Otisville Tunnel
Encyclopedia
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
's Metro-North commuter railroad, at 5314 feet (1,619.7 m) in length. Although the track curves at the western opening, underground the tunnel is a straight line, allowing the observer to see all the way through.
It is currently owned by Metro-North, having been sold by the Norfolk Southern Railway
Norfolk Southern Railway
The Norfolk Southern Railway is a Class I railroad in the United States, owned by the Norfolk Southern Corporation. With headquarters in Norfolk, Virginia, the company operates 21,500 route miles in 22 eastern states, the District of Columbia and the province of Ontario, Canada...
in 2003.
History
The tunnel was built in 1908 by the Erie RailroadErie Railroad
The Erie Railroad was a railroad that operated in New York State, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois, originally connecting New York City with Lake Erie...
and was part of the Erie Graham Line. At the time it was built the Main Line of the Erie Railroad went over the hill and connected at both ends with the tunnel. Later the "over the hill" tracks were abandoned and all trains operated through the tunnel.
It later operated under the auspices of the merged Erie Lackawanna Railway
Erie Lackawanna Railway
The Erie Lackawanna Railway , known as the Erie–Lackawanna Railroad until 1968, was formed from the 1960 merger of the Erie Railroad and the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad...
from 1960 to 1976, and then Conrail from 1976 until it was acquired by Norfolk Southern as part of the breakup of Conrail.
Metro-North took over passenger service in 1983.
Location
It passes underneath the Shawangunk RidgeShawangunk Ridge
The Shawangunk Ridge , also known as the Shawangunk Mountains or The Gunks, is a ridge of bedrock in Ulster County, Sullivan County and Orange County in the state of New York, extending from the northernmost point of New Jersey to the Catskill Mountains.The ridgetop, which widens considerably at...
at Otisville, New York
Otisville, New York
Otisville is a village in Orange County, New York, United States. The population was 989 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Poughkeepsie–Newburgh–Middletown, NY Metropolitan Statistical Area as well as the larger New York–Newark–Bridgeport, NY-NJ-CT-PA Combined...
just past Otisville Station
Otisville (Metro-North station)
The Otisville Metro-North station serves the residents of that community and the town of Mount Hope in Orange County, New York. Trains depart regularly for Hoboken, 81.6 miles away; travel time is about an hour and 50 minutes....
on the Metro-North Port Jervis Line.