RE: (erielack) Re: O&W Discussion Group Abandoned RRs in Scranton Area

["Montgomery, Edward T" <Edward.Montgomery_@_fcps.edu>]

I agree with Fred on the O&W.  If you ever looked at a NYO&W employee
timetable you'll see numerous slow orders for bridges.  It was a high
maintenance railroad.  If it were to last into the 60s or 70s, someone
would have had to pay for lowering the floor or raising the ceiling of 4
or 5 tunnels.  O&W did work well for milk traffic.  I've often wondered
why the railroads lost that commodity so early in the 20th century.
I've mentioned on this site that I thought it should have been something
that Amtrak might have sought with the possibility of TOFC
transportation of milk.  O&W in many ways was like Erie, traveling
through areas of little or no industries.  After WWII factories began
locating off of railroads because truck shipping was more convenient
that trying to fill a boxcar. That was one of the reasons Lackawanna
pursued TOFC.  DL&W marketing had a good idea of where the future of
railroad freight was going to be.  The Erie mainline traveling through
the Southern Tier of New York was much like the O&W when shippers and
consignees found less of a need for a railroad.  O&W was hit hard first
because most of their towns were very small.  Places like Fallsburg,
Liberty, Roscoe, and Walton weren't large enough to keep rail service
and the distance between them limited continued service by a short line
operator.

Ed Montgomery

- -----Original Message-----
From: erielack-owner_@_lists.elhts.org
[mailto:erielack-owner_@_lists.elhts.org] On Behalf Of Fred Stratton
Sent: Wednesday, August 16, 2006 8:51 AM
To: Njricky2_@_aol.com; jguthrie@pipeline.com; erielack@lists.elhts.org
Subject: Re: (erielack) Re: O&W Discussion Group Abandoned RRs in
Scranton Area


Many things could have happened. What is one of the first things a RR
does in a merger, or when it takes over another. It abandons or sells
off negative revenue lines, branch or otherwise. Similiar case here.
Whether the O&W was absorbed into a larger road or not, the lines
probably would have been eliminated or downgraded.  With that thought in
mind, what if the O&W was able to hang on for a possible merger with the
EL, or PC, or D&H? MAybe if it was healthier Conrail? What would have
happened?  This is not just supposition but from a finacial or economic
standpoint it would be interesting to see what would have transpired





Fred Stratton

MP. 7.2 NS Asheville line

Salisbury, NC


rg

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