| An XBP coal train passes Cuba Jct, once a much busier place than it is at the date of this photo. The train is on the Meadville Line, going from single track to double for the 11 miles into Olean. There were eastbound and westbound sidings here in Erie days. The empty roadbed to the left was the Erie/EL River Line, which followed the Genesee River to NT tower, near Hunt, where it joined the Buffalo Sub. It crossed the river near Belfast on one of Eries massive steel bridges. A busy route when it was EL-it was the preferred route for most frieghts, since it had a much better gradient than the main line through Wellsville-it was abandoned almost immediately after Conrail startup. They dynamited the bridge in the early 80s. Of note, and not visible in this photo, the PRR also had a branch to Rochester that left the Buffalo Line at Olean, and passed under the River Line just east of here, taking a river level route up through Letchworth Park. |