Union Railroad (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania)

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Union Railroad
Logo
Reporting marks URR
Locale North Bessemer, Munhall, Homestead, McKeesport, West Mifflin, Clairton, Bessemer, Riverton
Dates of operation 1896–present
Track gauge 4 ft 8½ in (1435 mm) (standard gauge)
Headquarters Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

The Union Railroad (AAR reporting marks URR) is a Class III railroad located in Allegheny County in Western Pennsylvania. The company is owned by Transtar Inc. which is itself a subsidiary of USS Corp, more popularly known as United States Steel. The railroad's primary customers are the three plants of the USS Mon Valley Works, the USS Edgar Thomson Works (blast furnaces, basic oxygen steelmaking, and continuous slab casting), the USS Irvin Works (hot and cold rolling mills and finishing lines) and the USS Clairton Works (producer of coke for blast furnace ironmaking).

Contents

[edit] History

The Union was founded by Andrew Carnegie in 1896 along with the Bessemer & Lake Erie Railroad in order to deliver raw material to his steelmills in the Monongahela River valley. Prior to 1896, Carnegie's mill had only been served by the massive Pennsylvania Railroad which charged very high rates. After talks to lower the rates failed, Carnegie began building a rail network that promised to reach the markets of the East Coast so he wouldn't have to pay the PRR rates. Carnegie only completed rails to Lake Erie before the Pennsylvania agreed to lower rates fearing the possibility of another rail line between Pittsburgh and markets around New York. Once the new rate agreement had been reached, Carnegie no longer had an interest in building to the East Coast. He did however use the URR and BLE to transport iron ore and other materials from Lake Erie to his mills. Hopper cars, rather than specialized ore cars, were often used for this service. This allowed a northbound backhaul of non-metallurgical grade Pennsylvania coal to the Lake Erie port of Conneaught, Ohio.

[edit] Interchanges

[edit] Roster

The Union has operated a number of locomotives over the years. In steam days, the railroad was the only operator of 0-10-2 locomotives. The current roster is made up completely of second generation EMD Switcher Units. All but two units are painted in a single style.

Road Number Model
1-9 EMD SW1500
10-33 EMD MP15DC

[edit] Notes

The 0-10-2 wheel arrangement was named "Union" after the Union Railroad, the only railroad to purchase such locomotives.

[edit] References

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