A shuttered industrial complex in Carbon County is being reborn as a hub for railroad operations that will include a new station for passenger train excursions.
The former KME properties in Nesquehoning, which once manufactured custom firefighting equipment, closed in April 2022. It was purchased later that year by the Reading and Northern Railroad (R&N), whose main line crosses the property.
Existing buildings on the property are being retrofitted for maintenance of R&N’s expanding railroad operations, and officials say it will mark the first time in 75 years that locomotives will be regularly maintained and repaired at a facility in Carbon County.
For the railroad, whose passenger excursions have largely focused on taking riders into and around Jim Thorpe for day trips, it creates the opportunity to provide parking and boarding facilities for leisure trips to other points along the R&N’s system.
By this summer, R&N expects the site to be hosting tourists for trips to points north, including Pittston and Tunkhannock, from a station platform now under construction at the Nesquehoning site.
“The Nesquehoning campus is pretty much halfway between Reading and Scranton. And there were a lot of people in the eastern Schuylkill and Carbon County areas that wanted to take different types of railroad excursion trips. But it doesn't make much sense if you live in Carbon County to drive down to Reading or up to Pittston just to take the train back to Jim Thorpe for the day,” said Matt Fisher, senior vice president and general manager of the railroad’s passenger department.
“So this is a great location. It gives us a lot more opportunity for us to do different trips to different places,” Fisher added.
Railroad sees growth
Based in Port Clinton, Schuylkill County, R&N operates over 400 miles of track on a system that stretches from Reading to Pittston. The privately held company is primarily a freight carrier, serving over 80 customers in nine counties.
But its passenger department, which runs tourist trips using a mix of steam- and diesel-powered equipment, has also been expanding and has become a draw for locals as well as railfans from around the country.
Over 320,000 people rode the railroad's excursions last year, Fisher said. Many of those rides were aboard R&N's Lehigh Gorge Scenic Railroad trips that depart from downtown Jim Thorpe, but the railroad also carries visitors into Jim Thorpe from points including Outer Reading, Port Clinton, Tamaqua — and since last year also from Pittston, Mountain Top and White Haven.
Once the Nesquehoning passenger platform is complete, a number of special trips are on deck for this summer.
The railroad's popular steam locomotive 2102, built for the Reading Railroad in 1945, will haul excursions from Nesquehoning to Tunkhannock for the 43rd Annual Founder’s Day Festival on June 22. Then, on Aug. 17, it will power a trip from Nesquehoning to Pittston for the annual Pittston Tomato Festival.
Those interested in the trips can learn more at www.rbmnrr-passenger.com.
Lawmaker praises investment
Aside from the public side seen during such events, the Nesquehoning campus will include offices, training areas and maintenance facilities for the railroad.
Fisher said about 30 people now work at the complex, and more could be added over time.
As the railroad grows, so has its fleet of diesel locomotives, now numbering 63.
For state Rep. Doyle Heffley, R-Weissport, seeing the property brought back to life is a positive development for Nesquehoning and the region.
"When KME went out it was a huge loss, for the community, the county, the school district," Heffley said. "I think this is wonderful. I'm very excited."
Heffley, who was among those to ride the inaugural train trip from Pittston to Jim Thorpe last may, said he can "appreciate why so many folks want to come here to our region to ride the train."
He also sees the value R&N provides to the businesses that rely on trains to move products.
"I'm very happy with the Reading & Northern Railroad for the investments that they're making throughout the region," Heffley said.
