Montpelier Junction – Williamstown railway line

Montpelier Junction VT– Williamstown VT
Society:	WACR
Route length:	24 km
Gauge :	1435 mm ( standard gauge )
Legend from Burlington 0.0 Montpelier-Barre VT ( Amtrak stop) to Windsor (Montpelier Junction) Dog River Interstate 89 2 Montpelier VT (until 1875) Winooski River 2.3 Montpelier VT (CV train station) Winooski River (North Branch) Montpelier VT (M & WR train station) to Wells River Winooski River Montpelier – Barre tram Winooski River Connection to the Montpelier – Wells River route Winooski River Connection to the Barre Transfer – Barre line Stevens Branch River Montpelier – Barre tram Barre Junction (CV) Stevens Branch River from Barre Transfer 12.9 0.0 Barre VT to Graniteville Stevens Branch River 7.2 South Barre VT Stevens Branch River 14.0 Williamstown VT

The railway Montpelier Junction Williamstown is a railway line in Vermont ( United States ). It is 15 miles long and connects the cities of Montpelier , Barre and Williamstown . The line is only in operation between Montpelier Junction and a point north of Barre and belongs to the Washington County Railroad , which operates the freight traffic. Passenger traffic is stopped.

history

Construction of the first section

When the Vermont Central Railroad determined the route of its main route from the Connecticut River to Lake Champlain in the mid-1840s , it was decided to connect the city of Northfield , which was the hometown of the owner of the railway company, and against the direct connection to the capital of the state, Montpelier . However, from a point west of the city, at the confluence of the Dog River and Winooski River , where the route was to run, plans were made to build a two-kilometer branch line to Montpelier, where the trains going through had to make head. The line was connected to the main line with a triangular track and went into operation on June 20, 1849. The train station in Montpelier was initially on the south bank of the Winooski River, far from the city center. After just a few years, the trains running through on the main line were no longer routed via Montpelier, but a passenger station was set up in Montpelier Junction, where they had to transfer to a shuttle train, which ran after all trains on the main line.

Extension to Barre

The Montpelier and White River Railroad was founded in the early 1870s to connect Montpelier with the White River valley near Royalton and thus still direct the main line traffic through the city of Montpelier and at the same time connect the city of Barre to the rail network. In 1873 the Montpelier and Wells River Railroad opened its Montpelier – Wells River line . The station of this company was in the city center, which was crossed by the line. Montpelier & White River built a terminus west of the Wells River train station, but agreed with Montpelier & Wells River to share their line from the terminus to a point east of the city where their own line to Barre should branch off. The Central Vermont Railroad (CV), which emerged from Vermont Central, now wanted to establish a track connection to these routes. For reasons of space, a common train station was out of the question. The line to Barre was opened in 1875, at the same time the connection line from the previous terminus of Central Vermont went into operation. The CV leased Montpelier & White River and ran the business. The trains ran from Montpelier Junction to Barre.

Extension to Williamstown

The further extension turned out to be difficult for topographical and cost reasons. The terrain south of Barre rises steeply and in order to be able to do without switchbacks or tight curves, one had to pass Barre westward. The route was therefore not extended from Barre station, but from a junction west of the city, Barre Junction. In 1888 the section to Williamstown went into operation. The trains to Williamstown drove backwards out of Barre station to the junction so that they could then enter the line forwards. The construction of a triangular track had been discarded. The construction to Royalton did not take place, however, because the financial situation of the railway company no longer allowed the construction.

Further development

In 1889, Montpelier & Wells River had opened its own line to Barre, which ran parallel to and within sight of the CV line. In 1898 the Montpelier – Barre tram was added, which also mostly followed the highway within sight of the two railway lines. However, the CV trains were the only connection to the CV Main Line, where express trains departed to New York, Boston and Montréal. As a result, passenger traffic on the CV route was brisk. This was also the reason why passenger traffic on the Montpelier & Wells River route was stopped in 1928. The tram had already been shut down the year before. In the meantime, however, public buses have been introduced that drove to Montpelier Junction. This led to the cessation of passenger traffic on the railway line in 1938. Freight traffic between South Barre and Williamstown was sparse and ended in 1939, after which this section was closed.

In 1950 the railway company also closed the line from Barre Junction to South Barre. The parallel railway line had meanwhile been taken over by the Montpelier and Barre Railroad , which in 1957 also bought the CV railway line from Montpelier Junction to Barre. Connecting tracks were immediately installed at the Gleisdreieck Barre Transfer of Montpelier & Barre and north of Barre. From 1958 the trains ran from Montpelier to this point north of Barre near today's Vermont Shopping Center only the former CV route, from there to Barre they drove over the Montpelier & Barre route. The parallel tracks were shut down.

In 1980 Montpelier & Barre ceased operations and applied for the line to be closed. However, the state was interested in a rail link to its capital and bought the line without further ado. She was leased to the Washington County Railroad , which resumed freight traffic on November 17, 1981. When the locomotive shed in Montpelier burned down on June 28, 1998, along with the company's two locomotives, as well as service vehicles and maintenance facilities, the railway company had to cease operations. First of all, from February 2, 1999, CV's successor, New England Central Railroad, took over operational management of the line, but handed it over to the state on September 8. The Vermont Railway now temporarily took over the management, but subsequently bought the Washington County Railroad, which then got new equipment and was able to operate the route again from 2000 onwards.

business

The timetable of October 19, 1913 provided for eight pairs of trains between Montpelier and Barre on weekdays and six pairs of trains on Sundays. There were also three weekday trains to Williamstown. All trains ran to and from Montpelier Junction on the CV main line and were connected to trains on the main line. The travel time between Montpelier and Williamstown was around 45 to 60 minutes.

According to the timetable of September 24, 1933, as in 1913, there were eight pairs of trains between Montpelier and Barre on weekdays and six on Sundays, but only one pair of trains went to Williamstown on weekdays. A longer stay in Barre had increased the total travel time from Montpelier to Williamstown to 70 minutes, in the other direction the train even took 85 minutes.

Route description

The line begins in the Montpelier Junction triangle, where it branches off from the Windsor – Burlington railway line. It initially leads eastwards parallel to the Winooski River. Shortly before Montpelier, where the Montpelier High School is now, was the terminus of the line until 1875. In October 1899 the area was used again briefly. As part of a celebration for George Dewey , to which thousands of visitors from all directions flocked to Montpelier on special trains, Central Vermont built a temporary twelve-track staging area for passenger cars and locomotives. The railway line crosses the Winooski River for the first time and passes through the center of Montpelier. The Central Vermont and Montpelier & Wells River stations were west and east of the bridge over the North Branch River, respectively. The bridge itself belonged to the Montpelier & Wells River. The track apron of this company's train station began at the western bridgehead so that two covered wooden bridges were built here. Today both stations are built over and the line runs single-track through the city. The two wooden bridges have given way to a simple steel girder bridge.

The route now continues on the northern bank of the Winooski. East of the Granite Street level crossing, the main line of the Montpelier & Wells River branched off towards the Wells River. It remains on the north bank of the river while the route towards Williamstown crosses the river and continues a short distance on the south bank before crossing the river again. The route turns south directly onto this bridge. A rail link to the former Montpelier & Wells River route now connects an industrial area.

The route crosses the Winooski again and now runs parallel to the Stevens Branch River . At the level of today's Vermont Shopping Center there is another connecting track to the Montpelier & Wells River route. From here the route to Williamstown is closed. The following bridge over the Stevens Branch now carries a footpath. The railway line continues parallel to the Stevens Branch and after a few hundred meters meets State Road 62, which was built from here as a multi-lane expressway on the former railway line to Barre.

From the junction at Barre Junction, the route of the railway line continues southwards. Some sections of the route were built over after the closure. From the former level crossing on Fairview Street, there is now a cycle path on the route. This ends at Bridge Street, the railway line crossed the Stevens Branch again over a bridge that was no longer there. After the bridge to shortly before the terminus in Williamstown, the railway line through State Road 14 is occupied today. In Williamstown, only Depot Street (Bahnhofstrasse) is reminiscent of the railway.

Sources and further information

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Mike Walker: Comprehensive Railroad Atlas of North America. New England & Maritime Canada. SPV-Verlag, Dunkirk (GB), 2010.
2. ↑ Official Guide of the Railways, July 1932. Pages 1187f.
3. ↑ Official Guide of the Railways and Steam Navigation Lines of the United States, Porto Rico, Canada, Mexico and Cuba. Issued November 1913. Central Vermont Railway, Table 70/75. Page 104f.
4. ↑ Official Guide of the Railways and Steam Navigation Lines of the United States, Porto Rico, Canada, Mexico and Cuba. Issued February 1934. Central Vermont Railway, Table 1/8. Page 1078f.
5. ^ Jones 1993, p. 96.