(erielack) New Life for EL Wayland Branch and B&H?

["David Green" <davandli_@_empacc.net>]

This article appeared in the Corning Leader on Friday, 12/14/01.  
Interseting comment from Bill Burt about reopening the Bath & 
Hammondsport to serve Pleasant Valley Wine..

- - Dave Green, ELHS #1366
SCIDA OKs tax relief for rail line


MARY PERHAM
mperham_@_the-leader.com


[NEXT|TOP]


BATH | Local industries received a transportation boost Thursday night 
when the Steuben County Industrial Development Agency approved tax 
relief for the 17-mile Norfolk-Southern rail line between Bath and 
Painted Post.

That line will be leased for 30 years by the Lakeville, Avon and Livonia 
Railroad and then sublet to SCIDA. In return for a tax abatement SCIDA 
board members unanimously approved Thursday night, LAL will pay $2 
million to renovate the track, which is badly in need of repairs.

Track running through Painted Post will also be repaired.

=93If we improve the condition of the track, we can pull more railroad 
cars and that will encourage business along the route,=94 said James 
Sherron, SCIDA executive director.

That rehabilitation was badly needed, LAL representative William Burt 
told SCIDA in September.

The president of LAL subsidiary Conhocton Valley

Railroad, Burt, warned then that route was in

danger of being downgraded to five-car loads

traveling less than 10 mph.

The route handles between 10 and 25 cars daily.

=93This (repair) allowed us to keep out of the lowest

class,=93 Burt said Thursday. =94If we hadn=92t done

something soon, we might as well have closed the

line.=93

More cars operating at a faster speed will also

provide more service to industries already served by

LAL-operated rail lines between Bath and Wayland and

Bath and Hammondsport.

Sections have been repaired within the last

3.5 weeks, Burt said.

An added bonus to local industry is that - as part of

the lease agreement - the repaired line will connect

to both the Northern-Suffolk and the Candian-Pacific

freight lines.

=93Industries will have the right to ship goods on two

lines,=93 Burt said. =94That=92s a major factor in

attracting new business.=93

LAL-operated lines now serve several businesses in

northern and central Steuben County including Bath

Petroleum, railcar-builder TTA in Kanona, fertilizer

plants in Cohocton and a road de-icer plant in

Wayland.

The line expects to serve Pleasant Valley Wine Co.

in Hammondsport soon, Burt said. He said the

Bath-Hammondsport line runs behind the Bath Industrial

Park on County Route 54, which will also

attract new business to that area.

=93Access to that area will be a main selling point,=94

Burt said.

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