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. ...

's Vitis Subdivision 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 running along CSX's AR Line in

Central Florida Central Florida is a region of the U.S. state of Florida. Different sources give different definitions for the region, but as its name implies it is usually said to comprise the central part of the state, including the Tampa Bay area and the Gr ...

from Richland to Lakeland for a total of 19.7 miles. The Vitis Subdivision serves as a connection between CSX's two main lines in Florida, the A Line and the

S Line S, or s, is the nineteenth letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''ess'' (pronounced ), plural ''esses''. Histor ...

. Its connection with the S Line (which is a detour of the original S Line) at the north end is known as Vitis Junction. The connection with the A Line at the south end is known as Lakeland Junction.

History

The tracks that are today the Vitis Subdivision began operation in September 1885. They were built by the

South Florida Railroad The South Florida Railroad was a railroad from Sanford, Florida, to Tampa, Florida, becoming part of the Plant System in 1893 and the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad in 1902. It served as the southernmost segment of the Atlantic Coast Line's ma ...

as part of their Pemberton Ferry branch (CSX's detoured S Line from Vitis Junction north to

Owensboro Owensboro is a home rule-class city in and the county seat of Daviess County, Kentucky, United States. It is the fourth-largest city in the state by population. Owensboro is located on U.S. Route 60 and Interstate 165 about southwest of Lou ...

is also part of the Pemberton Ferry branch). CSX's A Line was originally the South Florida Railroad's main line. The line was narrow gauge when originally built. It was fully converted to standard gauge on August 7, 1891. The

Plant System The Plant System named after its owner, Henry B. Plant, was a system of railroads and steamboats in the U.S. South, taken over by the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad in 1902. The original line of the system was the Savannah, Florida and Western R ...

, which the South Florida Railroad was part of, was bought out by the

Atlantic Coast Line Railroad The Atlantic Coast Line Railroad was a United States Class I railroad formed in 1900, though predecessor railroads had used the ACL brand since 1871. In 1967 it merged with long-time rival Seaboard Air Line Railroad to form the Seaboard Coast L ...

in 1902. In the Atlantic Coast Line era, the line would serve as the southernmost segment of their line from

Du Pont, Georgia Du Pont is a town in Clinch County, Georgia, United States. The population was 120 at the 2010 census. According to the 1916 ''History of Clinch County'' the town was first settled around 1856 as Lawton, on the route of the newly chartered Atlan ...

to Lakeland via

High Springs High Springs is a city in Alachua County, Florida, United States. It is the fourth-largest city in Alachua County and seventh-largest in North Central Florida. The population was 6,215 at the 2020 census. History The present-day area of High S ...

(R Line), which would be complete by 1913. The Atlantic Coast Line became the

Seaboard Coast Line Railroad The Seaboard Coast Line Railroad was a Class I railroad company operating in the Southeastern United States beginning in 1967. Its passenger operations were taken over by Amtrak in 1971. Eventually, the railroad was merged with its affiliate lin ...

in 1967, which then became

in 1986. The Atlantic Coast Line's Lakeland Yard was located in what is now Bonnet Springs Park just northwest of Lakeland Junction. Lakeland Yard closed in the 1980s and traffic was then relocated to nearby Winston Yard just four miles west of Lakeland Junction on the A Line. From 1990 to 2004,

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 ...

operated service on the Vitis Subdivision which also ran on the S Line further north. This service was operated by the ''

Silver Star The Silver Star Medal (SSM) is the United States Armed Forces' third-highest military decoration for valor in combat. The Silver Star Medal is awarded primarily to members of the United States Armed Forces for gallantry in action against an e ...

'', '' Silver Palm'', and the '' Palmetto'' at various times through this period.Amtrak Timetable effective April 29, 2002, p. 33 http://timetables.org/full.php?group=20020429n&item=0033

References

{{Attached KML CSX Transportation lines Florida railroads Central Florida Transportation in Polk County, Florida Transportation in Pasco County, Florida

History

See also

References