Indiana Railroad to file for discontinuance of overhead trackage rights

[Thomas Pinnick]

Today's Bedford Times-Mail has a legal notice that the Indiana Railroad will file a notice of discontinuation of overhead trackage rights on the Monon railroad between Bedford and New Albany (MP 317.7). This will be filed on April 10th. Docket no. AB-295 (Sub no. 9X).

[Jim Osborne]

What I read is that INRD inherited the Milwaukee Road's rights from the merger, but this is all basically a legal formality since CSX apparently has majority ownership of INRD and has been pushing abandonment of the line for a long time. This is more or less just clearing the final hurdle. Am I correct in that summation?

[Thomas Pinnick]

Another person posted on the INDIANA BULL SESSION that it has been 7 years and 1 month since CSX filed a notice with the STB about "overhead trackage rights". 7 years is a key time for abandonment. I don't know if this will affect the Mitchell to Bedford section, but the Port Authority has not been able to get a grant to purchase the line.

[Robert Gibson]

Isn't the bridge out south of Bedfored?

[Thomas Pinnick]

Isn't the bridge out south of Bedfored?

Yes - the fire damaged the south end structure. I think I posted a photo of it.

[Mark Johnson]

The overhead rights are sort of moot anyway, given that the MILW/SOO/INRD connection from Crane to Bedford is long gone. Even 'full-service' trackage rights would have given access to very little business - sadly, CSX and changing times have managed to chase away almost everything from Bedford to New Albany. The grain elevators at Mitchell, Orleans, Salem, and Pekin are either out of business or long gone to trucks - and much of the other manufacturing at Orleans and Salem as well.

Mark J
Columbia MO
Leipsic track-watcher from the 1960s