lvrr325 wrote:Cheaper to keep a big expensive to maintain and operate drawbridge, so expensive NS abandoned theirs for rights on the parallel one?
You could create a bypass using what's left but it would require trains to run south down the Buffalo line, connect to the Gardenville line, then a south connector would have to be built either down to NS or down to CSX. The latter may be easier to build but would require rehabbing a bridge that hasn't been used since the 1980s. Plus it would require a connector back to NS for NS trains.
I'm not sure that PC didn't abandon the very east end of the Gardenville line.
Your opinions are based on 20/20 hindsight. It's important to remember that NS did not operate east of Buffalo in the '80s. Their local traffic base was rather small and the only other traffic was interchange with the D&H. Shutting down the NKP drawbridge and shifting to the BCK drawbridge made good sense at the time. It should also be noted that NS was very interested in acquiring Conrail back in the '80s, so dropping the NKP drawbridge would have eliminated duplicate physical plant. I would be highly surprised if NS brass (in the '80s) had even thought of the possibility they would eventually split CR with CSX.
Also, your alternative routing for NS would be an expensive capital expenditure. It also wouldn't resolve NS's bottleneck in Buffalo if they still had to run trains on CSX, even for a short distance. NS would keep their track to Tifft anyway because of the BSOR and B&P interchange there. IMO, it would make more sense to repair or replace the NKP drawbridge and enter into a joint operating agreement with CSX at CP Draw.