Sample PRR Freight Train Schedules. The following are schedules of a few of the more than 900 daily freight trains
the Pennsylvania Railroad had in operation on any given day during the 1959--60 period.Inaugural TrucTrain schedules to follow
in the Intermodal section:
Table 1. PYC1 Conway to Chicago,IL
West Conway
Lv 0700
Yellow Creek
Ps 0755
Canton(Fairhope)
Ar 1000
Canton(Stark)
Lv 1201
Crestline
Ar 1530
Crestline (West Yard) Lv 1630
Fort Wayne (Adams) Ar 2000
EST
Fort Wayne (Junction) Lv 2200 CST
Plymouth Lv
0015
Bart
Ps 0200
Chicago(59th Street) Ar 0500
CONNECTIONS PROTECTED
Conway: Trains SC5,CBF-2.GWC-1,NWC-1,BC5,ED59,ED3,AS11,WP5,CBF4,
ED43 previous day: also PC1,EC9 and GC5 of same day.
Canton: SC1,CC2,ED37, and CP23 of previous day,CW5 and TM1 of same day.
Fort Wayne: PYC1 same day; FW89,GR19,FW2,GR3,FW26,FW21, and RH4 the following day. Same day connections from: RH3,GR6,WC1,CFW1,FW1,GR20,GR4,
and PYC1 of same day.
Table2. CG8 THE ACE, Chicago to Greenville, NJ
Chicago 59th Street
Lv 2030 CST
Chicago (Dolton)
Lv 2210
Hartsdale Ps
2230
Logansport(Van)
Ar 0030
Logansport (Anoka)
Lv 0130
Bradford Ps
0420 CST
Columbus
Ar 0745 EST
East Columbus
Lv 0945 EST
Acre
Ps 1238
Esplen
Ps 1425
Pitcairn (WG)
AR 1500
Pitcairn (SZ)
Lv 1600
Altoona (Slope)
AR 1930
Altoona (Antis)
Lv 2030
Enola (Banks)
Ar 0030
Enola (Day)
Lv 0130
MA Ps
0515
Waverly AR
0630
Greenville
Ar 0700
Table 3. BF 4 The Bison, Buffalo,NY to Enola,PA
Buffalo Lv 0030
Olean Lv 0400
Renovo Ar 0900
Renovo Lv 1000
Rockville Ps 1500
Enola Ar 1530
Connections with other trains:
Olean: OB1,OFV1,OR4 same day
Renovo: BNY 16,BF4,SP2,WR2,W9
Table 4. BF14 THE CORNUCOPIA Buffalo to Enola.
Buffalo Lv
1201
Olean
Lv 1530
Renovo Ar 2030
Renovo Lv 2130
Lock Haven Ar 2230
Lock Haven Lv 2250
Watsontown Lv 0035
Northumberland Ar 0145
Northumberland Lv0230
Rockville Ps0400
Enola
Ar 0430
Table 5.CG-2 THE RELIABLE, Effner to Greenville,NJ
Effner
Lv 0830 ct
Logansport(Van) Ar 1100
Logansport(Anoka) Lv 1530
Bradford Ps
1820 CT
Columbus Ar
2145 ET
East Columbus Lv 2345
Acre Ps
0240
Esplen
Ps 0430
Pitcairn (WG) Ar 0510
Pitcairn (SZ) Lv 0610
Altoona (Slope) Ar 0940
Altoona (Antis) Lv 1040
Enola (Banks) Ar 1450
Enola (Day) Lv 1830
MA Ps
2315
Greenville Ar
0200
Note: Tonnage limits were applicable on this train as follows: 4000 tons, Logansport to Columbus and 3750 tons east of
Columbus. A number of other Pennsylvania Railroad freight trains may have had similar tonnage limitations as well. This was
to allow operation on somewhat expedited schedules as well as fit the train to the motive power available at the time.
BEGINNINGS OF PENNSY INTERMODAL SERVICE This service, referred to by the Pennsylvania Railroad as TrucTrain service,
had its beginnings on March 3,1955 with the inaugural runs of TT1 and TT2 on March 3,1955 from each terminal on the following
schedules:
TT1 Meadows, NJ to Chicago, IL
Meadows
Lv 2300
Waverly
Lv 2345
Holmes
Ps 0130
Frankfort Jct.
Lv 0200
Paoli
Ps 0300
Enola (Day)
Ar 0530
Enola (Banks) Lv
0630
Altoona (Antis) Ar
0930
Altoona (Slope Lv
1015
Pitcairn (WG) Ps
1325
East Liberty (CM) Ps
1345
Federal Street Ps
1415
Island Avenue Ar
1420
Island Avenue Lv 1440
Conway
Ar 1510
Conway
Lv 1555
Crestline
Ar 2000
Crestline
Lv 2045
Fort Wayne (Adams) Ar 2359
ET
Fort Wayne (Junction) Lv 2345
CT
Bart
Ps 0215
Chicago (55th Street) Ar 0300
Consist of train: Trailers for Chicago
MEADOWS: Closing hour for receipt of trailers from motor carriers: 10 pm
Dead Line for rail trailer to turn cars over to railroad: 10:30 pm . Makeup: Indiscriminate.
PHILADELPHIA(Frankford Jct.): Closing hour to receive trailers from motor carriers: 11:30 pm. Deadline for Rail-Trailer
to turn cars over to railroad: 12:01 am.
Pick Up as per consist
CHICAGO- Rail-Trailer able to start releasing tie downs and unloading 3:30 am.
Trailers available to motor carriers at Rail-Trailer terminal: 4:00 am.
Train TT2 Chicago to Meadows (Inaugural Schedule of March 3,1955)
Chicago (55th Street) Lv 2300
Bart
Ps 0010
Fort Wayne (Junction) Ar 0315 CT
Fort Wayne (Adams) Lv 0445
ET
Crestline
Ar 0735
Crestline
Lv 0805
Conway
Ar 1205
Conway
Lv 1250
Island Avenue
Ar 1320
Island Avenue
Lv 1340
Federal Street
Ps 1345
East Liberty (CM) Ps
1415
Pitcairn(SZ) Ps
1445
Altoona (Slope)
Ar 1800
Altoona (Antis)
Lv 1845
Enola (Banks)
Ar 2145
Enola (Day)
Lv 2245
Paoili
Ps0115
Frankford Jct.
Ar 0215
Holmes Ps
0245
Waverly
Ar 0430
Meadows
Ar 0500
Consist: Trailers for Philadelphia and Meadows
CHICAGO: Closing time for receipt of trailers from motor carriers: 10 PM
Deadline for Rail Trailer to turn cars over to railroad: 10:30 pm
Make up:
Block 1. Trailers for Philadelphia
Block 2. Trailers for Meadows
PHILADELPHIA (Frankford Jct.) Setoff Block 1. Rail Trailer able to start releasing tiedowns and unloading: 4:15
am. Trailers available to motor carriers at Rail Trailer Terminal: 4:45 am
MEADOWS: Rail-Trailer able to start releasing tie downs and unloading: 5:15 am.
Trailers available to motor carriers at Rail-Trailer Terminal: 5:45 am
And so began intermodal freight service on the Pennsylvania Railroad, which began with 200 specially designed flatcars,
each able to accommodate two loaded trailers and is 75 feet long, then the industry standard. These cars were designed for
end loading (circus style) and trailers were driven on and positioned two to a car according to that car's destination. These
trains operated on 29 hour schedules and launched what would become the Pennsy's fastest growing segment of the freight business.
This was also the beginning of the Trailer Train Company as we know it today. These two trains eventually grew into a family
of fast piggyback specials that came to serve 33 terminals throughout the Pennsylvania Railroad's system. When combined with
New York Central's Flexivan service in 1968, it became known as TrailVan Service by successor Penn Central.
FREIGHT TERMINALS AND FACILITIES
To support the service provided by these and other Pennsylvania Railroad freight trains, the railroad maintained major
freight classification yards at strategic points around the railroad, numerous freight agencies in many passenger depots,
freight houses in a number of key locations. Here are the major Pennsy classification yards and their car capacities:
1.Baview (Baltimore, 1400 cars a day
2.59th Street(Chicago),1200 cars a day
3.Enola (Harrisburg), 5000 cars
4.Conway (Pittsburgh),6000 cars
5.Rose Lake (St. Louis),600 cars
6.Waverly (Newark,NJ),900 cars
7.Buckeye (Columbus),2700 cars
8.Greenwich (Philadelphia), 600 cars
Of these Conway and Enola will be discussed in some detail as these were the two largest yards on the entire railroad.Conway
Yard, about 20 miles northwest of Pittsburgh,consisted of the following;Eastbound Yard: 11 track receiving yard, two track
hump with 18 electropneumatic retarders, accompanying a 54 track classification yard that could hold 3557 cars. In addition,
there was a 7 track repair yard that could accommodate 234 cars. The Westbound Yard consisted of an 11 track receiving yard,
two hump tracks, 14 electropneumatic retarders, a 53 track classification yard that could handle 3153 cars a day, a 16 track
relay yard and a 5 track local yard. This facility is still a major terminal used by Norfolk Southern Railway today. Certain
car blockings and classifications are done here that are not done at Enola Yard, some 258 miles to the east.
ENOLA YARD, 7 miles long, 125 miles of track, 476 switches make up this yard, which is really two yards in one, Westbound
receving has 16 tracks with 1721 car capacity, classification yard, 35 tracks, 3505 car capacity. Eastbound Yard: 15 receiving
tracks with 1983 car capacity, 34 track classification yard, 2199 car capacity, 5 relay tracks able to accommodate 589 cars,
5 pullout tracks of 169 car capacity, 103 other tracks 1ith 1875 car capacity. This was once billed by the Pennsylvania Railroad
as the largest classification yard in the world. The use of larger capacity freight cars may have change the capacity figures
considerably, but nevertheless, Enola Yard is still an important yard to the Norfolk Southern System. Both Conway and Enola
have complemented each other as to classification each has performed for the Pennsylvania Railroad and its successors.59TH
STREET YARD-CHICAGO. This yard handled classification for the Panhandle District of the Pennsylvania Railroad. In later years
it also handled classifications for other parts of the railroad as received from western connections at Chicago. 59th Street
Yard consisted of 101 tracks, an engine house and the hump operation averaged 4229 cars a day in 1947. Assisting 59th Street
Yard and handling other PRR sections was 55th Street Yard, consisting of 95 tracks able to handle 2319 cars a day. These consisted
of 18 eastbound receiving tracks (445 cars),16 eastbound classification tracks (383 cars), 8 westbound receiving tracks (302
cars), 18 westbound classification tracks(485 cars) and featured a hump operation in both directions. Supplementing both 59th
and 55th Street Yards was Colehour yard, a 38 track flatswitching yard able to handle 1743 cars a day and later, became primarily
an industrial support yard servicing Pennsy customers in the southeastern side of Chicago. In the Pittsburgh area, Pitcairn
Yard, located east of Pittsburgh, consisted of a 13 track eastbound receiving yard able to handle 865 cars a day, a 54 track
eastbound classification yard, able to handle 1700 cars a day,westbound receiving yard of 17 tracks capable of handling 1026
cars dailya, and a 36 track classification yard able to handle 1870 cars a day. As the industrial base in the Pittsburgh area
shrank, so did the need for Pitcairn as a classification yard, whose functions were later assumed by Conway Yard, about 22
miles to the northwest of Pittsburgh. Pitcairn has since been converted into an intermodal facility as has Chicago's 55th
STreet Yard. A few other facilities that supported the freight services of the Pennsylvania Railroad were Bayview Yard in
Baltimore,Maryland,Harsimus Cove in Jersey City,New Jersey, and Greenville Yard, also in New Jersey. Of these, Bayview Yard
consisted of the following:
4 southbound receiving tracks, 16 southbound classification tracks, 7 northbound receiving tracks, and 17 northbound
classification tracks. The southbound receiving yard could handle 400 cars a day, the classification750 cars a day while the
northbound receiving yard could handle 370 cars a day and the northbound classification yard, 850 cars a day. With the demise
of Potomac Yard in Alexandria,Virginia, the former PRR Bayview Yard has taken on added importance to Norfolk Southern as has
the ex B&O yard of the same name has for CSX.. In addition to these major classification yards around the railroad, the
Pennsylvania Railroad maintained 33 TrucTrain terminals for its piggyback services, which used railroad owned, motor carrier
-owned, and shipper owned trailers, depending on the service the shipper wanted to use for his goods. In addition, with door
to door pick up and delivery service, the Pennsylvania Railroad was able to offer the shipper a complete transportation
service taylored to his needs.
