Western Kentucky Railway
| Reporting mark | WKRL |
|---|---|
| Locale | Western Kentucky |
| Dates of operation | 1995– |
| Track gauge | 4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge |
| Headquarters | Sturgis, Kentucky |
The Western Kentucky Railway (reporting mark WKRL) is a shortline railroad in Kentucky, connecting coal mines with CSX Transportation at Providence. The lines were part of the Illinois Central Gulf Railroad until March 1982, when Costain Coal, Inc. bought the trackage and set up the Tradewater Railway (reporting mark TWRY) to operate it. In January 1995, the Rail Management and Consulting Corporation acquired the property and transferred it to the new Western Kentucky Railway.[1][2] Genesee & Wyoming Inc. acquired it from the Rail Management Corporation in 2005.
When created in 1995, the Western Kentucky Railway owned lines from Providence to a junction at Blackford, and from Blackford north to Waverly and south to the Paducah and Louisville Railway at Princeton.[1] Most of the north-south line, once the main line of the Ohio Valley Railway (an Illinois Central Railroad predecessor) was abandoned in 1995 and 1996, leaving only the piece between Blackford and Dekoven.[3][4] (The Fredonia Valley Railroad later acquired the section from Princeton to Fredonia.[5])
References
- 1 2 Edward A. Lewis, American Shortline Railway Guide, 5th Edition, Kalmbach Publishing, 1996, pp. 331-332
- ↑ Railroad Retirement Board, Employer Status Determination: Western Kentucky Railway, L.L.C., 1995
- ↑ STB Docket No. AB-449 (Sub-No. 1X), 1995
- ↑ STB Docket No. AB-449 (Sub-No. 2), 1996
- ↑ STB Finance Docket No. 33695, January 6, 1999