The Pittsburgh Subdivision is a railroad line owned and operated by CSX Transportation

CSX Transportation

CSX Transportation operates a Class I railroad in the United States known as the CSX Railroad. It is the main subsidiary of the CSX Corporation. The company is headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida, and owns approximately 21,000 route miles...

 in the U.S. state

U.S. state

A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...

 of Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania

The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...

. The line runs from McKeesport northwest through Pittsburgh to West Pittsburg

West Pittsburg, Pennsylvania

West Pittsburg is an unincorporated community in southern Taylor Township, Lawrence County, Pennsylvania, along the banks of the Beaver River just 5 miles south of New Castle. Its main street is the north-south Pennsylvania Route 168, which crosses the river at the southern end of the community...

 (near New Castle) along a former Pittsburgh and Lake Erie Railroad

Pittsburgh and Lake Erie Railroad

The Pittsburgh and Lake Erie Railroad , also known as the "Little Giant", was formed on May 11, 1875. Company headquarters were located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The line connected Pittsburgh in the east with Youngstown, Ohio at nearby Haselton, Ohio in the west and Connellsville, ...

 line. Its east end is at Sinns across the Youghiogheny River

Youghiogheny River

The Youghiogheny River , or the Yough for short, is a tributary of the Monongahela River in the U.S. states of West Virginia, Maryland, and Pennsylvania...

 from McKeesport at Liberty, at the west end of the Keystone Subdivision

Keystone Subdivision

The Keystone Subdivision is a railroad line owned and operated by CSX Transportation in the U.S. states of Maryland and Pennsylvania. The line runs from Cumberland, Maryland west to McKeesport, Pennsylvania along a former Baltimore and Ohio Railroad line...

. It junctions with the Mon Subdivision at McKeesport and the P&W Subdivision

P&W Subdivision

The P&W Subdivision is a railroad line owned and operated by CSX Transportation, the Allegheny Valley Railroad , and the Buffalo and Pittsburgh Railroad in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania...

 in Rankin; at its west end it becomes the New Castle Terminal Subdivision.

Amtrak

Amtrak

The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak , is a government-owned corporation that was organized on May 1, 1971, to provide intercity passenger train service in the United States. "Amtrak" is a portmanteau of the words "America" and "track". It is headquartered at Union...

's Capitol Limited

Capitol Limited (Amtrak)

Amtrak's Capitol Limited is one of the railroad's two routes connecting Washington, D.C. to Chicago, running via Cleveland, Ohio . Service began in 1981 and was named after the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad's Capitol Limited which ended in 1971 upon the formation of Amtrak...

uses the line southeast of Rankin.

History

The line northwest of Pittsburgh opened in 1879 as part of the Pittsburgh and Lake Erie Railroad

Pittsburgh and Lake Erie Railroad

The Pittsburgh and Lake Erie Railroad , also known as the "Little Giant", was formed on May 11, 1875. Company headquarters were located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The line connected Pittsburgh in the east with Youngstown, Ohio at nearby Haselton, Ohio in the west and Connellsville, ...

. The rest of the line, southeast from Pittsburgh, was opened in 1883 by the Pittsburgh, McKeesport and Youghiogheny Railroad. The latter company was leased by the P&LE. In 1934, the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad

Baltimore and Ohio Railroad

The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad was one of the oldest railroads in the United States and the first common carrier railroad. It came into being mostly because the city of Baltimore wanted to compete with the newly constructed Erie Canal and another canal being proposed by Pennsylvania, which...

 began operating through trains via trackage rights

Trackage rights

Trackage rights , running rights or running powers is an agreement whereby a railway company has the right to run its trains on tracks owned by another railway company....

 over the P&LE between McKeesport (slightly north of the current beginning of the Pittsburgh Subdivision until the bridge at Sinns opened in 1968) and New Castle, leaving the P&W Subdivision

P&W Subdivision

The P&W Subdivision is a railroad line owned and operated by CSX Transportation, the Allegheny Valley Railroad , and the Buffalo and Pittsburgh Railroad in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania...

 for local trains only. Eventually the P&LE, which had been jointly owned by CSX and Conrail, was merged into CSX.