David E. Baer/photos by the author
Norfolk Southern has very few traditional branch lines in eastern Ohio and western Pennsylvania where a local operates daily to serve customers located along the line. In addition, NS has a very small number of branch lines which connect with a short line, providing the short line with its traffic. NS has a few short branch lines in the Sharon, Pa., area which are served by locals. NS’s Meadville Line extends east out of Sharon toward Meadville, providing a western connection with the Western New York & Pennsylvania Railroad.
In the Mingo Junction, Ohio/Weirton, W.Va., area, NS has a few traditional branch lines which are served by weekday-only locals. In addition, NS has a line which follows the west shore of the Ohio River and provides a connection to a short line. This feature will take a brief look at Norfolk Southern operations in the Mingo Junction area and examine operations on the branch line along the Ohio River, and at the short line with which it connects.
ABOVE: Ohio Route 7 closely parallels Norfolk Southern River Line the entire distance between Mingo Junction and Hannibal, Ohio. In Martins Ferry, Ohio, a pedestrian footbridge crosses over Route 7 and the River Line, providing access to Martin Ferry’s Purple Rider football stadium. Westbound C19 approaches the footbridge as it rolls along Route 7, also known as Ohio River Scenic Byway, at 11:15 a.m. Center Street in Martins Ferry crosses the River Line at grade in the distance, providing easy access to the footbridge.
NS in the Mingo Junction Area
The center point of NS operations in the Mingo Junction area is at Mingo Yard, in Mingo Junction, Ohio. Mingo Yard is situated between milepost 20.0 and milepost 23.6 on NS’s River Line, which extends from milepost 0 at Yellow Creek to milepost 58.5 in Powhatan Point, Ohio.
At Mingo Yard, NS interchanges with the Ohio Central, which operates the former PRR Columbus to Pittsburgh Main Line between Columbus and Mingo Junction. Ohio Central runs a local into Mingo Yard twice a week. In addition, NS and the Ohio Central interchange the Apex trash trains at Mingo. These trains run from the east coast to the landfill at Apex, Ohio, along the Ohio Central. The Apex trains run as NS 63V loaded and 62V empty, and are interchanged to the Ohio Central just west of Mingo Junction, on the former Columbus to Pittsburgh Main line, which NS calls the Weirton Secondary. For the last year or more, NS power has been operating west out of Mingo with Ohio Central crews, on the Apex trash trains.
East of Mingo Junction, NS operates the remainder of the Columbus to Pittsburgh Main Line as the Weirton Secondary, between Mingo Junction, Ohio, and Weirton, W.Va. In Weirton, NS has two industrial tracks which follow the Ohio River. To the south is the Wells Industrial, which runs west out of Weirton into Wellsville, West Virginia. East out of Weirton is the Newell Industrial, which follows the Ohio River east to Newell, W.Va., the location of an oil refinery.
ABOVE: Ohio Route 7 through Clarington, Ohio, expands to four lanes as it passes through the small town along the Ohio River. Just west of town, the highway narrows to two lanes as the road and the railroad share a narrow right-of-way along the Ohio River. With Clarington, Ohio, in the background, the Katahdin Rail Service westbound passes the highway road sign for Clarington at 4:03 p.m. with CBFX 4003 and CITX 3082 leading 52 cars. While the speed limit for the highway is 50 MPH, the speed for the railroad is limited to 10 MPH.
Both West Virginia industrial tracks are served by weekday locals, with C16 operating in the afternoon out of Mingo Yard to Newell. On the return to Mingo Yard from Newell, the train becomes C14. NS C17 normally pairs with Weirton local C13, combining trains between Mingo and Weirton, where the crews separate, with C13 serving Weirton while C17 heads toward Follansbee. All three of these locals can be followed during the day, while they work in various industries in the Mingo Junction/Weirton areas.
Mingo Yard is connected to Conway Yard, west of Pittsburgh, with a pair of locals. Eastbound C54 operates from Mingo to Conway, using the River Line east to Yellow Creek, then the Cleveland Line to Rochester, just west of Conway. Westbound local C65 runs from Conway to Mingo. C54 normally departs Mingo Yard in the morning hours, returning to Mingo in the afternoon. Mingo Yard is controlled by NS’s Canton Yard in Canton, Ohio…