Cincinnati, New Orleans and Texas Pacific Railway
Encyclopedia
The Cincinnati, New Orleans and Texas Pacific Railway (CNO&TP) is a railroad that runs from Cincinnati, Ohio
Cincinnati, Ohio
Cincinnati is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio. Cincinnati is the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located to north of the Ohio River at the Ohio-Kentucky border, near Indiana. The population within city limits is 296,943 according to the 2010 census, making it Ohio's...

, south to Chattanooga, Tennessee
Chattanooga, Tennessee
Chattanooga is the fourth-largest city in the US state of Tennessee , with a population of 169,887. It is the seat of Hamilton County...

, forming part of the Norfolk Southern Railway
Norfolk Southern Railway
The Norfolk Southern Railway is a Class I railroad in the United States, owned by the Norfolk Southern Corporation. With headquarters in Norfolk, Virginia, the company operates 21,500 route miles in 22 eastern states, the District of Columbia and the province of Ontario, Canada...

 system. The rail line that it operates, the Cincinnati Southern Railway, is owned by the City of Cincinnati and is leased to the CNO&TP under a long-term agreement. It is the only such long-distance railway owned by a municipality in the United States. The CNO&TP's lease of the Cincinnati Southern Railway is currently set to expire in 2026, with an option for a 25 year renewal. The agreement is governed by the Trustees of the Cincinnati Southern Railway, who are appointed by the Mayor of the City of Cincinnati.

The construction of the railway was spurred by a shift of Ohio River
Ohio River
The Ohio River is the largest tributary, by volume, of the Mississippi River. At the confluence, the Ohio is even bigger than the Mississippi and, thus, is hydrologically the main stream of the whole river system, including the Allegheny River further upstream...

 shipping, at the time an important economic engine in Cincinnati, to the nascent railroad industry. Fearful of losing further shipping traffic (and its commensurate employment and tax revenue), the City recognized the need to remain competitive by developing its own railroad infrastructure. Forbidden by the Ohio Constitution from forming a partnership with a stock corporation in such an endeavor, the City took upon itself the building of the railway, and city voters approved $10 million in municipal bonds
Municipal bond
A municipal bond is a bond issued by a city or other local government, or their agencies. Potential issuers of municipal bonds includes cities, counties, redevelopment agencies, special-purpose districts, school districts, public utility districts, publicly owned airports and seaports, and any...

 in 1869 to begin construction.

Originally built to broad gauge
Broad gauge
Broad-gauge railways use a track gauge greater than the standard gauge of .- List :For list see: List of broad gauges, by gauge and country- History :...

, the line was converted to standard gauge
Standard gauge
The standard gauge is a widely-used track gauge . Approximately 60% of the world's existing railway lines are built to this gauge...

, , in 13 hours in 1886.

The CNO&TP is separated into three districts. The First District is between Cincinnati, Ohio
Cincinnati, Ohio
Cincinnati is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio. Cincinnati is the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located to north of the Ohio River at the Ohio-Kentucky border, near Indiana. The population within city limits is 296,943 according to the 2010 census, making it Ohio's...

, and Danville, Kentucky
Danville, Kentucky
Danville is a city in and the county seat of Boyle County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 16,218 at the 2010 census.Danville is the principal city of the Danville Micropolitan Statistical Area, which includes all of Boyle and Lincoln counties....

. The Second District runs between Danville and Oakdale, Tennessee
Oakdale, Tennessee
Oakdale is a town located along the Emory River in Morgan County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 244 at the 2000 census.-History:For much of the 19th century, Oakdale was known as "Honeycutt," after a pioneer family who settled in the area...

, while the Third District is from Oakdale to Chattanooga
Chattanooga, Tennessee
Chattanooga is the fourth-largest city in the US state of Tennessee , with a population of 169,887. It is the seat of Hamilton County...

. The Second District is commonly called the "Rathole" due the steep grades, 27 tunnel
Tunnel
A tunnel is an underground passageway, completely enclosed except for openings for egress, commonly at each end.A tunnel may be for foot or vehicular road traffic, for rail traffic, or for a canal. Some tunnels are aqueducts to supply water for consumption or for hydroelectric stations or are sewers...

s, and numerous curves which were once this line's signature. While several projects over the span of 60 years eliminated several problem areas, the Southern Railway
Southern Railway (US)
The Southern Railway is a former United States railroad. It was the product of nearly 150 predecessor lines that were combined, reorganized and recombined beginning in the 1830s, formally becoming the Southern Railway in 1894...

's line improvement project between 1961 and 1963 is probably the best known. This project saw numerous cuts and line relocations to bypass tunnels and reduce the steep grades and tight curves. Only Tunnels #22 and #24 at Nemo, Tennessee and Tunnels #25 and #26 at Oakdale remain on the line; all but #25 were built brand-new in the 1960s. The late 1990s saw another improvement with the Norfolk Southern Railway
Norfolk Southern Railway
The Norfolk Southern Railway is a Class I railroad in the United States, owned by the Norfolk Southern Corporation. With headquarters in Norfolk, Virginia, the company operates 21,500 route miles in 22 eastern states, the District of Columbia and the province of Ontario, Canada...

 double track
Double track
A double track railway usually involves running one track in each direction, compared to a single track railway where trains in both directions share the same track.- Overview :...

ing the segment south of Somerset, Kentucky
Somerset, Kentucky
The major demographic differences between the city and the micropolitan area relate to income, housing composition and age. The micropolitan area, as compared to the incorporated city, is more suburban in flavor and has a significantly younger housing stock, a higher income, and contains most of...

, between Tateville and KD Tower (near Greenwood, Kentucky
Greenwood, Kentucky
Greenwood is a neighborhood of Louisville, Kentucky located along Cane Run Road and Greenwood Road. It is sometimes referred to by its large industrial park & shipping facility, Riverport.-Geography:Greenwood, Louisville is located at .-References:#...

).

The Cincinnati, New Orleans and Texas Pacific is a wholly owned subsidiary of Norfolk Southern and is operated by Norfolk Southern as part of the Central Division. Between Cincinnati and Somerset, the line is under control of the North End Dispatcher, Knoxville, Tennessee
Knoxville, Tennessee
Founded in 1786, Knoxville is the third-largest city in the U.S. state of Tennessee, U.S.A., behind Memphis and Nashville, and is the county seat of Knox County. It is the largest city in East Tennessee, and the second-largest city in the Appalachia region...

. Somerset to Hixson, Tennessee
Hixson, Tennessee
Hixson is an unincorporated community in Hamilton County, Tennessee, United States. It is a northern suburb of Chattanooga and is part of the Chattanooga, TN–GA Metropolitan Statistical Area....

, is dispatched by the South End Dispatcher, Knoxville. The CT (Chattanooga Terminal) Dispatcher controls the last few miles as well as a few surrounding lines into Chattanooga.

More than 50 trains a day can be seen on the CNO&TP, with the heaviest concentration between Danville and Harriman, Tennessee
Harriman, Tennessee
Harriman is a city in the U.S. state of Tennessee, primarily in Roane County, with a small extension into Morgan County. It is the principal city of and is included in the Harriman Micropolitan Statistical Area, which consists of Roane County and is a component of the Knoxville-Sevierville-La...

. Quite a bit of the traffic is intermodal
Intermodal freight transport
Intermodal freight transport involves the transportation of freight in an intermodal container or vehicle, using multiple modes of transportation , without any handling of the freight itself when changing modes. The method reduces cargo handling, and so improves security, reduces damages and...

 and automotive. General manifests, local freights, grain
GRAIN
GRAIN is a small international non-profit organisation that works to support small farmers and social movements in their struggles for community-controlled and biodiversity-based food systems. Our support takes the form of independent research and analysis, networking at local, regional and...

, coal
Coal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...

, and other bulk commodities make up the rest of the traffic.
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