The Lakeland Subdivision is a

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. ...

rail line in Florida. It runs along CSX's A Line from just west of Lakeland and heads west through Plant City to the community of

Mango A mango is an edible stone fruit produced by the tropical tree '' Mangifera indica''. It is believed to have originated in the region between northwestern Myanmar, Bangladesh, and northeastern India. ''M. indica'' has been cultivated in Sout ...

in Hillsborough County, just east of

Tampa Tampa () is a city on the Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The city's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and the seat of Hillsborough Co ...

. The east end of line is at Lakeland Junction, where it continues west from the

Carters Subdivision CSX Transportation's Carters Subdivision is a segment of CSX's A Line running from Poinciana southwest to Lakeland. The Carters Subdivision ends just west of Downtown Lakeland at Lakeland Junction, where it continues west as the Lakeland Subdi ...

of the A Line. It also connects to the Vitis Subdivision at Lakeland Junction. In Mango, the line connects with the

Tampa Terminal Subdivision The Tampa Terminal Subdivision is a group of railroad lines owned by CSX Transportation in and around Tampa, Florida. The Tampa Terminal Subdivision covers track around Yeoman and Uceta Yards and is located at the end of two of CSX's U.S. East Coa ...

. The Lakeland Subdivision runs through the middle of Plant City, where it crosses CSX's other main line, the S Line (

Yeoman Subdivision The Yeoman Subdivision is a railroad line owned by CSX Transportation in Florida. It runs along CSX’s S Line from Zephyrhills south to just east of Tampa via Plant City for a total of 31.2 miles. The north end of the line connects to the W ...

). This junction, known as Plant City Interlocking, is a particularly busy junction since all trains to and from Tampa must pass through this point. A train viewing platform is located at the junction for rail enthusiasts to observe passing trains. The platform is part of the Robert W. Willaford Railroad Museum which operates in the Plant City Union Depot.

Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak () , is the national passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates inter-city rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous U.S. States and nine cities in Canada ...

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 ...

runs the Lakeland Subdivision round-trip twice a day into Tampa. Freight traffic on the Lakeland Subdivision includes local freight as well as traffic into and out of Winston Yard, which is the east entrance to CSX's routes in the Bone Valley phosphate region.

History

The Lakeland Subdivision first began service in 1884 and was built as part of Henry B. Plant's

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 m ...

. The South Florida Railroad was absorbed 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 Coas ...

(ACL) in 1902 and it became part ACL's main line. The Atlantic Coast Line became part of

by 1986.

References

{{Attached KML CSX Transportation lines Florida railroads Rail infrastructure in Florida Transportation in Hillsborough County, Florida Transportation in Polk County, Florida

History

See also

References