Maryland and Delaware Railroad

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Maryland and Delaware Railroad

Reporting marks	MDDE
Locale	Delaware and eastern Maryland
Dates of operation	1977–present
Track gauge	4 ft 8½ in (1435 mm) (standard gauge)
Headquarters	Federalsburg, Maryland

A Maryland & Delaware Railroad Tyson Foods unit train in Showell, Maryland on the Snow Hill Line

The Maryland and Delaware Railroad (AAR reporting marks MDDE) was formed in 1977 to operate several former Penn Central Railroad lines in both Maryland and Delaware. The railroad did not actually own any of its own track until 2000 when it acquired a line between Frankford, Delaware, and Snow Hill, Maryland, from the Snow Hill Shippers Association. Today, the railroad operates about 120 miles of track through contracts and operates out of a restored station in Federalsburg, Maryland.

[edit] Lines Operated

The Maryland and Delaware Railroad operates three distinct segments of track throughout the Delmarva Peninsula. All three segments interchange with the Norfolk Southern Railway.

The Northern Lines interchanges with Norfolk Southern in Townsend, Delaware and heads west to Massey, Maryland, where the line splits into two branches destined for Chestertown, Maryland and Centreville, Maryland.
The Seaford Line interchanges with Norfolk Southern in Seaford, Delaware and continues west to Cambridge, Maryland, passing through Federalsburg, Maryland and Hurlock, Maryland.
The Snow Hill Line interchanges with Norfolk Southern in Frankford, Delaware and continues south to Snow Hill, Maryland.