The New Holland Secondary is a rail line that runs from

Lancaster, Pennsylvania Lancaster, ( ; pdc, Lengeschder) is a city in and the county seat of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. It is one of the oldest inland cities in the United States. With a population at the 2020 census of 58,039, it ranks 11th in population amon ...

, to

New Holland, Pennsylvania New Holland (Pennsylvania Dutch: ''Seischwamm'') is a borough in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 5,762, up from 5,378 in the 2010 census. History New Holland was settled in 1728 by brothers John Michae ...

, and is owned and operated by

Norfolk Southern Railway 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 ...

. It is 12 miles long, single tracked, and originally ran from Lancaster to Downingtown, Pennsylvania, but all track between New Holland and Downingtown has since been abandoned. The line branches off of track 4 of the

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 ...

owned

Philadelphia to Harrisburg Main Line The Philadelphia to Harrisburg Main Line is a rail line owned and operated by Amtrak in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. This is the only electrified Amtrak line in the United States outside of the main line of the Northeast Corridor. The line r ...

(originally part of 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 ...

) at Cork Interlocking, milepost 67.0 in Lancaster. The rail line was originally built by the East Brandywine and Waynesburg Railroad, but has changed hands quite a few times since its construction in 1854. It came into the possession of the Pennsylvania Railroad in 1903,

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 ...

in 1968,

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 ...

in 1976, and in 1999 it was acquired by Norfolk Southern Railway, where it remains today. The line serves as a branch line for

freight Cargo consists of bulk goods conveyed by water, air, or land. In economics, freight is cargo that is transported at a freight rate for commercial gain. ''Cargo'' was originally a shipload but now covers all types of freight, including transp ...

delivery, and services a number of businesses along its path, including RR Donnelley and Sons Printing, HM Stauffer, the Leola

Dart Container Dart Container Corporation of Mason, Michigan, United States, is the world's largest manufacturer of foam cups and containers, producing about as many as all competitors combined. Dart Container is privately held by the Dart family. In May 201 ...

plant, and L&S Sweeteners. The line is operated five days a week, mostly at night and early morning to avoid high traffic in New Holland.

Infrastructure

The New Holland Secondary has no bridges, but does have 25

level crossing A level crossing is an intersection where a railway line crosses a road, Trail, path, or (in rare situations) airport runway, at the same level, as opposed to the railway line crossing over or under using an Overpass#Railway, overpass ...

s over named roads. (26 if the crossing over Norman Road, in

, which is not crossed by the main line, is included). The line also crosses over several privately owned or unnamed lanes. The crossings over named roads are as follows:

References

{{reflist Transportation in Lancaster, Pennsylvania New Holland, Pennsylvania Lancaster County, Pennsylvania Norfolk Southern Railway lines Norfolk Southern Railway Pennsylvania Railroad lines Pennsylvania Railroad Conrail lines Conrail Railway lines opened in 1854

Infrastructure

Lancaster

Leola

New Holland

See also

References