Elmore Rail Yard to stay open 'for now'

[NS Newsfeed]

A spokesman for Norfolk Southern said recently that the Elmore rail yard in Wyoming County will remain open "for now."



Dave Pidgeon, manager of Public Relations for Norfolk Southern, said the rail line "from time to time" looked at travel plans and rerouted trains. The most recent plan will leave the Wyoming County facility open as usual, he said.



"They remain open and employment levels are to remain about the same," he said.



Pidgeon said 84 people are employed at Elmore.



He would not disclose which lines are being changed or any new routes because of "safety and security reasons."



Trains News Wire's Chase Gunnoe reported last week that declining coal traffic had caused the phase-out of the mainline between Elmore and Princeton, according to NS spokesperson Susan Terpay. Princeton customers will be served by the Kellysville connection; and coal trains will move in and out of Elmore via the Guyandotte Branch, Terpay told Gunnoe.



Gunnoe reported that all trains to and from Elmore will be routed via Gilbert.



According to the company's website, the Norfolk Southern Railway subsidiary operates approximately 20,000 route miles in 22 states and the District of Columbia, serves every major container port in the eastern United States and provides efficient connections to other rail carriers.