The Washington County Railroad ( reporting mark WACR ) is a shortline railroad operating in Vermont and a sliver of New Hampshire , forming part of the Vermont Rail System . The WACR began operating in 1980 over the old Montpelier and Barre Railroad in Washington County , which the state acquired to ensure the continuance of rail service, and ceased operations in early 1999. Later that year, after interim service by other companies, operations were transferred to a new WACR subsidiary of the Vermont Rail System. In 2003, operations were greatly expanded through acquisition by the state and operation by the WACR of a former Boston and Maine Corporation and Canadian Pacific Railway line between Newport and White River Junction , which had most recently been operated by subsidiaries of the bankrupt Bangor and Aroostook Railroad .
32-784: Washington County Railroad or Railway may refer to: Washington County Railroad (1980) , short line in Vermont Washington County Railroad (1900–1901) , predecessor of the Pittsburgh and West Virginia Railway in Pennsylvania Washington County Railroad (1856–1868) , predecessor of the Southern Pacific Company in Texas Washington County Railroad (1864) , predecessor of
64-584: A SD40T-2 (colloquially known as a tunnel motor) of Southern Pacific Railroad vintage in 2013. In 2023, NECR acquired 7 former CSX C40-8Ws , making them the first General Electric locomotives on their roster. As a Genesee & Wyoming subsidiary since 2012, NECR has sometimes shared locomotives with nearby G&W subsidiaries Connecticut Southern Railroad and Providence and Worcester Railroad (the latter purchased by G&W in 2016). Since 1995, Amtrak has operated its daily Vermonter service between Washington, D.C., and St. Albans, Vermont , using
96-578: A newly formed subsidiary, the Montreal, Maine & Atlantic Railway . However, the segment between Newport and White River Junction was not included in the transaction and instead was acquired by the state of Vermont which contracted freight service to the Washington County Railroad. Both companies began operating their new lines in January 2003. WACR had made a $ 750000 bid in January 2014 to acquire
128-683: A project to decrease running times for Amtrak 's Vermonter , which operates over the route. Construction was funded by a $ 70 million grant from the federal government, part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act . The NECR main line was heavily damaged in several locations by Hurricane Irene during August 2011. A six mile segment in Vermont was taken out of service entirely by storm damage, with downed trees and flooding affecting other segments as well. Rail service returned to all customers by September 13, with full repairs completed later in
160-726: A third branch exists in Claremont, New Hampshire (formerly the Claremont-Concord Railroad). Within Massachusetts, the NECR mainline passes through Millers Falls and the important junction at Palmer . In Connecticut, the line serves Stafford Springs , Willimantic , and Norwich before terminating at the Port of New London . From the Canadian border, several mainline trains move traffic along
192-539: A trio of SD40s acquired from Conrail during the 1990s. After RailAmerica took ownership of the NECR, a number of GP40-2L locomotives (the L indicating a wide Canadian safety cab ) were added to the fleet, plus two SD9s of Duluth, Missabe and Iron Range Railway heritage. When RailAmerica was placed under new ownership in 2007, more locomotives were transferred to NECR, including GP40-2s and six-axle SD40-2s . Additional SD40-2 and SD45 style locomotives from other railroads joined NECR's fleet by 2012. NECR also obtained
224-652: Is also operated from the Canada–US border to Boston, in partnership with the Providence and Worcester Railroad . The NECR hauled around 37,000 carloads in 2008. NECR maintains significant operations at several locations along their line. Its main office is located in St. Albans, Vermont , along with the main office for the Connecticut Southern Railroad (CSOR), with which NECR shares many management functions. St. Albans
256-639: Is also the location of the main shop and dispatch office. Vermont's largest rail yard is the St. Albans yard, which handles upwards of 40,000 cars each year. Other significant operations are at White River Junction and Brattleboro , both of which are the location of offices and smaller yards. Palmer, Massachusetts, serves as the main yard and office for operations south of the Vermont line. The New England Central Railroad started operations with 12 GP38 locomotives, and exclusively operated Electro-Motive Diesel products from its founding until 2023. These were supplemented by
288-776: The Canada–US border in May 1867. In June 1926, the Canadian Pacific Railway leased the line between Wells River and Newport, and its lessor Quebec Central Railway leased the line north of Newport (including the connecting Massawippi Valley Railway to Sherbrooke ). The Newport and Richford Railroad acquired the former portion in November 1946, continuing the lease to the CP. (The B&M retained operations south of Wells River.) Iron Road Railways subsidiary Canadian American Railroad , through
320-704: The New England Central Railroad in February 1999, but that company ceased operating the lines in September, and the Vermont Railway took over temporarily until its new affiliate began under the Washington County Railroad name. In early May 2010, after having been mostly dormant for some time, an official from the Barre government said that a contract for shipments of scrap granite bound for Florida would begin late
352-956: The Providence and Worcester Railroad , which interchanges freight with the New England Central, in 2016. NECR purchased the shortline Claremont-Concord Railroad in 2015, adding the latter's line in Claremont and its freight rights on a state-owned line in Lebanon, New Hampshire . New England Central's main line connects the Long Island Sound port of New London, Connecticut , to the Canadian border in East Alburgh, Vermont . The company's line connects St. Albans , Essex Junction , Montpelier , White River Junction , and Brattleboro within Vermont. Branches connect Essex Junction to Burlington and White River Junction to Lebanon, New Hampshire , and
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#1732851889753384-697: The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad in Maryland Washington County Railway (1903–1911) , predecessor of the Maine Central Railroad in Maine Washington County Railroad (1893–1903) , predecessor of the above Topics referred to by the same term [REDACTED] This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the title Washington County Railroad . If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change
416-1049: The CN interchange in St. Albans, NECR interchanges with Vermont Railway (plus Canadian Pacific Railway through a haulage agreement ) and its subsidiaries Green Mountain Railroad and Washington County Railroad in Vermont and New Hampshire, with CSX Transportation and the Massachusetts Central Railroad in Palmer, with Pan Am Southern in Brattleboro and Millers Falls, and with the Providence and Worcester Railroad in Willimantic and New London. The railroad's traffic consists largely of general freight, including lumber products, metals, chemicals and stone products, although COFC (container on flat car) and TOFC (trailer on flat car) business
448-527: The Canada–US border, a distance of 366 miles (589 km). Several short branch lines bring the company's total trackage to 384 miles. Primary sources of traffic include lumber, metals, chemicals, and crushed stone. The Central Vermont Railway (CV) had long been owned and operated by Canadian railroads, first the Grand Trunk Railway and from 1927 the Canadian National Railway (CN); CN
480-539: The Granite District, connects the New England Central Railroad (NECR) with Montpelier , Barre , Websterville , and Graniteville . Its primary commodities have been lumber , granite , and silicon carbide since the Bombardier transit car plant in Barre was closed in 2002. The Connecticut River Division includes haulage rights from White River Junction south to Bellows Falls on the NECR, where it connects to
512-528: The NECR. Until 2014, the NECR was used north of Palmer, Massachusetts , and since 2014, north of Northfield, Massachusetts . With state and federal funding, Amtrak and the New England Central Railroad completed repairs and upgrades to much of the NECR mainline in Vermont in 2012, allowing the Vermonter to reach a maximum speed of 79 miles per hour (127 km/h). The Central Corridor Rail Line
544-505: The New England Central Railroad starting on February 3, 1995, with the transition completed three days later on February 6. The new railroad was marked by improved service compared to the old Central Vermont, as well as more flexible crew arrangements, both of which led to a resurgence of the line. Within a year of NECR's takeover of the line, declining traffic flow was reversed, with the railroad handling more than 30,000 carloads annually within two years of commencing operations, in contrast to
576-532: The United States. It began operations in 1995, as the successor of the Central Vermont Railway (CV). The company was originally a subsidiary of holding company RailTex before being purchased by RailAmerica in 2000. In 2012, the company was purchased by Genesee & Wyoming , its current owner. The New England Central Railroad main line runs from New London, Connecticut , to Alburgh, Vermont , at
608-574: The affiliated Green Mountain Railroad . It also has direct connections to the former Montreal, Maine and Atlantic Railway at Newport and Pan Am Railways at White River Junction. The majority of the Granite District was part of the Boston and Maine Railroad (B&M) system until 1926, when the Barre and Chelsea Railroad (Barre to Graniteville) and Montpelier and Wells River Railroad (Barre and Montpelier to Wells River) were sold to local interests. The latter
640-452: The former MM&A line from Newport northwest toward Farnham, Quebec , but was not successful as officials handling MMA's bankruptcy chose to auction the entire system to Fortress Investment Group as one undivided block. New England Central Railroad The New England Central Railroad ( reporting mark NECR ) is a regional railroad in the New England region of
672-432: The link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Washington_County_Railroad&oldid=545476754 " Category : Disambiguation pages Hidden categories: Short description is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages Washington County Railroad (1980) The original line, now known as
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#1732851889753704-559: The material, of which 40 million tons was accessible, were being sought, and industries along the line had expressed interest in having rail service if the line was upgraded for granite shipments. The Connecticut River Division was built by the Connecticut and Passumpsic Rivers Railroad , a predecessor of the B&;M which completed its line from White River Junction to Newport in October 1863 and to
736-562: The month. The 45 railroads formerly owned by RailAmerica , which had previously taken over RailTex lines, were transferred to Connecticut-based shortline holding company Genesee & Wyoming in December 2012. This change of ownership caused a shuffle of locomotives around their rail system, and the original NECR yellow-and-blue paint scheme is slowly being replaced by the Genesee & Wyoming scheme. Genesee & Wyoming subsequently purchased
768-608: The newly created Quebec Southern Railway and Northern Vermont Railroad , took over operations of the portion north of Wells River in September 1996, and in 1999 the state acquired the remainder from the B&M, contracting first the Green Mountain Railroad and then in 2000 the Northern Vermont Railroad to operate it. After Iron Road Railways went bankrupt (CDAC, B&A, QS/NV) in fall 2002, it sold most of its lines to Rail World which organized them under
800-514: The old CV, which had suffered through years of declining traffic and the loss of profitability. The company's rapid success led to it being named 1995's Short Line Railroad of the Year by industry trade journal Railway Age . NECR's motive power initially consisted of former Gulf, Mobile and Ohio Railroad EMD GP38s , although by the late 1990s, leased locomotives, largely former Conrail EMD SD40-2s , entered service. Shortly after NECR's founding,
832-571: The process of privatizing CN; as part of privatization, branches and less lucrative lines were identified for divestment, including the Central Vermont. CN announced it wished to sell the Central Vermont in 1993, and in October 1994 shortline railroad holding company RailTex Corp. offered to buy the CV via a new subsidiary named the New England Central Railroad (NECR). The transaction was completed in early 1995. The Central Vermont Railway transitioned to
864-522: The railroad for cargo storage. In 2000, RailTex was acquired by RailAmerica , which was subsequently bought in 2007 by Fortress Investments . Neither change in ownership affected the NECR to any great extent. On November 9, 2010, the railroad began construction on a project to raise speeds on trackage within Vermont to 59 miles per hour (95 km/h), with speeds on the route south of White River Junction being increased to 79 miles per hour (127 km/h) for passenger service. The upgrades were part of
896-404: The same month. Ten-car trains were planned to operate twice a day between Berlin and Montpelier Junction, as well as separate five-car trains from the granite quarries and Barre. The trains were to operate for the three months it would take for the 54,000 tons of granite the contract requested to be moved south. Further traffic of scrap granite was also considered possible, as further contracts for
928-508: The state of Connecticut and the company worked to develop more business at the Port of New London, where the State Pier had recently collapsed. The railroad was commended by a local newspaper for "an aggressive effort to bring rail and shipping business through New London." The pier was rebuilt and opened in 1998, with NECR's tracks directly serving the port. The port's operator leased four acres from
960-574: The system. Trains 323 (northbound) and 324 (southbound) operate between St. Albans (connecting with Canadian National trains from Montreal) and Brattleboro, making stops to pick up or drop cars at junctions as needed. Train 611 hauls mainline traffic between Brattleboro and Palmer. South of Palmer, train 608 operates south to Willimantic and back, while train 610 covers the line between Willimantic and New London. Local trains are based in St. Albans, White River Junction, and Palmer, serving customers in those areas or performing switching at NECR yards. Besides
992-527: Was consolidated into the former in January 1945, but in 1957 the entire Barre and Chelsea Railroad was abandoned. The Montpelier and Barre Railroad took over operations of the Montpelier and Barre-area trackage, but the line east to Wells River was abandoned. In 1980 that company abandoned its trackage, and the state bought it in November and designated the new CSF Acquisition, Inc. subsidiary Washington County Railroad to operate it. The WACR assigned its lease to
Washington County Railroad - Misplaced Pages Continue
1024-406: Was in turn owned by the government of Canada. The Central Vermont's owners kept it a separate company, complete with its own fleet of green and yellow painted locomotives. Operations on the line entered a general decline in the 1980s in tandem with falling freight volumes, which persisted despite the introduction of modern locomotives by CN in the early 1990s. In 1992, the Canadian government began
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