Re: (erielack) Alco Farewell / Economy Changes

["Gary R. Kazin" <gkazin_@_yahoo.com>]

Do not forget that much of the traffic that built the railroads across New Jersey simply VANISHED as home heating switched from anthracite to oil and natural gas.  As much as 3/4 of the Lackawanna's earnings came from hauling coal from the Scranton area to Jersey City, and the PRR, RDG, CNJ, NYO&W, NYS&W, Erie, and Lehigh Valley also had a large portion of their earnings come from moving coal.

The Lackawanna built the Boonton Line solely to get the coal traffic off the main line through Summit, and built up to four tracks to handle it.  Passenger service there was a 'nice-to-have'.

Gary R. Kazin
DL&W Milepost R35.7
Rockaway, New Jersey


- --- On Tue, 12/14/10, intercityrailpal_@_netscape.net wrote:
> Really, to me it was very simple.  There was no rail plan,
> except to get rid of most of the railroads.  And they did.
> To think of the traffic that used to be on EL - and many
> other eastern railroads.  It's all truck today.


 

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