Metropolitan Subdivision
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Metropolitan Subdivision is a railroad line owned and operated by CSX Transportation in the District of Columbia and the U.S. state of Maryland. The line runs from Washington, D.C. northwest to Weverton, Maryland[1] along a former Baltimore and Ohio Rail Road line.
At its southeast end, at the yard north of Union Station, the Metropolitan Subdivision meets the Capital Subdivision and Amtrak's Northeast Corridor. It meets the Old Main Line Subdivision at Point of Rocks, Maryland, and at its northwest end the line continues as the Cumberland Subdivision.
MARC Train's Brunswick Line uses the entire subdivision, as does Amtrak's Capitol Limited.
[edit] History
The section northwest of Point of Rocks opened in 1834 as part of the B&O's main line.[2] The rest of the line, from Point of Rocks southeast to Washington, opened in 1873 as the B&O's Metropolitan Branch, and through freight was rerouted to use it.[3] Through mergers, the line became part of the CSX system.
The entire subdivision is double track, and signaled for bi-directional running. Interlockings are (east to west) QN Tower, Georgetown Jct, Derwood, Bucklodge, Point of Rocks, and Brunswick. There is a spur that services a Mirant power plant (formerly owned by PEPCO) at Dickerson, and a trash-transfer facility at Derwood.
[edit] References
- ^ CSX Timetables: Metropolitan Subdivision
- ^ PRR Chronology, 1834PDF (79.7 KiB), June 2004 Edition
- ^ PRR Chronology, 1873PDF (100 KiB), February 2004 Edition
