Reading and Northern railroad expands operations Reading Blue Mountain and Northern Railroad announced Friday it has acquired the 6-mile line between Towanda and Monroeton in northeastern Pennsylvania's Bradford County. Reading and Northern, which operates more than 300 miles of railroad in eastern Pennsylvania, bought the assets of the Towanda-Monroeton Shippers Lifeline Railroad Inc. from former owner Joseph Zadrusky of Scranton on Dec. 30. The line is about 40 miles north of Reading and Northern's current terminus in Mehoopany, Wyoming County. Reading and Northern will be able to connect its two properties by working with Lehigh Railway LLC, which leases a Norfolk Southern Railway line that connects to the Towanda-Monroeton line. The line will become part of the Reading and Northern system. Andrew M. Muller Jr., CEO of Reading and Northern, said in a news release the acquisition is a big step in growing rail operations. ''We see this acquisition as an opportunity to offer more service options to customers working in the Marcellus Shale region,'' Muller said. ''With our assets and market reach, we will be able to grow the business on the line substantially.'' Wayne A. Michel, the company's president, added that the railroad plans to aggressively market the Towanda segment to natural gas producers. ''We know there are many railroad opportunities related to the Marcellus Shale, and we will be pursuing them diligently in the weeks and months ahead,'' Michel said. Reading and Northern, with its corporate headquarters in Port Clinton, Schuylkill County, is a privately held railroad company serving businesses in eight counties in eastern Pennsylvania -- Lehigh, Carbon, Schuylkill, Berks, Luzerne, Northumberland, Lackawanna and Wyoming. It has expanded its operations over the last 26 years, with both freight services and passenger excursion operations. Reading and Northern has 150 employees. Copyright © 2010, The Morning Call
