The Belvidere & Delaware River Railway Company also known as Delaware River Railroad is a

class III railroad In the United States, railroad carriers are designated as Class I, II, or III, according to annual revenue criteria originally set by the Surface Transportation Board in 1992. With annual adjustments for inflation, the 2019 thresholds were US$5 ...

in the United States. It was formed in 1995 when the Conrail Delaware Secondary line was purchased by the Black River Railroad System, which operates several railroad services in western

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

and eastern

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

. The Black River Railroad System also owns and operates the Black River & Western Railroad (BR&W). BR&W leases 10 miles of track to BDRV since 2004. Trackage purchased was a segment of the original

Belvidere Delaware Railroad The Belvidere-Delaware Railroad (Bel-Del, 1851–1871) was a railroad running along the eastern shore of the Delaware River from Trenton, New Jersey north via Phillipsburg, New Jersey to the small village of Manunka Chunk, New Jersey. It becam ...

, later controlled by the Pennsylvania Railroad and ultimately

Penn Central The Penn Central Transportation Company, commonly abbreviated to Penn Central, was an American class I railroad that operated from 1968 to 1976. Penn Central combined three traditional corporate rivals (the Pennsylvania, New York Central and the ...

. The main operation of BDRV is freight service south along the Delaware River from Phillipsburg to Carpentersville, a distance of 7 miles along the scenic Delaware River in New Jersey. Much of the industry currently is lumber and stone. Service is provided thrice weekly. BDRV originally served the James River Paper plant in

Milford, New Jersey Milford is a borough located in western Hunterdon County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the borough's population was 1,232, a decrease of one person (−0.1%) from the 2010 census count of 1,233, which ...

, assuming the task from Conrail: service to the plant ended in July 2003 when the plant closed. Rail service to a lumber transload continued serving Milford into 2004 when service on this part of the line was finally terminated. Freight service to Corrugated Paper Group (now

Georgia Pacific Georgia-Pacific LLC is an American pulp and paper company based in Atlanta, Georgia, and is one of the world's largest manufacturers and distributors of tissue, pulp, paper, toilet and paper towel dispensers, packaging, building products and r ...

) in nearby Riegelsville, New Jersey terminated in 2005 when the firm switched from railroad to trucking for product shipment. BDRV interchanges with Norfolk Southern Railway (NS) in Phillipsburg, which provides connections to the national rail network. Commercial agreements also provide a connection with the Canadian Pacific Railway (CP) at Allentown, Pennsylvania. BDRV is a NS handling carrier, meaning NS haulage rates include delivery to BDRV customers by BDRV.

Passenger Excursions

In 2004, the New York, Susquehanna & Western Railway (NYS&W) Technical & Historical Society, in partnership with BDRV, began operating Phillipsburg–Carpentersville steam-powered excursions. Service was extended as far as

Riegelsville, Pennsylvania Riegelsville is a borough in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 868 at the 2010 census. It is included in the Philadelphia-Wilmington-Camden Metropolitan Statistical Area, despite being so closely connected to the Lehig ...

in 2016, utilizing former NYS&W locomotive No. 142. No. 142 is a China Railways SY type 2-8-2

Mikado Mikado may refer to: * Emperor of Japan or Arts and entertainment * ''The Mikado'', an 1885 comic opera by Gilbert and Sullivan * ''The Mikado'' (1939 film), an adaptation of the opera, directed by Victor Schertzinger * ''The Mikado'' (1967 f ...

steam locomotive built by the Tangshan locomotive works in 1989 for the Valley Railroad in

Essex, Connecticut Essex is a town in Middlesex County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 6,733 at the 2020 census. It is made up of three villages: Essex Village, Centerbrook, and Ivoryton. History The Great Attack Essex is one of the few A ...

as Valley No. 1647, and sold to NYS&W in 1992. The locomotive was renumbered No. 142, and operated mainline excursions on NYS&W. The locomotive was brought out of storage by BDRV in 2004 for use on the excursions. NYS&W Technical & Historical Society operates their trains under the banner name "Delaware River Railroad Excursions".

Out of service

NYS&W Technical & Historical Society began clearing the line of vegetation south of Carpentersville, eventually reaching Milford in late 2010. The line south of Carpentersville sees limited service though track gangs frequent the trackage on rail speeders. The borough of Milford has a yearly event called "Milford Alive" which has included rail speeder rides on the line. There are future plans to restore regular train service to the Riegelsville and Milford when track conditions have been further upgraded.

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Belvidere Delaware River Railway New Jersey railroads Pennsylvania railroads Spin-offs of Conrail Railway companies established in 1995 Phillipsburg, New Jersey American companies established in 1995 Heritage railroads in New Jersey