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41-594: Until around 1963, it was a Class I railroad ; in 1967, it reported 131 million ton-miles of revenue freight on 77 miles (124 km) of railroad. Marion W. Savage , owner of the race horse Dan Patch , planned an electric railroad that would connect the Twin Cities to his farm and stables south of the Minnesota River . Savage purchased Dan Patch for $ 62,000 (a fortune in 1902), then lavishly promoted his equine protégé. Savage and his backers chose 54th and Nicollet, at

82-747: A duopoly over all transcontinental freight rail lines in the Western United States, while CSX Transportation and Norfolk Southern Railway operate most of the trackage in the Eastern United States, with the Mississippi River being the rough dividing line. Canadian National Railway (via its subsidiary Grand Trunk Corporation ) operates north–south lines near the Mississippi River. Canadian Pacific Kansas City , doing business as CPKC, runs from southern Canada, then goes south through

123-476: A company that has earned gross revenues exceeding $ 250 million (CAD) for each of the previous two years. Class I railroads are the largest rail carriers in the United States. In 1900, there were 132 Class I railroads, but as the result of mergers and bankruptcies, the industry has consolidated and as of April 2023 , just six Class I freight railroads remain. BNSF Railway and Union Pacific Railroad have

164-538: A quarterly or annual schedule. In 1925, the ICC reported 174 Class I railroads, 282 Class II railroads, and 348 Class III railroads. The $ 1 million criterion established in 1911 for a Class I railroad was used until January 1, 1956, when the figure was increased to $ 3 million. In 1956, the ICC counted 113 Class I line-haul operating railroads (excluding "3 class I companies in systems") and 309 Class II railroads (excluding "3 class II companies in systems"). The Class III category

205-430: A touch of Victorian elegance. Management struggled to make the rail route profitable without consistent success. According to some reports, the railroad had an abysmal operating ratio of 147%. It persisted in operation until less than a week after the deaths of the horse Dan Patch and his owner Colonel Savage, it slumped into receivership on July 16, 1916. Four days after the bankruptcy, Charles P. Bratnober (president of

246-886: The Association of American Railroads as "Regional Railroads" are typically Class II. Some examples of Class II railroads would be the Florida East Coast Railway , the Iowa Interstate Railroad , and the Alabama and Gulf Coast Railway . Class III railroads are typically local shortline railroads serving a small number of towns and industries or hauling cars for one or more railroads; often, they once had been branch lines of larger railroads or even abandoned portions of main lines. Some Class III railroads are owned by railroad holding companies such as Genesee & Wyoming or Watco . Some examples of Class III railroads would be

287-776: The Baldwin DT-6-6-2000 , then to various EMD models. The railroad was purchased in 1982 by the Soo Line , and merged into the Soo Line in 1986. For decades prior to the sale to the Soo Line, the MN&;S had a lucrative business interchanging with several Class I railroads. Rock Island and Milwaukee Road at Northfield, C&NW at Savage, Soo Line at Crystal, M&StL at St Louis Park, Great Northern at Cedar Lake Yard in Minneapolis, and CGW over trackage rights between Randolph and Northfield. By

328-591: The Dan Patch Corridor . Although the Minnesota Legislature imposed a ban on state money going to further studies of the proposed service in 2002, in 2023, this ban was lifted. Class I railroad Railroad classes are the system by which freight railroads are designated in the United States . Railroads are assigned to Class I, II or III according to annual revenue criteria originally set by

369-464: The I&;M Rail Link gained trackage rights on the former MN&S to Minneapolis but never utilized them. In 2004, during which Burnsville proposed reopening an at-grade crossing on the MN&S, Canadian Pacific stated that by the next five years Progressive Rail would be utilizing the MN&S route that is currently out-of-service, but this didn't happen. The Glenwood shops were closed and tracks removed in

410-624: The I-494 beltway. MN 62 in the Twin Cities area was authorized in 1988. Prior to 1988, the route was designated as Hennepin County Road 62. The route was built mostly in the late 1960s by Hennepin County. The original Hennepin County numbering of 62 corresponded with 62nd Street in Minneapolis. However, some portions of MN 62 do stray from the 62nd Street plane, as near the MSP airport, MN 62 runs along

451-703: The Lakeville city park system. Richfield gardeners and farmers used the Dan Patch railroad for shipping produce, dairy products and other goods. Passengers shared the platforms with farmers. Original plans called for the Dan Patch Line to be electrified, but did not happen. The company used steam engines for their freight trains, while gas-electric locomotives and motorcars handled passenger traffic. Savage's penchant for first-class style did produce luxurious coaches – red, plush seat cushions and fringed shades on windows added

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492-641: The Maryland and Delaware Railroad , the San Pedro Valley Railroad , and the Buckingham Branch Railroad . Minnesota State Highway 62 (east) Minnesota State Highway 62 ( MN 62 ) is a highway in the Twin Cities region of Minnesota . The route was part of County Road 62 (CR 62) until 1988, when a portion of the route was inherited by the state. The western terminus of

533-520: The Minneapolis, Anoka and Cuyuna Range Railroad ) was appointed receiver. The Minneapolis, Northfield and Southern Railroad, incorporated during June 1918 in South Dakota , bought the remnants of Savage's former company at foreclosure on August 6, 1918. The new owners promoted the Dan Patch's route from Northfield to Minneapolis, and successfully marketed the reconstituted railroad as a bridge line around

574-722: The Surface Transportation Board in 1992. With annual adjustments for inflation, the 2019 thresholds were US$ 504,803,294 for Class I carriers and US$ 40,384,263 for Class II carriers. (Smaller carriers were Class III by default.) There are six Class I freight railroad companies in the United States: BNSF Railway , CSX Transportation , Canadian National Railway , CPKC , Norfolk Southern Railway , and Union Pacific Railroad . Canadian National also operates in Canada and CPKC operates in Canada and Mexico. In addition,

615-647: The 200,000 drivers who used it daily. Construction of the current design was expected to begin in July 2006, but was delayed due to state budget deficits. The project was adequately funded during Governor Tim Pawlenty 's second term and bids were received in April 2007. The bid was won by the Ames, Lunda, and Schafer consortium for $ 288 million. Construction began in May 2007. The project included 25 new bridges, 63 lane-miles of highway, and expanded

656-464: The Chicago Great Western from Northfield to Randolph and Mankato , and even after discontinuing passenger service maintained trackage rights to Randolph for freight service. Dan Patch's gas-electric locomotives were sold during bankruptcy, and freight was hauled by steam until the 1940s. Immediately after World War II, the MN&S began transitioning to diesel-electric locomotives such as

697-419: The ICC in 1996, the Surface Transportation Board (STB) has become responsible for defining criteria for each railroad class. The STB continues to use designations of Class II and Class III as there are different labor regulations for the two classes. The bounds are typically redefined every several years to adjust for inflation and other factors. Class II and Class III designations are now rarely used outside

738-442: The ICC to increase the minimum annual operating revenue criteria (then established at US$ 93.5 million) to avoid being redesignated as Class I, which would have resulted in increased administrative and legal costs. The Class II maximum criterion was increased in 1992 to $ 250 million annually, which resulted in the Florida East Coast Railway having its status changed to Class II. The thresholds set in 1992 were: Since dissolution of

779-469: The Mendota Bridge. Beyond the bridge, MN 62 replaces the former MN 110 in its entirety to I-494. This project has been designated "One route. One name" by MnDOT. The reason for the change was to assign a single highway number to this continuous route as opposed to the three different highway numbers (MN 62, MN 55, MN 110) that the route formerly had. MnDOT believes this will lessen

820-493: The Twin Cities and kept most of the ex-CGW inbound freight on its own rails. By 1982, the Soo Line was ready to make several moves and had sufficient funds to counter competing offers. Soo Line's grand plan was to secure MN&S to Northfield, then purchase the Spine Line to Kansas City from Rock Island in its liquidation. However, C&NW purchased the Spine Line for $ 93 million in 1983. The Soo Line saved face in 1985 by purchasing

861-407: The bankrupt Milwaukee Road. The Soo Line's loss of the Spine Line and the transfer of southbound freight to the former Milwaukee Road route to Northfield reduced service on the entire MN&S for the next 25 years. By 1997, six years after the Soo Line was purchased by Canadian Pacific, the last train had gone between Lakeville and Savage, and the tracks have remained out-of-service since then. In 1999

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902-570: The bridge to protect what they feel may become a valuable shipping route in the future. In 2016, TC&W undertook a major rehabilitation of the Dan Patch Line Bridge in anticipation of an upsurge in grain traffic. By September of 2022, TC&W was seeking Minnesota state funding to rehabilitate a three-quarter mile stretch of the old MN&S main in Savage, a section of track that would enable direct service to resume. Progressive Rail, Inc. owns

943-537: The central United States to central Mexico. In addition, the national passenger railroads in the US and Canada— Amtrak and Via Rail —would both qualify as Class I if they were freight carriers. Mexico's Ferromex would qualify as a Class I railroad if it had trackage in the United States. A Class II railroad in the United States hauls freight and is mid-sized in terms of operating revenue. Switching and terminal railroads are excluded from Class II status. Railroads considered by

984-589: The company never secured an entrance into Faribault and abandoned the project. The new railroad built four stations in Richfield, with platforms along the Nicollet Avenue corridor – on the Bachman's farmstead spur at 62nd, Goodspeed's farmstead at 66th, Irwin's farmstead on 72nd and Wilson's farmstead on the southwest corner of 78th. They also completed a company-developed picnic destination named Antlers Park, now part of

1025-505: The congested Twin Cities freight yards. As finally constructed, the MN&S mainline ran in what is now the west metro of the Twin Cities . From its junction with the Minneapolis, St. Paul and Sault Ste. Marie Railroad at MNS Junction in Crystal , it traveled through New Hope , Golden Valley , St. Louis Park , Edina, Bloomington , Savage , Lakeville and down to Northfield . Along the way,

1066-733: The highway is at Interstate 494 (I-494) in Eden Prairie , where the roadway continues west as CR 62 to CR 101. The eastern terminus of the route is at the junction with I-494 in Inver Grove Heights . Locally, the original portion of the route in Hennepin County is known as "the Crosstown Highway " or simply "the Crosstown ," though signage with this name does not appear on the highway itself, but only on local streets adjacent to

1107-644: The line connected the Soo Line with the Milwaukee Road , the Omaha Road , the Chicago Great Western and the Rock Island's St. Paul to Kansas City "Spine Line". They had shops at Glenwood on a spur line that went from the present area of Hwy 100 and Hwy 55 to the edge of downtown Minneapolis . Along that spur were connections to the Minneapolis and St. Louis Railway and Great Northern Railway . In addition,

1148-590: The mid 1980s after the Soo Line took over. Despite that, of the MN&S mainline extending south to Northfield, the Soo's owner Canadian Pacific Railway still owns the tracks from Savage to Lakeville and from the Minnesota River north to MNS Junction. The Twin Cities and Western Railroad owns the Dan Patch Line Bridge over the Minnesota River. TC&W has trackage rights over the MN&S Spur and purchased

1189-623: The national passenger railroad in the United States, Amtrak , would qualify as Class I if it were a freight carrier, as would Canada's Via Rail passenger service. Mexico 's Ferromex freight railroad would also qualify as Class I, but it does not operate within the United States. Initially (in 1911) the former federal agency Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC) classified railroads by their annual gross revenue . Class I railroads had an annual operating revenue of at least $ 1 million, while Class III railroad incomes were under $ 100,000. Railroads in both classes were subject to reporting requirements on

1230-451: The need to weave across traffic. The 2007 cost of correcting the deficiencies in that short stretch of highway was estimated to be $ 285 million. In August 2018, the MN ;62 designation was extended from its former eastern terminus at MN 55 near the Mendota Bridge to a new terminus at I-494 in the city of Inver Grove Heights. This new extension is cosigned as MN 55/MN 62 across

1271-538: The original passenger "High Line" ran from Auto Club Junction in Bloomington through Richfield and into south Minneapolis, ending just north of the current Crosstown freeway. Besides its freight service, the company continued passenger service using their gas-electric motorcars from Minneapolis to Antlers Park and Northfield until the 1940s. Until the Great Depression , the MN&S Ry. also used trackage rights on

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1312-583: The plane of 58th Street. MN 62 previously had a traffic light at its eastern terminus at MN 55 until an interchange was reconstructed during construction of the METRO Blue Line light rail in 2004. The Twin Cities' MN 62 had one of the most notorious junctions in the region where it interwove with I-35W . This mile-long stretch was known informally as the "Crosstown Commons". Plans to "unweave" and expand this section of roadway to improve traffic flow had come and gone for many years, frustrating

1353-420: The rail transport industry. The Association of American Railroads typically divides non–Class I companies into three categories: In the United States, the Surface Transportation Board categorizes rail carriers into Class I, Class II, and Class III based on the carrier's annual revenue. The thresholds, last adjusted for inflation in 2019, are: In Canada , a Class I rail carrier is defined (as of 2004 ) as

1394-462: The road. It is also used as an alternate name, even by the Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT). The route is 18.6 miles (29.9 km) in length. MN 62 serves as an east–west route between Eden Prairie, Minnetonka, Edina, Richfield, Minneapolis, Fort Snelling, Mendota Heights and Inver Grove Heights. The route is constructed to freeway standards for most of its length, except for

1435-416: The stretch of MN 62 in the Twin Cities area starts its numbering at milepost 100. This is unorthodox in that the two state highways have a combined length of 36 miles (58 km). "Mile 100" is calibrated where CR 101 and CR 62 meet at the Eden Prairie – Minnetonka boundary line; though the mileposts themselves, starting with mile 104, do not appear until the state-maintained section inside

1476-495: The time of the sale to Soo Line in 1982, MN&S's interchange business was in shambles with the Rock Island and Milwaukee Road fading in bankruptcy and the sale of CGW and M&StL to C&NW in the 1960s leaving only the Soo Line and Burlington Northern as viable interchange partners. The loss of interchange traffic at Randolph when CGW merged with C&NW in 1968 was a significant setback as C&NW already had its own routes to

1517-595: The time the Richfield - Minneapolis border, as the starting point for the new railroad. Minneapolis' Nicollet streetcar line ended at that spot, so passengers could easily transfer to the adjacent Dan Patch system. Its owners named their new firm the Minneapolis, St. Paul, Rochester and Dubuque Electric Traction Company, but no one used the full name. Instead, they preferred the nickname "Dan Patch Line." Construction began in 1908, eventually reaching Northfield in late 1910. Grading began on an extension to Faribault in 1911, but

1558-511: The total roadway width from 6 lanes to 12 lanes at Lyndale Avenue . The bridges were cast in Coates, Minnesota , and trucked in for on-site erection. The new design includes transit/ HOV lanes and was completed in November 2010. The new interchange features three through-lanes for I-35W (including one HOV lane) in each direction and two separate through-lanes for MN 62 in each direction, eliminating

1599-430: The track between Lakeville and Northfield, operating it as their Jesse James Line. Progressive Rail owns and occasionally operates two MN&S cabooses as well as a former MN&S EMD SD39 . Some of Progressive Rail's rolling stock is painted in an MN&S-inspired livery. The Minnesota Department of Transportation has performed studies on operating commuter rail over the Dan Patch Line. This service would be known as

1640-467: The western 1 ⁄ 2 mile (0.80 km), which is an expressway with two signal-controlled intersections. The eastern section is also an expressway except for the last mile between Mendota Road and I-494, which is again a freeway. The route is located in Hennepin and Dakota counties. Due to the existence of a second State Highway 62 in the southwest corner of the state between Fulda and Windom ,

1681-542: Was dropped in 1956 but reinstated in 1978. By 1963, the number of Class I railroads had dropped to 102; cutoffs were increased to $ 5 million by 1965, to $ 10 million in 1976 and to $ 50 million in 1978, at which point only 41 railroads qualified as Class I. In a special move in 1979, all switching and terminal railroads were re-designated Class III — even those with Class I or Class II revenues. In early 1991, two Class II railroads, Montana Rail Link and Wisconsin Central , asked

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