Detroit, Mackinaw and Marquette Railroad Co.
Posted: Wed Oct 20, 2010 11:14 pm
I really started this thread on the Historical board, specifically the Mackinac Bridge, What If question. So, how might the rail map have been different if the early '50s plan to include a single track on the bridge's lower span actually occurred. Obviously, the former Soo Line, nee DSS&A line from Trout Lake to St. Ignace would have remained, along with one or two of the Penn Central routes into Mackinaw City. However, ownership changes due to merger would have likely changed things, even under this alternate history.
My "theory" is that the DSS&A was sold to the NP by CPR interests as a condition of the new SOO merger in 1960. The NYC-PRR marriage into Penn Central still occured in 1968, and two routes from the south were maintained due to growing traffic flows brought on by the new direct rail crossing. A sizable maintenance and upgrade program had followed the bridge opening, with better ballast and heavier rail on all three routes, primarily the South Shore from Ashland, WI to the Straits and the NYC south - as the PRR was the less favorable routing due to it's close proximity to Chicago.
Into the '60s CTC was installed on the NP from Superior, WI to Ashland, and then eastward along the South Shore to St. Ignace, and the NYC reciprocated with TCS (their "flavor" of CTC) southward to Detroit via Bay City-Saginaw and Vassar. Heavier loads as 100 ton cars came online started a welded-rail program, with unit coal, grain and all-rail ore moves heading south into the Detroit markets (and beyond) to avoid the terminal delays associated with Chicago routings. Joint passenger service was likewise maintained along the route - with a daily run and seasonal trains added to support the growing influx of vacationers to the North country.
Following the BN merger in 1970, traffic levels continued to grow - despite the worsening woes of the PC. Passenger service initially ended on Amtrak Day, but later a state-supported 403(B) service was instituted Toledo-Detroit to Duluth-Superior, WI and all points in-between. Following April 1, 1976 the Detroit-Mackinaw City former NYC route was kept by CR, but the former PRR was downgraded and abandoned in spots due to a less-favorable routing to the west. The status quo was pretty much maintained until deregulation under the Stagger's Act, at which point neither Conrail nor Burlington Northern liked the idea of being "shorthauled" by the other road - CR on eastbound moves and BN on westbounds – and declining traffic flows were the inevitable result.
Once carloads began to decline into the 1980s, so too did maintenance as marketing and capital dollars flowed elsewhere across both major systems. Come the late ‘80s both roads were passively shopping the route to investors interested in starting a regional carrier at best, and preparing abandonment application documents for the ICC at worst. Luckily, a group of capitalists – lead by an industry veteran and visionary – became interested in this soon-to-be BN-CR castoff and made an offer for the property. Hence, the Detroit, Mackinac and Marquette Railroad was reborn in the late Twentieth Century.
Operations began with leased power from the DM&M’s predecessor roads, and soon patched, second-hand BN and CNW power began to show up on the property. AMTK service continued with improved running times due to track upgrades thanks to Federal and State grants and loans to fix years of deferred maintenance and relentless pounding by unit trains, which continue to this day. Traffic continues to grow as transit times via the Chicago terminal worsen due to antiquated infrastructure, traffic congestion and long yard dwell times. The DM&M’s marketing department is out pounding doors and shaking the rust off of inactive sidings, the result a growing business for a growing regional railroad.
Now traffic has come full-circle with run-through BNSF and NS interchange traffic polishing the DM&M’s rails on a daily basis. Chicago is still a mess to this day, but the Detroit, Mackinaw and Marquette has a bright future in this vital and growing industry – one that is likewise vital to the State of Michigan as bothersome truck traffic continued to shift to the rails between the two peninsulas and beyond.
So, how’s that for a brief history and press release on the start of my new proto-freelanced 1:87 model railroad, soon coming to a basement near you.
My "theory" is that the DSS&A was sold to the NP by CPR interests as a condition of the new SOO merger in 1960. The NYC-PRR marriage into Penn Central still occured in 1968, and two routes from the south were maintained due to growing traffic flows brought on by the new direct rail crossing. A sizable maintenance and upgrade program had followed the bridge opening, with better ballast and heavier rail on all three routes, primarily the South Shore from Ashland, WI to the Straits and the NYC south - as the PRR was the less favorable routing due to it's close proximity to Chicago.
Into the '60s CTC was installed on the NP from Superior, WI to Ashland, and then eastward along the South Shore to St. Ignace, and the NYC reciprocated with TCS (their "flavor" of CTC) southward to Detroit via Bay City-Saginaw and Vassar. Heavier loads as 100 ton cars came online started a welded-rail program, with unit coal, grain and all-rail ore moves heading south into the Detroit markets (and beyond) to avoid the terminal delays associated with Chicago routings. Joint passenger service was likewise maintained along the route - with a daily run and seasonal trains added to support the growing influx of vacationers to the North country.
Following the BN merger in 1970, traffic levels continued to grow - despite the worsening woes of the PC. Passenger service initially ended on Amtrak Day, but later a state-supported 403(B) service was instituted Toledo-Detroit to Duluth-Superior, WI and all points in-between. Following April 1, 1976 the Detroit-Mackinaw City former NYC route was kept by CR, but the former PRR was downgraded and abandoned in spots due to a less-favorable routing to the west. The status quo was pretty much maintained until deregulation under the Stagger's Act, at which point neither Conrail nor Burlington Northern liked the idea of being "shorthauled" by the other road - CR on eastbound moves and BN on westbounds – and declining traffic flows were the inevitable result.
Once carloads began to decline into the 1980s, so too did maintenance as marketing and capital dollars flowed elsewhere across both major systems. Come the late ‘80s both roads were passively shopping the route to investors interested in starting a regional carrier at best, and preparing abandonment application documents for the ICC at worst. Luckily, a group of capitalists – lead by an industry veteran and visionary – became interested in this soon-to-be BN-CR castoff and made an offer for the property. Hence, the Detroit, Mackinac and Marquette Railroad was reborn in the late Twentieth Century.
Operations began with leased power from the DM&M’s predecessor roads, and soon patched, second-hand BN and CNW power began to show up on the property. AMTK service continued with improved running times due to track upgrades thanks to Federal and State grants and loans to fix years of deferred maintenance and relentless pounding by unit trains, which continue to this day. Traffic continues to grow as transit times via the Chicago terminal worsen due to antiquated infrastructure, traffic congestion and long yard dwell times. The DM&M’s marketing department is out pounding doors and shaking the rust off of inactive sidings, the result a growing business for a growing regional railroad.
Now traffic has come full-circle with run-through BNSF and NS interchange traffic polishing the DM&M’s rails on a daily basis. Chicago is still a mess to this day, but the Detroit, Mackinaw and Marquette has a bright future in this vital and growing industry – one that is likewise vital to the State of Michigan as bothersome truck traffic continued to shift to the rails between the two peninsulas and beyond.
So, how’s that for a brief history and press release on the start of my new proto-freelanced 1:87 model railroad, soon coming to a basement near you.