Harrisburg Line

The Harrisburg Line is a railroad line owned and operated by the Norfolk Southern Railway in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. The line runs from Philadelphia west to Harrisburg [ [http://www.pacerfarm.org/cgi-bin/sta01.cgi?div=HBR the NS Harrisburg Line] ] along a former Reading Company line.

At its east end, near the Falls of the Schuylkill, the Harrisburg Line junctions with CSX Transportation's Trenton Subdivision. Its west end is at a junction with the Pittsburgh Line, the Lurgan Branch, the Royalton Branch, and Amtrak's Philadelphia to Harrisburg Main Line. The line junctions the Morrisville Line (indirectly) at Norristown and the Reading Line near Reading.

History

The Philadelphia and Reading Rail Road opened in 1839, including the current Harrisburg Line east of Reading. [PDFlink| [http://www.prrths.com/Hagley/PRR1839%20June%2004.wd.pdf PRR Chronology, 1839] |82.7 KiB , June 2004 Edition] The line from Reading to Harrisburg was opened by the Lebanon Valley Railroad in 1858. [PDFlink| [http://www.prrths.com/Hagley/PRR1858%20Mar%2005.pdf PRR Chronology, 1858] |56.8 KiB , March 2005 Edition] Through leases, mergers, and takeovers, the line became part of Conrail. In the 1999 breakup of Conrail, the line was assigned to Norfolk Southern.

References