Previously someone stated that Conrail abandoned the EL lines systematically. I really truly believe this too.
My examples are the EL mainline and the 1st Sub-Division from Cleveland to Leavittsburg.
The 1st SD was chopped up quickly by Conrail. I believe 1983 was the last through Cleveland-Youngstown train. At that point the line was truncated at Mantua to service a factory. This line was an important link because freight from the Chessie and P&LE was interchanged at Graham Yard in Youngstown, and the freight had many paths it could take: Southeast on the old B&O and P&LE, Northeast on the former EL, now Conrail, due North via Conrail's Youngstown Line, Northwest direct to Cleveland via the old EL, west on the EL main and B&O, and Southwest on the old PRR. By removing the Youngstown end of the EL's 1st SD, there were fewer routes to interchange with and more delays with more congested routes. Today, NS has total ownership of what's left of the 1st SD, from MP 3 to MP 37.5, even though the crossed ties are in Solon at the Stouffer's plant, the last remaining customer south of Randall Yard. For many years now various interest groups have tried to get Cleveland-Youngstown commuter rail service reinstated along this line, but this would be an impossible feat, especially with the bike path on the ROW in Garretsville.
The second point is the EL main, from Youngstown to Marion, at which point CR no longer needed the EL lines. The Youngstown to Marion line, basically MP 150 to MP 305, was extremly important at the start of CR. Eventually they routed every single train they could off of that line. Apparently it was easier for a train going from Graham Yard to Marion Yard to head south on the PRR main to Sebring and head west on the Ft. Wayne line and take the SW connector at Crestline to get on the Big Four main and swing west through Galion and into Marion, then it was to take the train over the EL main from Youngstown right into Marion.
Akron was a major loser in the Conrail sector. They had the old CA&C line(traffic from the Ft. Wayne Line in Orrville would swing onto the PC remnant of the CA&C and head into Hudson, or use trackage rights on B&O from Massilon to the CA&C interchange to reach Hudson) and the EL main, both which saw heavy traffic at first. There was never very much for Conrail in downtown Akron as far as customers.
In the 80's, CR did some stupid reductions on the EL main (all of these also included free-of-charge single tracking). The main from Leavittsburg to Ravenna was left intact but rarely used as a "bridge" from Warren to the PRR Cleveland Line. The line was kept intact from Ravenna to Arlington (Akron suburb). Along this stretch was a grain elevator in Kent, a limestone quarry south of Kent, and a plastics plant next to Brittian Rd. Through Conrail inginuity, they decided to end the EL main at MP 201 in the woods west of Arlington, They also, somehow, took the CA&C line, which paralleled the B&O main all through Akron, and crossed it over the B&O to connect into the EL stub, to facilitate some kind of backup maneuvers between the two lines. This job merged the "Akron Secondary" and the "Freedom Secondary" into the Akron Cluster. Eventually CR grew wary of paralleling the CSX line, and put an interchange switch in at Rt. 59 next to Rt. 8. Of course, 3 years later, in 1996, they'd run their last train through this area. The tracks were never removed (aside from the old PRR line that CR removed as part of their interchange with CSX) and most everything else MP signs, W markers, remain.
The EL main was removed through Akron, until south of the city proper, where it became a spur off of the CSX main, and headed into Barberton and Rittman, where the tracks were cut just east of Main St. This line was sold in 1993 to Akron & Baberton Belt to expand their line. The tracks were again removed from Rittman through Sterling and Creston, and restart in the woods east of West Salem. The tracks were kept intact as a single track Ashland Secondary. The former crossing of the EL and PRR in Mansfield was turned into a junction that had westbound Ashland Sec. trains heading west on the Ft. Wayne Line. By 1986 Conrail wasn't thrilled with this line, and quickly sold it to the Ashland Railway.
Heading west out of Mansfield was the Ontario Secondary, the part of the EL main CR did keep in Mansfield. At CP MANS the eastbound Ontario Sec. trains head east on the Ft. Wayne Line. The Ontario Secondary runs to Ontario where Ontario Yard is that serves the GM plant. The line once again ends in woods a half mile after the yard. Obviously the line was removed between Ontario and Galion, and that's when the Indianapolis Line swings west and the joint NYC-EL line started. Interesting note is that most of the Indy Line between Marion and Galion is single tracked. Guess which line they used as the survivor: You guessed it, the NYC.
There were probably good reasons for the tracks to be abandoned between Youngstown and Galion, but I've never found them. It seems that if a train needed to get to the Indy Line, CR either routed them via Water Level Route through Cleveland south on the Big Four, or via the Ft. Wayne line and interchange at Crestline.
My examples are the EL mainline and the 1st Sub-Division from Cleveland to Leavittsburg.
The 1st SD was chopped up quickly by Conrail. I believe 1983 was the last through Cleveland-Youngstown train. At that point the line was truncated at Mantua to service a factory. This line was an important link because freight from the Chessie and P&LE was interchanged at Graham Yard in Youngstown, and the freight had many paths it could take: Southeast on the old B&O and P&LE, Northeast on the former EL, now Conrail, due North via Conrail's Youngstown Line, Northwest direct to Cleveland via the old EL, west on the EL main and B&O, and Southwest on the old PRR. By removing the Youngstown end of the EL's 1st SD, there were fewer routes to interchange with and more delays with more congested routes. Today, NS has total ownership of what's left of the 1st SD, from MP 3 to MP 37.5, even though the crossed ties are in Solon at the Stouffer's plant, the last remaining customer south of Randall Yard. For many years now various interest groups have tried to get Cleveland-Youngstown commuter rail service reinstated along this line, but this would be an impossible feat, especially with the bike path on the ROW in Garretsville.
The second point is the EL main, from Youngstown to Marion, at which point CR no longer needed the EL lines. The Youngstown to Marion line, basically MP 150 to MP 305, was extremly important at the start of CR. Eventually they routed every single train they could off of that line. Apparently it was easier for a train going from Graham Yard to Marion Yard to head south on the PRR main to Sebring and head west on the Ft. Wayne line and take the SW connector at Crestline to get on the Big Four main and swing west through Galion and into Marion, then it was to take the train over the EL main from Youngstown right into Marion.
Akron was a major loser in the Conrail sector. They had the old CA&C line(traffic from the Ft. Wayne Line in Orrville would swing onto the PC remnant of the CA&C and head into Hudson, or use trackage rights on B&O from Massilon to the CA&C interchange to reach Hudson) and the EL main, both which saw heavy traffic at first. There was never very much for Conrail in downtown Akron as far as customers.
In the 80's, CR did some stupid reductions on the EL main (all of these also included free-of-charge single tracking). The main from Leavittsburg to Ravenna was left intact but rarely used as a "bridge" from Warren to the PRR Cleveland Line. The line was kept intact from Ravenna to Arlington (Akron suburb). Along this stretch was a grain elevator in Kent, a limestone quarry south of Kent, and a plastics plant next to Brittian Rd. Through Conrail inginuity, they decided to end the EL main at MP 201 in the woods west of Arlington, They also, somehow, took the CA&C line, which paralleled the B&O main all through Akron, and crossed it over the B&O to connect into the EL stub, to facilitate some kind of backup maneuvers between the two lines. This job merged the "Akron Secondary" and the "Freedom Secondary" into the Akron Cluster. Eventually CR grew wary of paralleling the CSX line, and put an interchange switch in at Rt. 59 next to Rt. 8. Of course, 3 years later, in 1996, they'd run their last train through this area. The tracks were never removed (aside from the old PRR line that CR removed as part of their interchange with CSX) and most everything else MP signs, W markers, remain.
The EL main was removed through Akron, until south of the city proper, where it became a spur off of the CSX main, and headed into Barberton and Rittman, where the tracks were cut just east of Main St. This line was sold in 1993 to Akron & Baberton Belt to expand their line. The tracks were again removed from Rittman through Sterling and Creston, and restart in the woods east of West Salem. The tracks were kept intact as a single track Ashland Secondary. The former crossing of the EL and PRR in Mansfield was turned into a junction that had westbound Ashland Sec. trains heading west on the Ft. Wayne Line. By 1986 Conrail wasn't thrilled with this line, and quickly sold it to the Ashland Railway.
Heading west out of Mansfield was the Ontario Secondary, the part of the EL main CR did keep in Mansfield. At CP MANS the eastbound Ontario Sec. trains head east on the Ft. Wayne Line. The Ontario Secondary runs to Ontario where Ontario Yard is that serves the GM plant. The line once again ends in woods a half mile after the yard. Obviously the line was removed between Ontario and Galion, and that's when the Indianapolis Line swings west and the joint NYC-EL line started. Interesting note is that most of the Indy Line between Marion and Galion is single tracked. Guess which line they used as the survivor: You guessed it, the NYC.
There were probably good reasons for the tracks to be abandoned between Youngstown and Galion, but I've never found them. It seems that if a train needed to get to the Indy Line, CR either routed them via Water Level Route through Cleveland south on the Big Four, or via the Ft. Wayne line and interchange at Crestline.
