I heard the other night that GM is going to close their plant in Janesville, WI this December. I know the plant was a significant source of business for the CNW and later UP. Does anyone know if the WSOR stands to take a big hit due to this closing?
http://gazettextra.com/news/2008/oct/14/gm-workers-mostly-silent-shut-down/
Probably not WSOR, but UP may abandon the spur on their Harvard subdivision that leads to the plant.
I wouldn’t be surprised to see UP leasing the line from Janesville to Crystal Lake, or maybe even Seeger, to WSOR after the plant closes. If that happens, it might open up a new way for WSOR to do business around Chicago.
Or, perhaps, GM may retain some of the property for use as a regional distribution center or some such.
Perhaps the UP might lease or sell (with a trackage/haulage agreement) the track from Janesville to Harvard, but I doubt they would want to give up the Metra trackage from Harvard to Seeger.