Nittany and Bald Eagle Railroad

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Nittany and Bald Eagle Railroad

Reporting marks	NBER
Locale	Pennsylvania
Dates of operation	1984 – present
Track gauge	4 ft 8½ in (1435 mm) (standard gauge)
Headquarters	Northumberland, PA

The Nittany and Bald Eagle Railroad (AAR reporting mark NBER) is a short line that operates 70 miles of track in Blair, Centre, and Clinton counties in Pennsylvania in the United States. The line runs generally northeast between Tyrone (in Blair County) and Lock Haven (in Clinton County).

Other communities served include Port Matilda, Milesburg (both in Centre County), and Mill Hall (in Clinton County). There is a spur at Milesburg that runs southeast to Bellefonte, then splits, with a track going northeast to Pleasant Gap and another going southwest to Lemont and State College (all in Centre County). There are 5 miles of track in Blair County, 60 miles in Centre County, and 5 miles in Clinton County.

The rail line follows Bald Eagle Creek northeast in Centre and Clinton counties, and runs roughly parallel to U.S. Route 220 between Tyrone and Milesburg, and parallel to Pennsylvania Route 150 between Milesburg and Lock Haven. The spur to Bellefonte follows Pennsylvania Route 144 and the line from Lemont to Pleasant Gap follows Pennsylvania Route 26.

The corporate offices are located in Northumberland, Pennsylvania. There are connections to the Norfolk Southern Railway at both Tyrone and Lock Haven as well as an indirect connection to Canadian Pacific Railway.

1 North Shore Railroad System
2 History
3 Bellefonte Historical Railroad (BHRR)
4 Awards
5 See also
6 Reference
7 External links

[edit] North Shore Railroad System

The Nittany and Bald Eagle Railroad is part of the North Shore Railroad System, which includes the following short lines:

The first five railroads (those marked with an asterisk, *) are owned by SEDA-COG JRA (Susquehanna Economic Development Association - Council of Governments Joint Rail Authority) and operated under contract by Robey Railroads, a private company. The Nittany and Bald Eagle and the North Shore Railroads were the first two railroads owned by the SEDA-COG JRA. Robey Railroads also operates the other two railroads (UCIR and WCOR). As of 2006, there are plans by Robey to consolidate these seven lines as the Susquehanna Railroad Corporation, a non-operating holding company.

The system has trackage rights via the Norfolk Southern line. These allow the Nittany and Bald Eagle Railroad to connect via Lock Haven to the east and south with the Lycoming Valley Railroad at Muncy and the village of Linden (in Woodward Township, Lycoming County), the Union County Industrial Railroad (at Milton), the North Shore Railroad (at Northumberland), and the Shamokin Valley Railroad at Sunbury.

[edit] History

The line operated by the Nittany and Bald Eagle Railroad was formerly part the Pennsylvania Railroad, then the Penn Central, and then became part of Conrail. SEDA-COG JRA was formed in July, 1983 to continue to provide rail service to communities whose rail lines Conrail had decided to abandon. In 1984 the JRA took over the line when Conrail abandoned it, and the Nittany and Bald Eagle Railroad was born (along with the North Shore Railroad). In 1989, more track was purchased, extending the Nittany and Bald Eagle line to Lock Haven. The name of the railroad comes from Mount Nittany in Centre County and Bald Eagle Creek.

[edit] Bellefonte Historical Railroad (BHRR)

The Bellefonte Historical Railroad is a tourist/excursion railroad that also uses the line operated by the Nittany and Bald Eagle Railroad. Because Norfolk Southern also uses the line increasingly for coal and other traffic, the Bellefonte Historical Railroad "is thought to be the only volunteer operation in the country that runs in conjunction with a Class I railroad".^[1] Unfortunately this also hampers their ability to operate on the main line at times, as Class I traffic has the right of way.

The Bellefonte Historical Railroad generally runs from May to September, with special trips on holidays, and charters as arranged.

[edit] Awards

In 2003, the Nittany and Bald Eagle Railroad won the American Shortline & Regional Railroad Association (ASLRRA) 2003 marketing award.
In 2004, it was named "Short Line Railroad of the Year" by Railway Age magazine