Re: (erielack) Beginnings of Mergers

["Bill K." <pontiac_@_dreamscape.com>]

Okay... here's a couple:

NYO&W plus Rome Watertown & Ogdensburg (NYC).   Gives them access to Niagara
Falls and Montreal (via CN), so they actually get somewhere.  Trouble is
you'd have to go back to the early merger era (pre-1920) to make this one
work.  But if it did I think it would have made it to Conrail, maybe longer
like the D&H.

Lehigh Valley plus Reading plus NKP or Wabash (NKP preferrable due to
clearance issues).  Gives access to Harrisburg and Hagerstown south, Chicago
and St. Louis to the west. D&H/B&M for Boston/Montreal access, either
independently of this system or as another merger.  This would be a tough
one to work since with a 40% share owned by Chessie (until about '70), the
Reading would have been more likely to end up in that camp.... but the LV,
NKP and Wabash were all in part PRR properties in 1962/3 - a better offer
than N&W's is all it would have taken.

CNJ to Chessie System instead of mostly to abandonment.

As much as Guilford is hated, D&H/B&M/MEC is a smart merger and would work
especially with the CNJ/Chessie merger as a traffic outlet south and the LV
as an outlet west.  Guilford failed the D&H it looks like mainly due to
union resistance, as close as I can tell from publications of the era (which
is why it's so ironic that under CP they have two man crews working their
butts off, and not the 5-man crews and so forth they were fighting to
keep!).

I think any alternative to the Penn Central meger would have been smarter...
PRR/N&W, NYC/C&O....   anything to avoid creating that redundant mess.


I really don't have issue with the EL merger, although the DL&W was
basically a duplicate NYC-Buffalo route, it seems as though without
Hurricane Agnes there would still be an EL through the mid-90's anyhow.
DL&W/NKP is a logical alternate, though.  In that scenario an independent
D&H would be important, especially if one assumes the Poughkeepsie Bridge
fire was really an accident and would happen inevitably.   The New Haven
might be a potential partner either for the Erie (or the PRR makes sense
too), but only if the expense of commuter ops could be dumped on some
state/govt athority at the time of merger.


There's a pile of open cans of worms... too bad they're pretty much all
non-EL!




Bill K.



- ----- Original Message -----
From: <Njricky2_@_aol.com>
To: <erielack_@_lists.railfan.net>
Sent: Saturday, July 27, 2002 4:33 PM
Subject: (erielack) Beginnings of Mergers


> I know this topic has been discussed in one form or another in the past
and
> if what I'm asking has been done, accept my apologies.
>
> Going back to the dawn of the merger era, just before Virginian-N&W, I'm
> curious to know what everyone thinks could have been better combinations
than
> what eventually evolved, including EL. For example, would DLW been better
off
> joining with NKP, Erie with D&H, B&M, and NYO&W with anyone for example?
> These are just examples and again, if this topic has been discussed in
this
> form, please accept my apologies.
>
> Rick
>

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