Vermont Rail System Moves a Record Amount of Railcars

Jonathan Budzyna /

Accomplishments

Vermont Rail System Moves a Record Amount of Railcars

Jonathan Budzyna /

Accomplishments

Once again Vermont Rail System’s skilled employees have proven they are the best in the industry! In mid-February 2020, when one of our interchange partners suddenly needed assistance rerouting railcars traveling to and from eastern New England, our team stepped up on short notice and began safely and successfully handling a record amount of traffic over the VRS system. They approached the challenge with a “can do” attitude that saw everyone working together to devise and implement an operating plan that allowed our system to remain fluid by expediting the re-routed railcars over our railroad safely and efficiently. At the same time, the VRS team worked to ensure that our customers continued to receive the same level of prompt, personalized service that we offer each and every day.

Our ability to quickly handle the added traffic also highlighted the excellent physical condition of our state-owned rail lines. From our inception in 1964, we have placed great importance on maintaining Vermont’s rail infrastructure. In the late-2000’s the State of Vermont helped to remove one of the biggest choke points in Vermont’s rail network: the restriction limiting the height of railcars passing through the circa 1851 Bellows Falls Tunnel. At the same time, the Vermont Rail System began planning and implementing a comprehensive upgrade of our infrastructure that would allow us to handle accommodate the larger and heavier railcars that were moving over the national rail network. It was anticipated that these investments would pay big dividends in the future, allowing area businesses to better compete in the global marketplace while possibly removing up to 70,000 trucks a year from Vermont’s highways.

Fast-forward to today and that vision and investment have proven to be vital to New England’s transportation network. Because of the improvements, the rerouted traffic included not only general freight but trainloads of new automobiles in fully enclosed “autorack” railcars destined for southern New England. Our program of constant investment and upgrades has not only allowed the routes to better serve Vermont’s industries and economy but has allowed them to remain essential links in the transportation network of the region.

A detour train passes over the Cuttingsville Trestle on the way to Bellows Falls.
A unit train of autoracks heads upgrade through Ludlow while a VRS train waits to switch the local industry

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