Meadville/Oil City

Just joined in the A.M. I used to be active on Luther's old message board. What's going on with the Meadville to Oil City Branch since NS quit running it. I used to take crews to both locations when I worked for D&T,Milepost,Renzenberger. I saw saturday the little trailer/Yard Office in Oil City is abandoned.

Actually, I know a little bit, but there are some people on here that live nearby and have had excellent things to say, so I'll defer to them.

When I used to work for the WNYP, I never got down there to hi-rail, so I have a few questions of my own, coming from my frequent sojourns through the area on the way to the in-laws house in Pittsburgh:

1. As I come into Oil City on 62, on the right is what looks to be an abandoned yard. This is an extension of where the baggage car and some other ca-ca came from. I notice an overhead signal bridge as well. Is this old PRR trackage? Is this stretch in use at all?

2. Slightly farther south, and on the same side of the river, are tracks that extend quite a bit into Oil City; you can see them on the other side of the river on 62. Are these tracks in use at all? Any customers? Is this WNYP trackage?

Thanks in advance.

Dave Becker

Dave

I am thinking that you are coming in on Rt 62 from Warren......that yard on the right is the former PRR/PC/CR/NS Valley Yard. That is where the shop, roundhouse, offices, etc were for PRR and PC. About 1980 Conrail moved the yard office up into town in the rear of a donut shop across from where the Country Fair is now. About 1985 or so, they installed a trailer in the Valley Yard for the crew and the yardmaster. When I was TM at Youngstown we had one yard crew YIOC-20 (0900 M-F) at Oil City that reported at the trailer. There was also one local WIME-05 that operated from Meadville to Oil City and return M-F. It also ran extra on Sunday at noon.

After Calumet (old Pennzoil) closed in about 1999, NS abolished the YIOC-20 and abandoned the operation in the Valley Yard and the local from Meadville did all of the Oil City work. Generally the train tied up at Franklin on the way back and had to taxi out the next day to complete the run.

To continue to answer your questions, this is the WNYP South Side Industrial Track and it has only one customer. The SSI is about 3.3 miles in length and runs from the connection with the Oil City Branch/Rousevile Industrial Track at Center Street around the back side of the Arlington Hotel (old Holiday Inn) over the bridge that crosses the river and through the Valley Yard area down to the industry. It's a switchback operation from the Oil City Branch and the crew has to shove to the industry. My sources in Falconer tell me that they go there about three times a month.

SMT

Thanks for the informtion. I always wondered where the rails went.

Dave Becker

http://forums.railfan.net/forums.cgi?bo ... 1177516494

My brother and I were lucky enough to catch a move over the Wye Bridge in Oil City back in April (link above). I didn't get any shots in Valley Yard though.