The Massena Terminal Railroad is a Class III terminal railroad operating in the U.S. state of

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

. It operates over of track from the

CSX Transportation CSX Transportation , known colloquially as simply CSX, is a Class I freight railroad operating in the Eastern United States and the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec. The railroad operates approximately 21,000 route miles () of track. ...

yard in Massena north to the

Alcoa Alcoa Corporation (an acronym for Aluminum Company of America) is a Pittsburgh-based industrial corporation. It is the world's eighth-largest producer of aluminum. Alcoa conducts operations in 10 countries. Alcoa is a major producer of primary ...

plant, the railroad's only customer. It was built in the early 20th century, beginning operations in 1900. In 2005, the railroad was purchased by

holding company A holding company is a company whose primary business is holding a controlling interest in the securities of other companies. A holding company usually does not produce goods or services itself. Its purpose is to own shares of other companies ...

RailAmerica. Shortline holding company Genesee & Wyoming acquired the Massena Terminal Railroad in 2012 as part of its purchase of RailAmerica. The railroad's traffic comes mainly from aluminum and petroleum products. The MTR hauled around 4,300 carloads in 2008.

History

The Massena Terminal Railroad was incorporated in May 1900, to connect a power plant of the St. Lawrence Power Company to the

Rome, Watertown and Ogdensburg Railroad The Rome, Watertown and Ogdensburg Railroad was a railroad that grew, in stages, from Rome, New York to Watertown and then to Ogdensburg, New York and Massena, New York. The original Rome and Watertown Railroad terminated in Cape Vincent, NY on ...

and Grand Trunk Railway at Massena. The

New York Central Railroad The New York Central Railroad was a railroad primarily operating in the Great Lakes and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The railroad primarily connected greater New York and Boston in the east with Chicago and St. Louis in the Midw ...

took over rail operations for the MTR in 1915, with the latter remaining owner of the physical infratstructure. Significant traffic was carried by the Massena Terminal Railroad during the construction of the

St. Lawrence Seaway The St. Lawrence Seaway (french: la Voie Maritime du Saint-Laurent) is a system of locks, canals, and channels in Canada and the United States that permits oceangoing vessels to travel from the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes of North Americ ...

; new tracks were laid to support the project, and then removed upon its completion. When the company had its bridge across the

Grasse River The Grasse River or Grass River (per 1905 decision of the U.S. Board on Geographic Names) is a river in northern New York, in the United States. The river mainly flows northeast from the foothills of the Adirondack Mountains into the St. Lawrenc ...

replaced in 1946, it included an Alcoa-designed all-aluminum bridge span that was reportedly the first in the world. The New York Central Railroad acquired the MTR in 1966 from Alcoa, which cited "improved operating efficiencies" as the reason for the sale. Shortline holding company RailAmerica purchased the MTR in 2005, eventually assigning it to the company's Northeast Region in 2008. RailAmerica was itself purchased by fellow shortline holding company Genesee & Wyoming in 2012, which became the Massena Terminal Railroad's owner. The railroad received a $1.6 million grant from the

New York State Department of Transportation The New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT) is the department of the New York state government responsible for the development and operation of highways, railroads, mass transit systems, ports, waterways and aviation facilities in ...

in 2013 for infrastructure improvements.

Operations

The company's primary customer is an Alcoa facility in Massena. The MTR connects this facility with a

line also in Massena. In 2008, the company reported approximately 4,300 carloads. As of 2019, the Massena Terminal Railroad has a total of of tracks.

References

External links

Official site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Massena Terminal Railroad New York (state) railroads Switching and terminal railroads Railway companies established in 1900 RailAmerica