This is a casual review of events pertaining to America’s Railroads during 1980. I’ve thought that 1980 was really a turning point for several reasons, and in several ways. On the positive side was the deregulation under the Staggers Act, which has revitalized the railroads. The end of the Rock Island and the St. Louis-San Francisco, along with half of the Milwaukee Road, were not viewed as positive events for many of those directly involved.
April 17- ICC approves Burlington Northern and St. Louis-San Francisco merger.
The 22,614 mile Burlington Northern and the 4,617 mile St. Louis-San Francisco first announced their planned merger during September 1977. These railroads had been studying the merger since February 1, 1977. BN was already a partial owner of the SLSF, a result of the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy buying SLSF stock during 1966. The merger was submitted to the Interstate Commerce Commission on January 24, 1979, and approved on April 17, 1980. May 19, 1980 was the date set for the consummation; however the Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad blocked the merger through the Federal Appeals Court. After the stay was lifted BN and the SLSF finalized the deal on November 21. SLSF PhotosMore Photos
April 23- Connecticut DOT’s first SPV-2000 enters service.
The RDC (
July 1- Wisconsin and Southern begins operations.
The Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad entered bankruptcy on December 18, 1977. The reorganization plan included abandoning the western end of the system, and a number of the Midwest branches. The State of Wisconsin stepped forward, and purchased 378 miles of the former Milwaukee Road. This included 147 miles, reaching from Glendale Yard to Oshkosh. The bidding to operate the line was won by FSC Corporation. Operations began on July 1, 1980, with leased Milwaukee Road SD9 506 and SD7 522, newly painted green. The WSOR has grown over the years, and now reaches Chicago. Headquarters and the shops are located in
October 1- Amtrak’s Hoosier State begins service in Indiana.
Amtrak served Indianapolis from Chicago with the Floridian to Florida and the James Whitcomb Riley to Cincinnati beginning in 1971. Due to deteriorating track conditions on Penn Central, both trains were routed around the City on August 1, 1974. The Hoosier State was inaugurated on October 1, 1980 to reconnect Chicago with Indianapolis. Intermediate stops were Dyer, Lafayette and Crawfordsville, Indiana. One purpose of the train is to haul cars from the major hub of Chicago to the Beech Grove shops. Transportation costs for cars between Chicago and the shops were estimated at $200,000 per year. Currently the Hoosier State runs 4 days per week, while the Cardinal performs the service on the other three days. WebsitePhotos
October 14**- Staggers Rail Act signed into law.**
America’s railroads were not healthy during the 1960s and 1970s. Strangling legislation from the Theodore Roosevelt era, such as the Hepburn Act</
When the Rock Island stopped running and GTW acquired DT&I it meant that GTW suddenly had access to more motive power with DT&I GP38s and GP40s and former ROCK GP38-2 units. 1980 was an interesting year.
chessie units running around.switchers doing the local jobs.crews stopping at the depot to get food from a couple places while waiting. riding my bike to look at the cpls in defiance and the ns trains on the other side of town(now maumee & western).wish I started taking pics back then!! thanks for the memories.
