Vermont Rail System Expands in New Hampshire

Vermont Rail System announced today that, pending state and federal regulatory approvals, it has entered into an agreement with New England Southern Railroad of Canterbury, NH, to purchase certain assets and operating rights in connection with railroad freight operations in New Hampshire. “VRS has a 55-year tradition of helping local businesses with efficient and reliable freight service,” said Selden Houghton, President, “and we are excited at this opportunity to grow and expand our business.”

VRS operates five shortlines –one in New York, and four in Vermont, along with their locomotive and car shop facility in North Walpole, NH. The late Jay Wulfson founded the Vermont Railway in 1964, the first of the five VRS shortlines. NES is a thirty-nine-year-old shortline founded by Peter Dearness and is located in the south-central part of NH, with the base of operations from Canterbury Yard, ten miles north of Concord. The acquisition is subject to NH Department of Transportation (DOT) approval, along with necessary Federal Surface Transportation Board (STB) filings, and a closing is anticipated for June 30, 2020.

NES freight operation over the State-owned White Mountain Branch, between Concord and Lincoln, will continue with no immediate changes in the service levels, but VRS will build on the development of new traffic that has been underway since late 2018. VRS, headed by CEO David Wulfson, has the depth and experience with the commodity base that Dearness has been pursuing. VRS congratulates Peter Dearness on a long and successful railroad career that started in 1975, and wishes him the best in his retirement.