Keystone Corridor
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

The Keystone Corridor is a 349-mile (562 km) railroad corridor between
Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...
and
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...
, that consists of two rail lines:
Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, Trade name, doing business as Amtrak () , is the national Passenger train, passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates inter-city rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous United Stat ...
and
SEPTA The Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) is a regional public transportation authority that operates bus, rapid transit, commuter rail, light rail, and electric trolleybus services for nearly 4 million people in five coun ...
's Philadelphia-to-Harrisburg main line, which hosts SEPTA's
Paoli/Thorndale Line The Paoli/Thorndale Line, or R5 commonly known as the Main Line, is a SEPTA Regional Rail service running from Center City Philadelphia through Montgomery County and Delaware County to Thorndale in Chester County. It operates along the far eas ...
commuter rail Commuter rail, or suburban rail, is a passenger rail transport service that primarily operates within a metropolitan area, connecting commuters to a central city from adjacent suburbs or commuter towns. Generally commuter rail systems are con ...
service, and Amtrak's ''Keystone'' and ''Pennsylvanian'' inter-city trains; and the
Norfolk Southern The Norfolk Southern Railway is a Class I freight railroad in the United States formed in 1982 with the merger of Norfolk and Western Railway and Southern Railway. With headquarters in Atlanta, the company operates 19,420 route miles (31, ...
Pittsburgh Line The Pittsburgh Line is the Norfolk Southern Railway's primary east–west artery in its Pittsburgh Division and Harrisburg Division across the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and is part of the Keystone Corridor, Amtrak-Norfolk Southern's combin ...
. The corridor was originally the
Main Line Mainline, ''Main line'', or ''Main Line'' may refer to: Transportation Railway * Main line (railway), the principal artery of a railway system * Main line railway preservation, the practice of operating preserved trains on an operational railw ...
of the
Pennsylvania Railroad The Pennsylvania Railroad (reporting mark PRR), legal name The Pennsylvania Railroad Company also known as the "Pennsy", was an American Class I railroad that was established in 1846 and headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was named ...
. Since 2006, the line has been one of the high-speed corridors designated by the
Federal Railroad Administration The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) is an agency in the United States Department of Transportation (DOT). The agency was created by the Department of Transportation Act of 1966. The purpose of the FRA is to promulgate and enforce rail saf ...
(FRA). The 24-mile section of track from Lancaster to Parkesburg permits trains of up to , while the 19-mile section between Paoli and Philadelphia allows . Amtrak runs two
intercity rail Inter-city rail services are express passenger train services that run services that connect cities over longer distances than commuter or regional trains. There is no precise definition of inter-city rail; its meaning may vary from country ...
services along the Keystone Corridor: the Harrisburg-to-
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
''
Keystone Service Amtrak's ''Keystone Service'' provides frequent regional rail, regional passenger train service between the Harrisburg Transportation Center in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, and 30th Street Station in Philadelphia, running along the Philadelphia to ...
'' and the Pittsburgh-to-New York City '' Pennsylvanian''. SEPTA operates daily Paoli/Thorndale commuter rail service between Philadelphia and Thorndale on the Philadelphia-to-Harrisburg main line. The towns along this stretch form a socio-cultural region called the "
Philadelphia Main Line The Philadelphia Main Line, known simply as the Main Line, is an informally delineated historical and social region of suburban Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Lying along the former Pennsylvania Railroad's once prestigious Main Line, it runs ...
". The tracks from Pittsburgh to
Harrisburg Harrisburg is the capital city of the Pennsylvania, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Dauphin County, Pennsylvania, Dauphin County. With a population of 50,135 as of the 2021 census, Harrisburg is the List of c ...
are owned and maintained by
Norfolk Southern The Norfolk Southern Railway is a Class I freight railroad in the United States formed in 1982 with the merger of Norfolk and Western Railway and Southern Railway. With headquarters in Atlanta, the company operates 19,420 route miles (31, ...
, which acquired them from
Conrail Conrail , formally the Consolidated Rail Corporation, was the primary Class I railroad in the Northeastern United States between 1976 and 1999. The trade name Conrail is a portmanteau based on the company's legal name. It continues to do busin ...
. They include the
Horseshoe Curve A horseshoe curve is a class of climbing curve in a roadbed which reverses turn direction (inflection) twice on either side of a single tight curve that varies through an angle of about 180 degrees or more. Such curves are more commonly found ...
west of Altoona. The tracks between Harrisburg and Philadelphia are owned and maintained by
Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, Trade name, doing business as Amtrak () , is the national Passenger train, passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates inter-city rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous United Stat ...
, and are the only part of the Keystone Corridor that is electrified. The tracks join the
Northeast Corridor The Northeast Corridor (NEC) is an electrified railroad line in the Northeast megalopolis of the United States. Owned primarily by Amtrak, it runs from Boston through Providence, New Haven, Stamford, New York City, Philadelphia, Wilmington, a ...
at Zoo Interlocking near the
Philadelphia Zoo The Philadelphia Zoo, located in the Centennial District of Philadelphia on the west bank of the Schuylkill River, is the first true zoo in the United States. It was chartered by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania on March 21, 1859, but its openin ...
and 30th Street Station.


History

The right-of-way that would become the Keystone Corridor was mainly laid by two railroads. The tracks east of Dillerville, just west of Lancaster, were originally the
Philadelphia and Columbia Railroad Philadelphia and Columbia Railroad (P&CR) (1834) was one of the earliest commercial railroads in the United States, running from Philadelphia to Columbia, Pennsylvania, it was built by the Pennsylvania Canal Commission in lieu of a canal from Colu ...
, part of the state-owned
Main Line of Public Works The Main Line of Public Works was a package of legislation passed by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania in 1826 to establish a means of transporting freight between Philadelphia and Pittsburgh. It funded the construction of various long-proposed can ...
. From Lancaster west to Harrisburg, the tracks were laid by the
Harrisburg, Portsmouth, Mount Joy and Lancaster Railroad The Harrisburg, Portsmouth, Mountjoy & Lancaster Rail-Road (HPMtJ&L) was an early American railroad built to connect three main population centers in east-central Pennsylvania. History In 1834, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania chartered the Port ...
. Except for minor realignments, today's Keystone Corridor runs along the same path. Both lines eventually became part of the
Pennsylvania Railroad The Pennsylvania Railroad (reporting mark PRR), legal name The Pennsylvania Railroad Company also known as the "Pennsy", was an American Class I railroad that was established in 1846 and headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was named ...
's (PRR) main line. In 1915, the PRR
electrified Electrification is the process of powering by electricity and, in many contexts, the introduction of such power by changing over from an earlier power source. The broad meaning of the term, such as in the history of technology, economic history ...
the line from Philadelphia's Broad Street Station to Paoli, then the west end of commuter service. Electrification west of Paoli to Harrisburg came in the 1930s, after the PRR completed electrifying its New York-Washington, D.C. section (the present-day
Northeast Corridor The Northeast Corridor (NEC) is an electrified railroad line in the Northeast megalopolis of the United States. Owned primarily by Amtrak, it runs from Boston through Providence, New Haven, Stamford, New York City, Philadelphia, Wilmington, a ...
). The total cost of electrification topped $200 million, which was financed by government-supported loans from the Reconstruction Finance Corporation and the
Public Works Administration The Public Works Administration (PWA), part of the New Deal of 1933, was a large-scale public works construction agency in the United States headed by Secretary of the Interior Harold L. Ickes. It was created by the National Industrial Recove ...
. Passenger service remained unprofitable, returned to profitability during World War II, and then slumped again. The PRR overhauled much of the right-of-way in the 1950s, but chose to keep paying a stable dividend rather than reinvest in infrastructure. The result was dilapidated stations, slow, disjointed track conditions, and antiquated rolling stock which frequently broke down. In 1968, the PRR merged with the New York Central to become
Penn Central The Penn Central Transportation Company, commonly abbreviated to Penn Central, was an American Railroad classes, class I railroad that operated from 1968 to 1976. Penn Central combined three traditional corporate rivals (the Pennsylvania Railroad ...
, which declared bankruptcy in 1970. In 1976, Amtrak took ownership of the line between Philadelphia and Harrisburg while Conrail (the merger of Penn Central, the Reading Company, and several other Class I railroads) took ownership of the remaining part of the line and the many branches, both electrified and non-electrified, that the Penn Central had owned. Amtrak took over the express Harrisburg-New York intercity rail service in 1971, while Conrail, under SEPTA auspices, continued Harrisburg-Philadelphia commuter services. In 1983, SEPTA took over all commuter services and extended operations to Parkesburg (later truncated in 1996 to Downingtown, but later extended to Thorndale). Penn Central made an agreement with the federal government to provide a high-speed service called the Metroliner, which upgraded the
Northeast Corridor The Northeast Corridor (NEC) is an electrified railroad line in the Northeast megalopolis of the United States. Owned primarily by Amtrak, it runs from Boston through Providence, New Haven, Stamford, New York City, Philadelphia, Wilmington, a ...
tracks between New York and Washington by 1969, but neglected other areas such as the Keystone Corridor, a lack of maintenance that continued after Amtrak's takeover in 1976. The Keystone Corridor eventually served as a "depository" for the problem-prone Metroliner electric
multiple unit A multiple-unit train or simply multiple unit (MU) is a self-propelled train composed of one or more carriages joined together, which when coupled to another multiple unit can be controlled by a single driver, with multiple-unit train contr ...
cars. Amtrak also used electric locomotive-hauled trains for Harrisburg-New York service. Before the introduction of '' Acela'' electric high-speed service over the Northeast Corridor, and after facing a shortage of electric locomotives (both E60 and
AEM-7 The EMD AEM-7 is a twin-cab four-axle B-B electric locomotive built by Electro-Motive Division (EMD) and ASEA between 1978 and 1988. The locomotive is a derivative of the Swedish SJ Rc4 designed for passenger service in the United States. The ...
models), Amtrak used
GE Genesis General Electric Genesis (officially trademarked GENESIS) is a series of passenger diesel locomotives produced by GE Transportation, then a subsidiary of General Electric. Between 1992 and 2001, a total of 321 units were built for Amtrak, Metro- ...
diesel locomotives between Harrisburg and Philadelphia, with an engine change to an electric (usually
AEM-7 The EMD AEM-7 is a twin-cab four-axle B-B electric locomotive built by Electro-Motive Division (EMD) and ASEA between 1978 and 1988. The locomotive is a derivative of the Swedish SJ Rc4 designed for passenger service in the United States. The ...
) locomotive at 30th Street Station. Due to the slower schedules combined with higher ticket prices and competition from SEPTA, ridership declined. The line between Philadelphia and Lancaster was four tracks until the 1960s, when the PRR removed two of the tracks west of Paoli. The line is now two tracks from Paoli to Harrisburg, save for a three-track section between the Glen and Park interlockings, and a four-track section between the Downs and Thorn interlockings. As of 2004, most of the track was limited to a maximum speed of , except for a few 90 mile per hour (145 km/h)) sections between Downingtown and Lancaster. There are also curves which require slower speeds (especially in the section between Merion and Overbrook), and speed restrictions within interlocking limits.


High-speed corridor

In 1999, the Keystone Corridor was formally recognized as a "designated high speed corridor" by the FRA, as part of the TEA-21 transportation bill. The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania will fund half of the project's costs, and Amtrak will fund the other half. The goals of this project include: * 90-minute travel time between Harrisburg and Philadelphia on express trains * 105-minute travel time on normal trains * Raising track speed to where possible * Increasing the number of daily round trips from 11 to 14 * Replacing diesel trains with electric on ''Keystone'' service A summary appears in an FRA report. Construction on the USD $145 million project began on March 7, 2005 and was completed in Fall, 2006. Amtrak's press releases have summarized the improvements as: * Installation of 80 track miles (128 km) of new concrete ties * Installation of more than 40 new track switches * A new signal system between Lancaster and Harrisburg * Upgrade of 16 existing bridges and culverts * Upgrade of overhead electrical wires (catenary) * Upgrade of electrical substations to support use of electric locomotives. The installation of concrete ties also included replacement of the old jointed rail with new continuous welded rail (136 RE), track surfacing, and alignment. Track surfacing is adjusting the vertical profile of the two rails, leveling the rails on straight track and introducing superelevation (banking) in curves. The are broken down as: * on track 4 from Park (Parkesburg) to Cork (Lancaster) interlockings * on track 1 from Cork (Lancaster) to Park (Parkesburg) interlockings * on track 3 from Paoli to Overbrook * on track 2 from Overbrook to Paoli Amtrak replaced the signal and communications system and rebuilt the overhead catenary wire and upgraded electrical substations to provide the power needed to operate several electric trains simultaneously on this line. Since October, 2006, Amtrak, having sufficient ''Acela'' high-speed trainsets, started using electric push-pull trainsets for the first time since the mid-1990s. Using AEM7 locomotives and former Metroliner m.u. coaches modified into a push-pull cab-coach (with the locomotive "pulling" westbound trains and "pushing" eastbound), the electrified service is currently used on the Harrisburg-New York ''Keystone'' service, while the Genesis
diesel locomotive A diesel locomotive is a type of railway locomotive in which the prime mover is a diesel engine. Several types of diesel locomotives have been developed, differing mainly in the means by which mechanical power is conveyed to the driving whee ...
s are still used for the Pittsburgh-New York ''Pennsylvanian'' service. As on the
Northeast Corridor The Northeast Corridor (NEC) is an electrified railroad line in the Northeast megalopolis of the United States. Owned primarily by Amtrak, it runs from Boston through Providence, New Haven, Stamford, New York City, Philadelphia, Wilmington, a ...
, Amtrak trains between Paoli and Overbrook use the high-speed inner rails for normal operations. In March 2011, Pennsylvania received a $750,000 grant from the High-Speed Intercity Passenger Rail Program to investigate extending high-speed electrified service from Harrisburg to Pittsburgh. At-grade crossings with roads between Philadelphia and Harrisburg remained until 2014. In July 1999, PennDOT budgeted $9 million for this project to eliminate the three remaining crossings; however, these funds were later used for other projects. One of the crossings was in Elizabethtown and another in Mount Joy. The third, between Mount Joy and Lancaster, was blocked off using fencing and
jersey barrier A Jersey barrier, Jersey wall, or Jersey bump is a modular concrete or plastic barrier employed to separate lanes of traffic. It is designed to minimize vehicle damage in cases of incidental contact while still preventing vehicle crossovers resu ...
s. Additional funding from the
American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) (), nicknamed the Recovery Act, was a stimulus package enacted by the 111th U.S. Congress and signed into law by President Barack Obama in February 2009. Developed in response to the Gr ...
was used to complete the elimination of all at-grade crossings. The last was closed in 2014. Private crossings remain between Philadelphia and Harrisburg. There are still grade crossings between Harrisburg and Pittsburgh.


Earlier studies

There have been earlier studies by the
USDOT The United States Department of Transportation (USDOT or DOT) is one of the executive departments of the U.S. federal government. It is headed by the secretary of transportation, who reports directly to the President of the United States and ...
and FRA of the Keystone Corridor, and these studies contain proposals or speculations which might not be in the currently funded projects. Some of these ideas are below. Amtrak service to Suburban Station, which is in Center City Philadelphia, ended in 1988. An early study says that PennDOT used Suburban Station as the Philadelphia endpoint for the 90-minute service to Harrisburg. Restoring service to Suburban Station may increase ridership but would require using the upper level of 30th Street Station and either scheduling trains to turn at Suburban Station or to continue through the Center City Commuter Tunnel (with Amtrak trains turning around at Wayne Junction). Bypassing 30th Street Station by using the New York-Pittsburgh Subway would allow trains to skip a time-consuming stop and reverse of directions at 30th St Station and allow fast service between New York and Harrisburg. Historically, the PRR fast trains going to NY from the west would bypass 30th St Station, and passengers for Philadelphia would change trains at North Philadelphia. One study suggested two daily electric-train round-trips between New York and Harrisburg with stops in North Philadelphia and Ardmore, a routing last used by Keystone trains in 1994. Track reconfiguration between Zoo and Overbrook interlockings can increase track speeds which are usually due to the need to take diverging routes through switches. Reducing the number of diverging moves and the use of switches can increase speeds. Also, the reconfiguration can allow for the removal of the overhead bridge that the R6 Cynwyd trains use. Some other interlockings may be removed or reconfigured. With the reconfiguration near Zoo, the Overbrook interlocking can be removed and replaced with 4 through tracks. Bryn Mawr interlocking may have storage tracks added west of the station to allow R5 Bryn Mawr locals to turn without occupying an express track. Paoli interlocking may be removed if the four-track configuration were to continue west of the station. Paoli station may be reconfigured with high-level island platforms serving all four tracks, as part of a new Paoli transportation center. Frazer interlocking may be reconfigured for turning SEPTA trains and as the point where four tracks become two. Electrification may be converted to use commercial 60 Hz AC power instead of the special 25 Hz single-phase AC currently in use, although this is doubtful due to the costs involved, lack of real benefits and dedicated 25 Hz hydro-electric capacity at the
Safe Harbor Dam The Safe Harbor Dam (also Safe Harbor Hydroelectric Station) is a concrete gravity dam, with an associated hydroelectric power station, on the lower Susquehanna River. It is the most northerly and last of three Great Depression- era public elect ...
. The Safe Harbor Dam also generates electricity for the Northeast Corridor itself, the power going from the dam to the NEC (at
Perryville, Maryland Perryville is a town in Cecil County, Maryland, United States. The population was 4,361 at the 2010 census. The town is located near an access for Interstate 95, on the north side of the outlet of the Susquehanna River. History Perryville was fir ...
), via a pylon network. Between Paoli and 30th Street Station, most of the overhead electric wire and other electrification system components date back to the original 1915 electrification, although the 1915 substations have been retired. West of Paoli the electrification dates from the late 1930s, and west of Downingtown the system is still controlled by the original 1939 power dispatching office in Harrisburg, utilizing electromechanical systems.


Construction progress

The four-track section between Overbrook and Paoli is numbered sequentially from the southernmost track (number 1 track) to the northernmost track (number 4 track). Between March 7 and June 27, 2005, Amtrak worked on the number 4 track between Lancaster and Parkesburg, and from June 27 to September 2, 2005, they worked on number 1 track. A work gang with a track laying system (TLS) installed concrete crossties, new continuous welded rail, and new ballast, allowing for . The track layout at Lancaster station was simplified so that trains no longer have to take a diverging route to access the station platforms. Because tracks 2 and 3 have been removed, tracks 1 and 4 are the only tracks in this section. Between October 3, 2005 and mid-December, Amtrak worked on the number 2 track from Paoli to a point between Narberth and Merion stations. On March 20, 2006, Amtrak started working on the number 3 track, starting within Paoli interlocking and working east towards Overbrook. As of April 6, 2006, a track laying system (TLS) has completed work to approximately milepost 16.7. 110-mph service started on October 30, 2006 following completion of a $145 million upgrade of the 104-mile line. Push-pull express trains will cut journey time from the current two hours to 90 minutes. Local service will improve to 105 minutes. Three weekday and two weekend roundtrips will be added as well.


Services

The busiest part of the Keystone Corridor is the segment between Harrisburg and New York City, which sees multiple trains per day.


Amtrak

The following Amtrak rail lines serve Keystone Corridor stations: *''
Capitol Limited The ''Capitol Limited'' is a daily Amtrak train between Washington, D.C., and Chicago, running via Pittsburgh and Cleveland. Service began in 1981 and was named after the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad's ''Capitol Limited'' which ended in 197 ...
'' – to/from
Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...
and
Washington D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, Na ...
stops at Pittsburgh, the westernmost stop on the Pennsylvanian route. * ''
Keystone Service Amtrak's ''Keystone Service'' provides frequent regional rail, regional passenger train service between the Harrisburg Transportation Center in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, and 30th Street Station in Philadelphia, running along the Philadelphia to ...
'' – local service along the Northeast Corridor between New York and Philadelphia, and along the Keystone Corridor between Philadelphia and Harrisburg. Timings vary by day of the week in each direction, and some trains to/from Harrisburg terminate at and start from Philadelphia. * '' Pennsylvanian'' – between Pittsburgh and Philadelphia along the Keystone Corridor and between Philadelphia and New York on the Northeast Corridor.


Commuter rail

SEPTA Regional Rail operates commuter rail service on the Keystone Corridor between 30th Street Station and Thorndale as the
Paoli/Thorndale Line The Paoli/Thorndale Line, or R5 commonly known as the Main Line, is a SEPTA Regional Rail service running from Center City Philadelphia through Montgomery County and Delaware County to Thorndale in Chester County. It operates along the far eas ...
service. Efforts to re-extend the line to Parkesburg and even to Atglen were under discussion by state Congressman
Jim Gerlach James W. Gerlach (born February 25, 1955) is the former U.S. Representative for , serving from 2003 to 2015. He is a member of the Republican Party. Gerlach retired from Congress after completing his sixth term. Early life, education and caree ...
, R-PA 6, and the
Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission The Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission (DVRPC) is the metropolitan planning organization for the Delaware Valley. Created in 1965 by an interstate compact, DVRPC is responsible for transportation and regional planning in the greater Phil ...
. On March 7, 2019, it was announced that SEPTA service would be extended back to Coatesville "in the near future", with a new Coatesville station to be built. The
Cynwyd Line The Cynwyd Line is a SEPTA Regional Rail line from Center City Philadelphia to Cynwyd in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. Originally known as the Ivy Ridge Line, service was truncated on May 17, 1986, at its current terminus at Cynwyd. Trac ...
service also uses the line between 30th Street Station and the Valley interlocking. The proposed
Schuylkill Valley Metro Schuylkill River Passenger Rail is a proposed passenger train service along the Schuylkill River between Philadelphia and Reading, Pennsylvania, with intermediate stops in Norristown, King of Prussia, Phoenixville, and Pottstown. Passenger trains ...
service to
Reading Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of Letter (alphabet), letters, symbols, etc., especially by Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process invo ...
would have also used this line. There is also a proposal to shift the line to eliminate a deteriorating truss bridge. A project to bring commuter rail service between Harrisburg and Lancaster called the Capital Red Rose Corridor proposed to bring rail service to South Central Pennsylvania. In 2011, after numerous proposals, the project was cancelled due to a lack of political will and funding. SEPTA's capital budget for
fiscal year A fiscal year (or financial year, or sometimes budget year) is used in government accounting, which varies between countries, and for budget purposes. It is also used for financial reporting by businesses and other organizations. Laws in many ...
2006 financed an $80.594 million project with Amtrak to improve infrastructure along the line."R5 Paoli Line Improvements – Amtrak," page 54. SEPTA's effort to improve tracks 1 and 4 between Zoo and Paoli interlockings, included: * Installation of 85,000 concrete crossties, track surfacing, and alignment * Replacement of jointed rail with continuous welded rail * Upgraded signal and communication systems * Replacement of Bryn Mawr interlocking tracks * Reconfiguration and replacement of Paoli interlocking tracks * Improvements to pedestrian underpasses and ROW retaining walls


Freight service

Norfolk Southern The Norfolk Southern Railway is a Class I freight railroad in the United States formed in 1982 with the merger of Norfolk and Western Railway and Southern Railway. With headquarters in Atlanta, the company operates 19,420 route miles (31, ...
operates overnight freight service between the western junction of the
Trenton Cutoff The Trenton Cutoff (sometimes spelled Trenton Cut Off) is a rail corridor in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania that runs from Morrisville to Glenloch. Today used by Norfolk Southern, it consists of two rail lines: the Morrisville Line, which runs ...
(a former Penn Central electrified "through-freight" line) and just west of Parkesburg via
trackage rights Railway companies can interact with and control others in many ways. These relationships can be complicated by bankruptcies. Operating Often, when a railroad first opens, it is only a short spur of a main line. The owner of the spur line may ...
, mainly supplying the
ArcelorMittal ArcelorMittal S.A. is a Luxembourgian multinational steel manufacturing corporation headquartered in Luxembourg City. It was formed in 2006 from the takeover and merger of Arcelor by Indian-owned Mittal Steel. ArcelorMittal is the second larg ...
steel plate manufacturing plant in Coatesville. Norfolk Southern also operates
Enola Yard Enola Yard is a large rail yard located in East Pennsboro Township, Pennsylvania, along the western shore of the Susquehanna River at Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Built in 1905 and expanded through the 1930s, Enola was the world's largest freigh ...
, a major freight
classification yard A classification yard (American and Canadian English (Canadian National Railway use)), marshalling yard ( British, Hong Kong, Indian, Australian, and Canadian English (Canadian Pacific Railway use)) or shunting yard (Central Europe) is a railway ...
near Harrisburg. Two other electrified through-freight lines, the
Atglen and Susquehanna Branch Atglen may refer to: Places *Atglen, Pennsylvania Atglen is a borough in Chester County, Pennsylvania, United States. According to the 2020 Census, its population is 1,311. History The area now known as Atglen was originally a wilderness. Na ...
(a.k.a. the Low-Grade Line) and the Philadelphia and Thorndale Branch, were abandoned by Conrail before its purchase by Norfolk Southern, with NS still maintaining the Low-Grade Line due to the catenary poles servicing the Keystone Corridor between Lancaster and Middletown, while the former has been looked at by the
Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission The Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission (DVRPC) is the metropolitan planning organization for the Delaware Valley. Created in 1965 by an interstate compact, DVRPC is responsible for transportation and regional planning in the greater Phil ...
as a possible "''Cross-County Metro''" project connecting Thorndale with
Trenton, New Jersey Trenton is the capital city of the U.S. state of New Jersey and the county seat of Mercer County. It was the capital of the United States from November 1 to December 24, 1784.diesel locomotives A diesel locomotive is a type of railway locomotive in which the prime mover is a diesel engine. Several types of diesel locomotives have been developed, differing mainly in the means by which mechanical power is conveyed to the driving wheels ...
.


Former services

The ''
Broadway Limited The ''Broadway Limited'' was a passenger train operated by the Pennsylvania Railroad (PRR) between New York City and Chicago. It operated from 1912 to 1995. It was the Pennsylvania's premier train, competing directly with the New York Central ...
'', a train that operated between
Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...
and New York, used the Keystone Corridor between Pittsburgh and Philadelphia and the
Northeast Corridor The Northeast Corridor (NEC) is an electrified railroad line in the Northeast megalopolis of the United States. Owned primarily by Amtrak, it runs from Boston through Providence, New Haven, Stamford, New York City, Philadelphia, Wilmington, a ...
between Philadelphia and New York. Originally a
Pennsylvania Railroad The Pennsylvania Railroad (reporting mark PRR), legal name The Pennsylvania Railroad Company also known as the "Pennsy", was an American Class I railroad that was established in 1846 and headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was named ...
train, this route was discontinued by Amtrak in 1995 but later restarted by the passenger rail company and renamed the ''Three Rivers''. The '' Three Rivers'' was discontinued in 2005. (Amtrak's current Chicago-to-Washington, D.C. service, the Capitol Limited, uses the rail line west of Pittsburgh).


Stations


See also

*
High-speed rail in the United States Plans for high-speed rail in the United States date back to the High-Speed Ground Transportation Act of 1965. Various state and federal proposals have followed. Despite being one of the world's first countries to get high-speed trains (the Me ...


References


Further reading

*


External links


Plan the Keystone
- PennDOT
Keystone Corridor on Google Maps
{{High-speed rail Amtrak Pennsylvania Railroad lines SEPTA Regional Rail High-speed railway lines in the United States Electric railways in Pennsylvania