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The Providence and Worcester Railroad

The Providence and Worcester Railroad is a regional operation based in Worcester, Massachusetts that has its beginnings dating back to the 1840s but has only been an independent operation since 1973. Interestingly, the P&W of today is a far better, more efficient, and more profitable railroad than it ever was during its ownership of the fabled New York, New Haven & Hartford Railroad. Its current system comprises over 500 miles of track stretching from (with trackage rights) New York and Connecticut to Rhode Island and Massachusetts. By being located in the Northeast the P&W also has a myriad number of connections with other railroads, especially Class Is that include CSX, Norfolk Southern, Canadian National and Canadian Pacific.

The railroad’s history began in 1844 to connect its namesake cities when it was incorporated that year on March 12th as the Providence & Worcester Railway. A year later on November 25th the company merged with the Providence & Worcester Railroad, located in Rhode Island, and the new operation took the latter's name. The P&W opened its original line between Worcester and Millville, Massachusetts in September, 1847 and was completed to Providence a month later on October 20th. After nearly 50 years of independence the much large New Haven system was leased the railroad for 99 years on July 1, 1892. From this point for the next 70+ years the P&W operated on paper as a subsidiary of the New Haven, a major New England railroad that operated all over the region serving New York to the south and Boston to the north as well as most northeastern state. To learn more about the New Haven's history please click here.

The P&W’s road to independence started in 1969 when the New Haven was merged into the Penn Central Corporation (although both the Pennsylvania and New York Central wanted nothing to do with the New Haven, due to the railroad’s very poor financial situation, it was forced into the merger per the ICC's ruling). Because of this merger the following spring in 1970 the Providence and Worcester wanted out and announced it was going independent which resulted in quite a legal battle but was approved by the ICC and finalized in the late winter of 1973.

Since its independence more than 25 years ago now the Providence & Worcester is the only railroad which offers Rhode Island interstate rail service (the state has no Class I railroads and the Providence & Worcester is the largest carrier still operating within the state) and has the unique and exclusive privilege of actually operating over the Northeast Corridor between New Haven and the Massachusetts/Rhode Island border. Today, the railroad is a vital transportation artery as one of New England's most important such companies.

The Providence & Worcester's current roster includes a mix of EMD and GE power although all are of the four-axle variety save for their E9B. During the railroad's history they have actually had quite an eclectic collection of diesel models ranging from Alco RS3s to early EMD and GE models like GP9s and U23Bs. In any event, if you might be interested in learning more about the railroad's all-time roster please click here.

The Providence and Worcester Railroad Roster

#150 - GE 25-Tonner

#562, #582 - B40-8W: Ex-Santa Fe

#668 - EMD E9B

#2006-2009 - EMD GP38-2

#2010 and #2011 - EMD GP38-3: Ex-Penn Central

#2201 and #2212 - GE B23-7

#2215 and #2216 - GE B23-SS7

#3004-3008 - GE B30-7A: Ex-Burlington Northern

#3901-3909 - GE B39-8E: Ex-LMX

#4001-4004 - GE B40-8: Ex-Susquehanna

#4005 - B40-8W: Ex-Santa Fe

Currently the railroad's traffic base consists of everything from steel, coal, chemicals, scrap metals, and cement to food-based products like corn syrup and vegetable oils. Its customers include Dow Chemical, Northeast Utilities, Exxon/Mobil, Frito-Lay, General Dynamics Corporation, International Paper Company, Smurfit Stone Container Corporation and Tilcon Connecticut. The P&W also operates the largest double-stack intermodal facilities in the region, located in Worcester. For more information about the Providence and Worcester Railroad please click here to visit their official website.

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For more reading on Regionals like the P&W consider the book Regional Railroads of the Midwest by Steve Glischinksi. While the book obviously does not feature every Regional in the country it does cover the "Chicago Central Pacific; Dakota, Minnesota Eastern; Escanaba Lake Superior; Iowa Interstate Railroad; Iowa, Chicago Eastern; Indiana Rail Road; Kyle Railroad; Red River Valley Western; Twin Cities Western; Toledo, Peoria Western; Wisconsin Central; and Wisconsin Southern" with plenty of photographs and information about each. If you have an interest in smaller carriers like Regionals, and/or are interested in learning more about their operations, you will almost surely enjoy the book. If you're interested in perhaps purchasing this book please visit the link below which will take you to ordering information through Amazon.com, the trusted online shopping network.

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