Last Train to Youngstown - The Final Conrail Commuter Train
HTML-код
- Опубликовано: 17 окт 2024
- Unless you were around to see it, you’d never know today. But in the West Commerce Street Parking lot in downtown Youngstown, once ran the Chicago to New York Mainline of the Erie, later Erie Lackawanna, Railroad and 40 years ago this January, the last passenger train pulled into Youngstown's Erie Terminal.
The Youngstown Vindicator headline on January 15, 1977 read, “Cleveland Commuter Train Dies with Fanfare - Last Passenger Train for City.” The train would depart Erie Terminal in Youngstown at 5:50am, and stop at stations in Niles, Warren, Hiram, Geauga Lake, Solon, and a few others, before pulling into Cleveland Union Terminal at 7:40am. Crews would then spin the train, and get ready for a 5:20pm departure. After another hour and 50-minute trip, stopping at the same stations, it would arrive back in Youngstown at 7:10pm, and the process would begin to ready the train for the next morning’s trip.
Despite the creation of Amtrak in 1971, which would take over passenger rail operations in the United States, even up to the end, this particular train was run by a freight railroad. Once Erie Lackawanna merged to create Conrail in 1976, the ticking time clock on the train only accelerated. As the Ohio turnpike became more popular, ridership on the commuter train declined significantly. After roughly 90 years of operation, beginning when passenger trains were the elite travel service, train 28 and its counterpart 29, ran out of federal funds and Ohio declined to subsidize the money losing service. The two were Ohio’s last two commuter trains, and the last of the several hundred daily passenger trains that once served Youngstown. Conrail, and even Erie Lackawanna, had tried to drop them - and the money losses for years, and finally got their wish on January 14, 1977.
Tom Diacen, a long time railfan from Austintown, rode the train in 1974 next to the engineer from Youngstown to Cleveland and back. Less than three years later, he returned to Erie Terminal on January 14 with his silent film camera to capture the train departing in the morning and returning in the evening one last time.
Despite Amtrak servicing Youngstown from November 12, 1990 to September 10, 1995 with the Broadway Limited, and then May 16, 1997 to March 7, 2005 with the Three Rivers, Youngstown has once again been formally erased from the list of cities with passenger rail service.
Erie Terminal thrives today, housing a brewery, art gallery, a cookie shop, and apartments, a long cry from what it was built for. Sure, trains still run through Youngstown, however, none that stop to pick up passengers, and none that stop to bring travelers to the city.
It sucks this doesn't exist anymore we seriously need a train between Cincinnati Cleveland and Columbus and east to west from youngstown to Dayton
I went college in Lorain County, west of Cleveland, 30 years after this train stopped.
I remember one day when I was in either Lorain or Elyria I noticed a traffic light being removed. That was something I'd never even imagined in the booming part of the Bible Belt where I grew up.
Nice piece. I grew up in Warren in the 70's and 80's. The commuter train ran a block from my house. The loss of passenger rail was unfortunate. The decline of railroading in general in the Mahoning valley is staggering. There are generations of people who have no idea what used to be in that area.
Thank you!
Thank you for the nice piece on the Erie Lackawanna commuter train that ran from Youngstown to Cleveland and back until 1977. I remember hearing about that last train arriving at Union Terminal (now Tower City Center), and found it sad that an era of travel in America had ended, especially the commuter trains that took people into Cleveland from other parts of Northeast Ohio. Things will never be the same as before. It's a memory and conversation piece, now.
YOU DID AN EXCELLENT JOB ON THIS VIDEO!!!
Thank you!
I was on the last run of the Erie Commuter that cold January day 40 years ago. So was the late Dave McKay and a lot of other fans from the Akron/Cleveland area. They organized a night-shot photo line of the train at the Youngstown depot after the train arrived there. It was the engineer's final run before retirement. It was a very full train. Not only was it possible up to then to take a train from Cleveland to Youngstown, but myself and two other Akronites took the "Hound" from Akron to Cleveland to catch the train, and then from Y'Town back to Akron after the train ride. Can't do that very easily anymore either.
Paul W. Woodring how frequent was the service
Not sure, probably at least 4 or 5 trips per day, for the bus that is.
Very cool that you were on this last trip!
🎉yes I was on last train from from Cleveland to Youngstown...was postal worker back and mail was still coming in by train... anyway I rode in locomotive.... never forget it...oh also work with old railroad postal employees too
Excellent video and reporting here. Definitely, deserves more views! Just recently finished a video on the decline of passenger trains in the US and it's always sad to see what happened to our once great railroads. Hopefully our generation figures out the truth soon and the need for passenger rails. America's rails can not be stolen again!
Thank you!
What is truly sad is that current Amtrak speed limitations on existing to routes, cooperation between host railroads and amtrak, and truthfully projected average speeds & times offer little hope that people would consider rail service for daily or regular commutes. The study of the proposed Cincinnati, Dayton, Columbus, and Cleveland 'high speed rail' route, once truthfully weighed, disclosed that the real true average speed would be 39 mph to 41 mph-- with the best of traffic and cooperation circumstances. Fine for a leisurely sightseeing trip, but who, other than a politician, has that kind of travel schedule to play with in today's go with the flow of traffic (80+) interstate society?
I always wanted to know the history of my town and railroads. It's very welled documented until the 1920's then it becomes shady, we have a train station in town that was torn down. No one knows when service stopped, what service was there, and when the station was town down. There's not much documentation of my train station between 1920-? I love how you investigate and are motivated to learn about your towns railroad history. I really want to know about my towns too
Sad to see that happen maybe they can bring it back again 👍
Conrail used the line to Mantua were there was a facility but then the tracks were abandoned in the late 90s. The tracks heading to Youngstown were taken out and a path was made over the old tracks there is tracks from Cleveland to Mantua. And there are still industries that have rail access in Solon but the roads are paid over the tracks and the signals have been taken down. Norfolk southern owned the line after Conrail and handed it over to Cleveland Commercial Railroad. They now have ownership over the track and are responsible for the industry’s remaining on the line.
Some of that equipment winded up here in Chicago running on the “Valpo Dummy” under Conrail then was turned over to Amtrak in the early 1980’s !!!
Good video!
This is sad to see this commuter line go.
So what was the reason why we couldn't keep the train and improve it to go to more areas?
Money or politics or both?
"Spin the train?" How 'bout 'turn the train' !
Rail removal began almost immediately after the last train pulled out of the station. Conrail was not wasting any time on getting rid of rail routes.
FASTEST SNOWMOBILE ROUTE BETWEEN NEW YORK AND CHICAGO!
WE WON
THOSE TRAINS ARE OURS
This a pretty interesting story
Strange, I boarded an Amtrak at the B&O station in the 90s.
Did you watch the whole video?
@@OhioRails I had not. Nice to see the Model RR club represented too.
I wish it wouldnt have closed i lived in aurora when it ran to carlon plastic in Mantua
Its too bad. The rails are 1.5 miles from my house. There still are rails there.
Bob Nevin I have a spike from one of the rails in my room
This was very sad
Didnt the Capital Limited stop at Youngstown for awhile before they had it go to Alliance Ohio?
While you are correct that the Capitol Limited briefly ran through Youngstown, I do not believe it stopped in Youngstown. If I remember correctly, the station in Youngstown was not refurbished to allow a passenger stop until the Broadway ran this route.
@@OhioRails ah ok thanks I live near Conway PA and all I remembered was that it used to take the Youngstown Line
Sad to see the 825 defaced with those CR markings!
anyone notice 4014?
Youngstown, Crime Town U.S.A.
So sad to see.
I grew up in Youngstown. Left in 1981.
Song name?
It says in the video
So trains there only ran once a day
No, along with the commuter trains there were a handful of freights to use the line, but those to have met their end
Can tell you hat happened to the railroad. But it wouldn't be P.C.
Duh, it's game over for Youngstown and hundreds of other towns .
The most interesting part of this video is 3:10 where the newspaper states 110 million eligible voters didn't vote. Was this the first time the term "silent majority" was used in such a context. The death of cities coincides with the death of railroads. Interstate highways killed cities.
So why were there 110 million non-voters? While cities were dying, they must have felt neither party represented them. Had there been a candidate like Bernie Sanders at the time, the "silent majority" would have had more incentive to vote.
No. This isn't Bernie country, now or then.
@@F40PH-2CAT How would you characterize the politics of non-voters?
Couldn't watch it all the way through.....kids voice was way too annoying.