The Morris Subdivision or Morris Sub is a

railroad Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...

line that runs about from Breckenridge to Willmar, Minnesota. Currently operated by

BNSF Railway BNSF Railway is one of the largest freight railroads in North America. One of seven North American Class I railroads, BNSF has 35,000 employees, of track in 28 states, and nearly 8,000 locomotives. It has three transcontinental routes that ...

, this was part of the Great Northern Railway's transcontinental line from Minneapolis to

Seattle, Washington Seattle ( ) is a port, seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the county seat, seat of King County, Washington, King County, Washington (state), Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in bo ...

. Today (as of 2010), BNSF's

Northern Transcon The Northern Transcon, a route operated by the BNSF Railway, traverses the most northerly route of any railroad in the western United States. This route was originally part of the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad, Northern Pacific Railwa ...

travels up the

Staples Subdivision The Staples Subdivision or Staples Sub is a railway line running about from Dilworth to Fridley, Minnesota (near Minneapolis). It is operated by BNSF Railway as part of their Northern Transcon and contains the busiest segment of mainline tr ...

instead, which is a more direct route to

Fargo, North Dakota Fargo ( /ˈfɑɹɡoʊ/) is a city in and the county seat of Cass County, North Dakota, United States. According to the 2020 census, its population was 125,990, making it the most populous city in the state and the 219th-most populous city in ...

U.S. Highway 12 U.S. Route 12 (US 12) is an east–west United States highway, running from Aberdeen, Washington, to Detroit, Michigan, for almost . The highway has mostly been superseded by Interstate 90 (I-90) and I-94, but unlike most U.S. routes that ...

closely follows the line between Willmar and

Benson Benson may refer to: Animals *Benson (fish), largest common carp caught in Britain Places Geography Canada *Rural Municipality of Benson No. 35, Saskatchewan; rural municipality *Benson, Saskatchewan; hamlet United Kingdom * Benson, Oxfordshire ...

, while

Minnesota State Highway 9 State Highway 9 or Trunk Highway 9 (MN 9, TH 9) is a state highway in west-central and northwest Minnesota, which runs from its intersection with MN 23 in New London and continues west and then north to its northern ter ...

follows the line the rest of the way to Breckenridge. At its northern end, the line continues toward Moorhead as the Moorhead Subdivision. At the south end, it meets the

Wayzata Subdivision The Wayzata Subdivision or Wayzata Sub is a railway line that runs about from Willmar to Minneapolis, Minnesota. Currently operated by BNSF Railway, this was part of the Great Northern Railway's transcontinental line from Minneapolis to Seatt ...

line to

Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...

, and the Marshall Subdivision to Sioux Falls, South Dakota. There is also a connection to the Appleton Subdivision in Benson and a BNSF branch line in Morris, Minnesota. A

Canadian Pacific Railway The Canadian Pacific Railway (french: Chemin de fer Canadien Pacifique) , also known simply as CPR or Canadian Pacific and formerly as CP Rail (1968–1996), is a Canadian Class I railway incorporated in 1881. The railway is owned by Canadi ...

Soo Line Railroad The Soo Line Railroad is the primary United States railroad subsidiary of the Canadian Pacific Railway , one of seven U.S. Class I railroads, controlled through the Soo Line Corporation. Although it is named for the Minneapolis, St. Paul and Sa ...

line also crosses north of Tintah, Minnesota. As of 2015, the line hosted about 11 trains per day.

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 ...

's '' Empire Builder'', originally a Great Northern train, used to go along this route until service to the

Minneapolis Great Northern Depot The Minneapolis Great Northern Depot, also known as Great Northern Station, was a passenger railroad station which served Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA. It was built in 1913 and demolished in 1978. It was located on Hennepin Avenue next to the Hen ...

ended in the late 1970s and Amtrak trains were routed to Midway station in

Saint Paul Paul; grc, Παῦλος, translit=Paulos; cop, ⲡⲁⲩⲗⲟⲥ; hbo, פאולוס השליח (previously called Saul of Tarsus;; ar, بولس الطرسوسي; grc, Σαῦλος Ταρσεύς, Saũlos Tarseús; tr, Tarsuslu Pavlus; ...

instead.

References

External links

BNSF Subdivisions
BNSF Railway lines Rail infrastructure in Minnesota {{Minnesota-transport-stub