Alabama Railroad
The Alabama Railroad (reporting mark ALAB) is a class III railroad as reported by the Association of American Railroads. The ALAB is headquartered in Monroeville, Alabama and is owned and operated by Pioneer Railcorp of Peoria, Illinois. The railroad operates 48 miles (77 km) of railroad from Flomaton, Alabama to Peterman, Alabama.
 Former Chicago and North Western Railroad hopper car with Alabama Railroad reporting marks, seen here east of Florence, Kansas. | |
| Overview | |
|---|---|
| Headquarters | Monroeville, Alabama |
| Reporting mark | ALAB |
| Locale | Alabama |
| Dates of operation | 1991–2019 |
| Predecessor | CSX Transportation |
| Technical | |
| Track gauge | 4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) |
| Length | 48 miles (77 km) |
| Other | |
| Website | Official website |
On April 18, 2019, the railroad filed to abandon its entire line. [1]
History
The route of the Alabama Railroad was originally constructed over several years (between 1880–1901) as the Pensacola & Selma Railroad and quickly became a part of the Louisville & Nashville Railroad network. The original line proceeded north from Corduroy, Alabama, to Selma, Alabama. That portion of the line was abandoned by the Seaboard System prior to the merger with CSX in 1986. There was also a L&N branch that went to Camden from a junction just northeast of Corduroy that was abandoned prior to the merger into the Seaboard System in 1986. The remainder of the line north of Peterman, Alabama, was abandoned in approximately 1994 to include an 800+ foot tunnel built in 1899 located at Tunnel Springs, Alabama. The ALAB connects with CSX Transportation at Flomaton, Alabama. The railroad serves three industries located in Monroeville, Alabama, and stores railcars for other railroads. The ALAB serves Temple Inland with outbound shipments of particle board and veneer, a cement powder transload operated by Gate Precast, and Harrigan Lumber after its re-opening in 2010. The railroad operates three EMD GP20 locomotives on a bi-weekly basis. The Alabama Railroad had several bridges and trestles found to be deficient in late 2016, and subsequently the railroad has had an embargo placed on loaded freight cars. Many empty surplus oil tank cars have been placed into storage on the ALAB's tracks and the storage fees now compose much of the company's revenue. Tracks through the Tunnel Hill tunnel and northwards have been removed; a local plan exists to make the tunnel part of a rails-to-trails project.[2]
Route
The Alabama Railroad operates 48 miles (77 km) of railroad from Flomaton to Peterman.[3]
See also
References
- "ALABAMA RAILROAD CO.--ABANDONMENT EXEMPTION". Surface Transportation Board. April 18, 2019. Retrieved April 18, 2019.
- Trains magazine, February 2017.
- "2013 Alabama Rail Directory" (PDF). Alabama Department of Transportation. June 2014. Archived from the original (PDF) on 3 March 2015. Retrieved 3 March 2015.