Pertaining to all railroading subjects, past and present, in the American Midwest, including Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa and Kansas. For questions specific to a railroad company, please seek the appropriate forum.
Pertaining to all railroading subjects, past and present, in the American Midwest, including Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa and Kansas. For questions specific to a railroad company, please seek the appropriate forum.
OFA = Offer of Financial Assistance
When a railroad files to abandon a line, perhaps with or without plans to sell it someone else, an interested group will file such a thing to state its desire to purchase the line that is up for abandonment. It takes into account what the abandoning railroad thinks the worth of the line is and what the would be purchaser thinks the worth is. The two companies then come to an agreement if there is a difference, or they may ask the STB to make a decision.
BPW
Lets hope for the best. It would be terrible if North Judson would be isolated from the railroad world. Are they going to sacrifice the EL to keep the C&O connection?
The town of North Judson met the STB standards for the sale of the line.
I don't really think the museum/town sacraficed the Erie for the C&O, but rather dealing with two different railroads and the need for the outside connection. Also, through in the condition of the Erie compaired to the C&O.
From what I was told, the Erie mainline just east of North Judson has been undermined and the siding was the only usable track, of which it isn't in the best condition. Something about a peatmoss farm and a pond.
While it would have been nice to have the Erie, the C&O was better and served another use for future industry along the line.
Keep in mind that Hoosier Valley did receive two miles of the ex-Erie. It was RailAmerica that kept them from getting that line. RailAmerica wanted the rail for scrap so it gave HVRM a mile of usable track and one mile of ties and 14 miles of right of way.
It was not sacrificing one for the other, it was "get what you can for what you can afford" The CSX abandonment was actually coincidental in timing to the removal of ex-erie rail according to members of the museum.
By the way-if you are interested, the museum is looking for ways to utilize the ex-erie main. I recently helped coordinate an event at HVRM last month and it was a great success. With the new line acquisitions, this time next year could prove to be even better. Stay tuned.
Keester wrote:Did the engine ever get moved out of Monterey?
Yes, it was moved right after Thanksgiving to North Judson.
Look at the main picture on the museums website
hvrm.railfan.net
that picture was just taken a little while back.
Took a drive to the Hoosier Valley Railroad Museum, last Saturday (7/23) and rode the train from the museum to 250W crossing, east of Indiana Route 10 (at MP 181), for a 2.5 mile round trip. East of 250W to Monterey, the line is removed. I noticed the ties remain in place east of 250W. I understand the museum might extend it for 1 mile in the future. Also at Ora, they flatten Main Street at the crossing. Did they remove the Main Street grade crossing hump, when the tracks were removed last year?
I rode the last train out of Monterey and filmed it on video. But yeah, the tracks have been gone since 2004. One of the storage buildings at the old grain elevator were burnt down by a criminal.
Hello, I use to work for this line and its sister line called the A & R LINE over in Winamac, In. The SD-18, no. 7311 is owned by Vintage Locomotives Inc. ( V.L.I.X. ). It is currently stored up on the Chesapeke and Indiana R.R. at La Crosse, In. Our current plans are to put this old unit back into service and use it on our grain train shove moves. It still wares its Chessie System markings. We have no plans currently of ever repainting or marking it out.
MR77100 wrote:Is the line to Winnamac still there?
No, RA removed it also. The SD18 on this line was sold and moved, and sold to someone again in Iowa from what I was told.
Like was posted by LJ, the other SD18 is still up on the C&O/I
