Erie Lackawanna Railroad
Reporting marks	EL
Locale	New Jersey to Chicago, Illinois
Years of operation	1960 – 1976
Track gauge	4 ft 8½ in (1435 mm)
Headquarters	Cleveland, Ohio

The Erie Lackawanna Railroad (AAR reporting mark EL) was formed from the 1960 merger of the Erie Railroad and the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad. The official company name initially included a hyphen between Erie and Lackawanna, but this was dropped in 1963. The official motto of the line was "The Friendly Service Route". Erie Lackawanna Railroad Herald Heralds are logos or slogans used by railroad companies and displayed on their equipment. ... The following are reporting marks assigned by the Association of American Railroads (AAR) to rail carriers operating in North America and the companies (railroads and rail equipment owners/operators) to which they were assigned. ... State nickname: The Garden State Other U.S. States Capital Trenton Largest city Newark Governor Richard Codey (acting) Official languages None defined Area 22,608 km² (47th)  - Land 19,231 km²  - Water 3,378 km² (14. ... Chicago, Illinois — officially the City of Chicago and colloquially known as Chicago, the Second City and the Windy City — is the third largest city of the United States after New York City and Los Angeles and is the largest inland city of the nation. ... 1960 was a leap year starting on Friday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1976 is a leap year starting on Thursday (link will take you to calendar). ... Rail gauge is the distance between two rails of a railroad. ... A foot (plural: feet) is a non-SI unit of distance or length, measuring around a third of a metre. ... Mid-19th century tool for converting between different standards of the inch An inch is an Imperial unit of length. ... A millimetre (American spelling: millimeter, symbol mm) is an SI unit of length that is equal to one thousandth of a metre. ... City nickname: The Forest City Location within the state of Ohio County Cuyahoga Mayor Jane Campbell Area   â€“Land   â€“Water 213. ... Categories: Organization stubs | Rail transport | Industry trade groups ... The following are reporting marks assigned by the Association of American Railroads (AAR) to rail carriers operating in North America and the companies (railroads and rail equipment owners/operators) to which they were assigned. ... 1960 was a leap year starting on Friday (link will take you to calendar). ... The Erie Railroad (AAR reporting mark ERIE) was a railroad that operated in New York State, connecting New York City with Lake Erie and several cities in upstate New York, including Binghamton, Buffalo and Dunkirk. ... The Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad Company (DL&W) (AAR reporting mark DLW) was chartered in 1851 as a consolidation of the Lackawanna and Western Railroad and the Delaware and Cobbs Gap Railroad. ...

The EL struggled for most of the 16 years it existed. The two railroads that created it were steadily losing passengers, freight traffic and money, and were heavily burdened by years of accumulated debt. These two historic lines, the Erie and the D.L.& W., started to consolidate facilities on the Hudson River waterfront and across southern New York State in 1956, four years before formal corporate merger. The Lackawanna route was severely affected by the decline of anthracite and cement traffic from Pennsylvania by the 1940s. The Erie was burdened by the continuing loss of high-tariff fruit and vegetable traffic from the western states into the New York City region as highways improved in the 1950s. Both lines were also impacted by the opening of the Saint Lawrence Seaway in 1959, which allowed ocean-going cargo ships to travel between European, African and South American ports and cities on the Great Lakes, such as Buffalo, Cleveland, Detroit, Chicago, etc. The D.L.& W. had previously carried much traffic to and from ocean ships, having its own port facilities on the Hudson River in Hoboken, New Jersey. Anthracite coal Anthracite is a hard, compact variety of mineral coal that has a high luster. ... In the general sense, a cement (Latin caementum) is any material with adhesive properties. ... Midtown Manhattan, looking north from the Empire State Building, 2005 New York City (officially named the City of New York) is the most populous city in the United States, and is at the center of international finance, politics, communications, music, fashion, and culture. ... The Saint Lawrence Seaway in its broadest sense is the system of canals that permits ocean-going vessels to travel from the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes as far as Lake Superior. ... The Great Lakes from space The Great Lakes are a group of five large lakes on or near the United States-Canadian border. ... Image of Hoboken taken by NASA (red line shows where Hoboken is). ...

The northeast's railroads, including the EL, were all beginning to decline because of over-regulation, subsidized highway and waterway competition, high rates of urban property taxation, and market saturation (i.e., too many railroad lines competing for what market was remaining). The closure in the 1960s of old multi-story factories in the eastern cities, followed by the decline of the domestic automobile and steel industry in the 1970s, eroded much of the EL's traditional traffic base. Also, due to government regulation policy formulated in the late 19th Century, the EL and other railroads could not immediately abandon long-distance passenger runs, despite the fact that competition from airlines, bus lines and the private automobile made them unprofitable. A small variety of cars, the most popular kind of automobile. ... Steel framework Steel is a metal alloy whose major component is iron, with carbon being the primary alloying material. ... The United States Interstate Commerce Act of 1887, signed into law by President Grover Cleveland, created the Interstate Commerce Commission. ... A Boeing 747-400 of Virgin Atlantic Airways, one of the UKs largest airlines. ... The Bus, established by Mayor Frank Fasi, is Honolulus only public transit system. ... A small variety of cars, the most popular kind of automobile. ...

However, the EL did post profits in the mid and late sixties through heavy cost-cutting (reduction of parallel services), equipment modernization, suburban industrial development, increased piggyback trailer traffic, and steady reduction of long-distance passenger train service, which ended in early 1970. Also, additional rail traffic was temporarily diverted to the EL because of service problems on the troubled Penn Central lines, which the EL largely paralleled. The EL built a state of the art diesel engine repair facility in Marion, Ohio, and upgraded a large car repair shop in Meadville, Pennsylvania. As to its money-losing suburban passenger train services in the New York City metropolitan region, the EL had come to terms with the State of New Jersey during the late 1960s for adequate subsidy and for the purchase of new engines and coaches. The EL also gained a lucrative contract with United Parcel Service in 1970, which led to the operation of five dedicated intermodal trains daily between New Jersey and Chicago. Piggyback is normally referred to as the activity of riding on someones shoulders or back, the way a child might try to ride a pig on a farm for fun. ... The Penn Central Transportation Company, normally called Penn Central, was an American railroad company, headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and formed by the merger on February 1, 1968 of the Pennsylvania Railroad and the New York Central Railroad; the New Haven was added to the merger at the insistence of the... Marion is a city located in Marion County, Ohio. ... Meadville is a city located in Crawford County, Pennsylvania, USA. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 13,685. ... Midtown Manhattan, looking north from the Empire State Building, 2005 New York City (officially named the City of New York) is the most populous city in the United States, and is at the center of international finance, politics, communications, music, fashion, and culture. ... United Parcel Service, Inc. ... Intermodal is a term that refers to more than one mode of transport. ...

The EL was purchased by the Norfolk & Western Railroad through its holding company DERECO in 1968, as a condition of the proposed but never consummated merger between N&W and the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway system. At that time, the company changed its name to Erie Lackawanna Railway, whereby all common stock for the new company was held by N&W / DERECO. Norfolk and Western Railway (AAR reporting mark: NW), a US class 1 railroad, was formed by more than 200 railroad mergers between 1838 and 1982. ... The Chesapeake and Ohio Railway (C&O) was a Class I railroad formed in 1869 in Virginia from many smaller railroads begun in the 19th century. ... Common stock, also referred to as common shares, are, as the name implies, the most usual and commonly held form of stock in a corporation. ...

In 1972, Hurricane Agnes destroyed many miles of track and related assets, especially in southwestern New York State. The costs of repairs and the effect of lost revenues forced the company into bankruptcy. The completion of the Interstate 80 highway across Pennsylvania and New Jersey by 1971 added to the Erie Lackawanna's financial problems, as it diverted piggyback traffic previously garnered from "less than truckload" shipping companies such as Navajo and Cooper-Jarrett. 1972 was a leap year that started on a Saturday. ... Duration: June 14 - 25, 1972 Highest winds: 85 mph (140 km/h) Total damages (in USD): $10-12 billion (2005 dollars) Total fatalites: 122 direct Areas affected: Florida Panhandle, Georgia, North Carolina, Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New York Hurricane Agnes was a hurricane that occurred during the 1972 Atlantic hurricane season. ... Bankruptcy is a legally declared inability or impairment of ability of an individual or organization to pay their creditors. ... Interstate 80 as seen from an overpass in Davis, California Interstate 80 is the second-longest interstate highway in the United States. ...

After its 1972 bankruptcy, EL management attempted to plot an independent course, anticipating financial reorganization without a heavy debt burden. Therefore, it initially declined interest in joining the Consolidated Rail (Conrail) takeover of the other major bankrupt eastern lines. The preliminary (PSP) and final (FSP) system plans for Conrail showed the EL being merged into the Chessie System. However, the operating unions could not reach a compromise. Also, by 1975 the economy in the eastern United States was gravely affected by the 1973 oil crisis, quashing any hopes of the EL being able to independently compete with government-rehabilitated Conrail lines. Therefore, the EL petitioned and was accepted into Conrail at the last minute. Conrail, officially known as the Consolidated Rail Corporation, is an American railroad company. ... The Chessie System was a holding company that operated three American railroads, the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway (C&O), the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad (B&O), and the Western Maryland Railway (WM), from 1972 until 1987, when the B&O and C&O were merged into CSX Transportation. ... At the height of the crisis in the United States, drivers of vehicles with odd numbered license plates were allowed to purchase gasoline only on odd-numbered days of the month, while drivers with even-numbers were limited to even-numbered days. ...

In 1976 much of the company's railroad assets were thus purchased by the federal government and combined with other companies' railroad assets to form Conrail. An independent Erie Lackawanna Estate continued in existence for several years thereafter. This Estate liquidated the EL's marginal non-railroad assets and distributed the railroad purchase funds as to satisfy much of the large debt burden that the EL and its predecessors had accumulated. The EL's creditors gained more by selling the line's assets than by continuing its traditional business operations. Thus, the EL was an example of a business enterprise that became worth more dead than alive. 1976 is a leap year starting on Thursday (link will take you to calendar). ... Conrail, officially known as the Consolidated Rail Corporation, is an American railroad company. ... Debt is that which is owed. ... A creditor is a party (e. ...

In the east, much of the EL remains, as commuter railroad routes in New Jersey (see NJ Transit), and as freight lines in New York (north of the last still-active passenger station at Port Jervis), Pennsylvania, and Ohio. West of Youngstown, Ohio, however, the route is gone, having been abandoned and removed before 1980 in favor of parallel former Penn Central lines. State nickname: The Garden State Other U.S. States Capital Trenton Largest city Newark Governor Richard Codey (acting) Official languages None defined Area 22,608 km² (47th)  - Land 19,231 km²  - Water 3,378 km² (14. ... New Jersey Transit Arrow III at West Windsor, NJ Hudson-Bergen Light Rail vehicle at 2nd Street station New Jersey Transit (NJ Transit) is a statewide public transportation system serving the U.S. state of New Jersey. ... State nickname: Empire State Other U.S. States Capital Albany Largest city New York Governor George Pataki Official languages None Area 141,205 km² (27th)  - Land 122,409 km²  - Water 18,795 km² (13. ... Port Jervis is a city located in Orange County in the U.S. state of New York. ... State nickname: The Keystone State Other U.S. States Capital Harrisburg Largest city Philadelphia Governor Ed Rendell Official languages None Area 119,283 km² (33rd)  - Land 116,074 km²  - Water 3,208 km² (2. ... State nickname: The Buckeye State Other U.S. States Capital Columbus Largest city Columbus Governor Bob Taft Official languages None Area 116,096 km² (34th)  - Land 106,154 km²  - Water 10,044 km² (8. ... Youngstown is a city located in Mahoning and Trumbull counties in Ohio, on the Mahoning River, 67 miles southeast of Cleveland, Ohio. ... The Penn Central Transportation Company, normally called Penn Central, was an American railroad company, headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and formed by the merger on February 1, 1968 of the Pennsylvania Railroad and the New York Central Railroad; the New Haven was added to the merger at the insistence of the...

External links

• Erie Lackawanna Historical Society

References

• Grant, H. Roger. Erie Lackawanna: Death of an American Railroad. Stanford, CA: Stanford Univ. Press, 1994