While driving through the RBMN territory in the Keyser Valley section of Scranton today, I saw thousands of decrepit ties being replaced by the railroad. I have no photos, and no info on why this is being done. I hope this investment brings new business to the area. It is a shame that this Erie Lackawanna area was so torn up in the last few years of Conrail operation, but these are the breaks given to us.
A quick survey of the RBMN web page shows nothing about rail improvement to the Scranton area. Is a new customer coming in, or are the tracks just due for this level of repair?

mustang746@mac.com

Tim's right... there used to be a lot more back there. The Keyser Valley was filled with collieries and the DL&W's Keyser Valley yard and shops. Some of the shop buildings remain in mixed use, and there are other traces of the past if you risk the ticks and go shrub jumping.

The RRMofPA photo collection has a great series of images of the DL&W and the NYO&W in the valley, including a great set of shots of the overhead trolley "hump rider" used by the DL&W.

There where few valleys like Keyser in the USA for the amount of rail and industrail action jammed into a small area. If you made a model railroad of it in the heyday, your friends would call you a "spagehetti bowl" track planner!

Rob Davis

> While driving through the RBMN territory in
> the Keyser Valley section of Scranton today,
> I saw thousands of decrepit ties being
> replaced by the railroad. I have no photos,
> and no info on why this is being done. I
> hope this investment brings new business to
> the area. It is a shame that this Erie
> Lackawanna area was so torn up in the last
> few years of Conrail operation, but these
> are the breaks given to us.
> A quick survey of the RBMN web page shows
> nothing about rail improvement to the
> Scranton area. Is a new customer coming in,
> or are the tracks just due for this level of
> repair?


trains@robertjohndavis.com

> While driving through the RBMN territory in
> the Keyser Valley section of Scranton today,
> I saw thousands of decrepit ties being
> replaced by the railroad.
> Is a new customer coming in, or are the tracks
> just due for this level of repair?

The R&N got the Keyser Valley Branch with the purchase of the Lehigh Line in 1996. Business has been steady and improving on this line.
The track-work is long over-due, but there were always more important areas needing to be fixed first.
The priority list is based on how many trains and their size, and how many customers, on a given branch or segment.(in other words: how hard does it get hammered)
That's the short version.
SG