Trains News Wire
East Broad Top starts rebuilding track south of Rockhill FurnaceDormant since 1956, segment is first step in reopening rugged main line
Work has begun to rebuild East Broad Top’s long-dormant main line between Rockhill Furnace and Pogue, Pa. Dan Cupper
ROCKHILL FURNACE, Pa. — A track crew began restoring East Broad Top Railroad’s main line south of here this week, a first step toward reopening the narrow-gauge steam tourist line’s 20-mile route to Robertsdale, Pa., a former mountain mining center that produced the semi-bituminous coal that was EBT’s revenue-freight lifeblood for more than 80 years.
About three dozen people gathered for informal remarks at the State Route 475 rural grade crossing about a mile south of EBT’s headquarters, yard, and shop complex. They represented a combination of EBT Foundation, Inc., employees and volunteer track-crew members of the Friends of the East Broad Top Railroad, a nonprofit auxiliary group that counts 2,100 members.
“This is a big deal,” said Brad Esposito, EBT general manager. “It’s a big deal for East Broad Top, a big deal for the Friends, and a big deal for the community. This is not happening anywhere else in the U.S., bringing a monster back to life.”
