The Youngstown Belt Railroad (reporting mark YB) is a part of the Ohio Central Railroad System, which was bought by Genesee & Wyoming Inc. in 2008, serving the area northwest of Youngstown, Ohio. It began operations in 1997, mainly on ex-Erie Railroad trackage owned by the affiliated Warren and Trumbull Railroad (W&T), which acquired the "Lordstown Cluster" from Conrail in 1996. It also leases a short ex-Baltimore and Ohio Railroad segment from CSX Transportation, formerly operated by the W&T.
The company operates in three separate areas near Warren, Niles, and Youngstown, connected by trackage rights over the Norfolk Southern Railway. In addition to its connections with affiliated railroads - the Warren and Trumbull Railroad at Warren, Ohio and Youngstown and Austintown Railroad at Youngstown, Ohio - it interchanges in Youngstown, Ohio with Norfolk Southern at Youngstown, Ohio and with CSX in Ohio Junction, Ohio. The track spans 5 miles and can hold up to 286,000 pounds of supplies. [1] [2] [3]
History
The YB's trackage near Youngstown and Niles includes pieces of a former main line, completed in 1856 by the Cleveland and Mahoning Railroad, a predecessor of the Erie Railroad.[4] Other ex-Erie trackage includes two branches to Leadville (connecting with the Youngstown and Austintown Railroad there) and the U.S. Steel Ohio Works,[5] and the portion of the line at Warren north of the Warren and Trumbull Railroad junction (opened by the Atlantic and Great Western Railroad as part of a main line to Dayton in 1863[4]). The remainder of the Warren line was opened in 1873 by the Ashtabula, Youngstown and Pittsburgh Railroad, a Pennsylvania Railroad predecessor.[4] Conrail sold all of these lines to the Warren and Trumbull Railroad in 1996,[6] and later that year the W&T leased a connecting ex-Baltimore and Ohio Railroad line near Youngstown from CSX Transportation.[7] Effective January 1, 1997, the Youngstown Belt Railroad began operating this trackage under lease.[8]
References
- ^ "Youngstown Belt Railroad – A Genesee & Wyoming Company".
- ^ Norfolk Southern Corporation. "List of Short Lines: Youngstown Beltline Railroad [sic]". Archived from the original on January 1, 2010. Retrieved February 9, 2009.
- ^ CSX Corporation. "Short Line Partners: Youngstown Belt Railroad". Archived from the original on September 20, 2010. Retrieved February 9, 2009.
- ^ a b c Baer, Christopher T. "PRR Chronology". Archived from the original on July 7, 2009. Retrieved February 9, 2009.
- ^ "Railroad Switching District: Youngstown Ohio". 1934 – via Rails and Trails.
- ^ STB Finance Docket No. 33012, 1996
- ^ STB Finance Docket No. 33118, 1996
- ^ Railroad Retirement Board (1997). "Employer Status Determination: The Youngstown Belt Railroad Company" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on January 17, 2009.
