, most of it centers around the NYS portion; thus my suggestion. The Beacon portion of the Maybrook is inactive, but not abandoned; you could argue that it belongs in this discussion since we're talking about future use. In any case, we've all discussed it, as well as the Hospital branch, so it seems to be within the scope of the topic.

I thought moving the thread to NYS would be a good way of spreading the wealth. You could stick it in the NH forum, too, since it was a NH line (although it concerns active usage). But that's not my call; I'm happy to let the moderators handle it.

Sarge wrote:

gawlikfj wrote:Is the Maybrook Line used much ? or is that going to be a walking trail too. ?

I don't think he was heavy-handed; I was not offended. The original poster did limit it to active portions (see above). Noel Weaver mentioned the active portions, and also discussed the NYS portions still in existence; active and inactive). Our resident expert on Maybrook, Bernard Rudberg, discussed the entire line as well.

If you look at the entire thread, most of it centers around the NYS portion; thus my suggestion. The Beacon portion of the Maybrook is inactive, but not abandoned; you could argue that it belongs in this discussion since we're talking about future use. In any case, we've all discussed it, as well as the Hospital branch, so it seems to be within the scope of the topic.

I thought moving the thread to NYS would be a good way of spreading the wealth. You could stick it in the NH forum, too, since it was a NH line (although it concerns active usage). But that's not my call; I'm happy to let the moderators handle it.

One little detail here, the Beacon Branch was not originally part of the
Maybrook Line.
Noel Weaver

b&m617- PM me and I'll send you my phone number if you want to discuss it. No offense meant to anyone.

-otto-