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(erielack) EL Operations

A couple other notes from that old Diamond issue: The review of Second/100's
Jan/75 operation shows the train changing crews in Kent. I had thought that
by this time, the east coast trains were running through Marion-Meadville,
so evidently that change occured later in '75.

Another interesting point is that Bob's Croxton article is entitled "Croxton
Before Chessie". In Dec '75, it was fully expected that EL property east of
Akron would be acquired by Chessie, giving that system improved access to NY
and New England and ensuring competiiton would be maintained in the
Northeast. This was the fourth and next-to-last in a series of plans for
EL's bankruptcy disposition, which illustrates the huge impact the chain of
events beginning with the Yom Kippur war of Oct '73 had on EL's future. The
war, of course, led to the Arab oil embargo which precipitated a deep
recession here beginning in 1974. In summer of '73, EL's trustees were
calling it "the best of the bankrupts" and planned for reorganization as an
independant entity. By 1974, falling revenues had scuttled that idea, and a
series of alternate plans ensued: MARC-EL, ATSF-EL, and Chessie-EL. When the
Chessie plan foundered on labor protection issues at the eleventh hour, EL
was hastily included in Conrail. This last minute arrangement might explain
that 1976 tie program on the doomed Cutoff: it was scheduled (perhaps even
by EL) before the Conrail folks became fully aware of the nuances of the
Boonton line, like the razorback profile and NIMBY lawsuits.

Paul B


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