Salt Lake City Southern Railroad

The Salt Lake City Southern Railroad (reporting mark SL) is a 25-mile (40 km) short-line railroad operating between Salt Lake City, and Murray, in Utah, United States. The SL began operating on April 19, 1993 as a RailTex subsidiary. Today the SL is a subsidiary of the Utah Railway and is owned by the Genesee & Wyoming Inc.

Salt Lake City Southern Railroad
Overview
HeadquartersMurray, Utah
Reporting markSL
LocaleSalt Lake City, Utah
United States
Dates of operationApril 19, 1993Present
Salt Lake City Southern Railroad
Tracks end at 600 South (originally
connected to Union Pacific station)
700 South
800 South
400 West (southbound, northbound)
Former connection to mainline to the west
900 South
American Avenue (at Gale Street)
Ramp connecting West Temple
and Interstate 15/80
300 West (at Brooklyn Avenue)
UTA's TRAX Blue, Red, and Green lines
200 West southbound (at Paxton Avenue)
Ballpark station
1300 South
Former Salt Lake and Utah mainline
1700 South
freight siding
freight spur
freight spur
Salt Lake City
2100 South
South Salt Lake
Central Pointe station
S-Line Streetcar to Sugarhouse
TRAX Green Line to West Valley City
freight siding
Haven Avenue
Interstate 80
freight spur
2700 South
freight spur
Century Park Way
Mill Creek
UTA right-of-way
to Main Street
Gregson Avenue
Millcreek station
3300 South
freight siding
Meadowbrook station
South Salt Lake
3900 South
Millcreek Township
freight spur
Central Avenue
freight spur
Millcreek Township
Big Cottonwood Creek
Murray
Fireclay Avenue
Murray North
4500 South
4500 South Frontage Road
freight spur
4800 South
Little Cottonwood Creek
Vine Street
Union Pacific and FrontRunner
Murray Central
freight siding
5300 South
Cottonwood Street
Union Pacific and FrontRunner
Rail yard access road
5900 South
6100 South
Interstate 215
Fashion Place West
Winchester Street
TRAX Red Line to South Jordan
Murray
Midvale
7200 South
Midvale Fort Union
7500 South
Center Street
Midvale Center
South State Street
Jordan and Salt Lake City Canal
8000 South
industrial access road
Midvale
Sandy
8530 South (Pioneer Avenue)
Former Salt Lake and Alta mainline
8680 South
Sandy Main Street
8800 South
Historic Sandy
East Jordan Canal
9000 South
Sandy Expo
9400 South
Sego Lily Drive
Sandy Civic Center
Dry Creek
10600 South
11000 South
Crescent View
Sandy
11400 South
Draper
11800 South
Kimballs Lane
700 East
12300 South
Draper Town Center
12400 South
UTA (former Union Pacific)
right-of-way to Utah County

History

The line was originally built between 1871–1872 by the Utah Southern Railroad. By March 30, 1872 the Utah Southern reached Point of the Mountain, which is the southern end of the Salt Lake City Southern Railroad at Mount. In the 1870s, the Utah Southern was constructing a 105-mile (169 km) line from Salt Lake City to Chicken Creek (Juab County). Brigham Young was listed as the railroad's president. In June 1875 financial control of the railroad was turned over to the Union Pacific Railroad.

On July 1, 1881 the Utah Southern was consolidated into the Utah Central Railway. The Utah Central was building a rail network from OgdenMilford. By 1888 the Utah Central was an operating subsidiary of the Union Pacific Railroad.

On August 1, 1889 the Utah Central was consolidated into the Oregon Short Line and Utah Northern Railway, an operating subsidiary of the Union Pacific. On March 1, 1897 the railway was renamed the Oregon Short Line Railroad (OSL). The OSL, a UP subsidiary, was leased to the UP on January 1, 1936.

From 1936–1993 the Union Pacific operated the tracks as part of their "Provo Subdivision." In the 1990s the UP shifted its trains on the Provo Subdivision to the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad tracks between Salt Lake City and American Fork. The UP no longer needed the line between Salt Lake City and Mount (also known as Mound or Point of the Mountain).

RailTex acquired the line between Salt Lake City and Mount and began operations in 1993 as the Salt Lake City Southern Railroad. Today the Utah Transit Authority (UTA light rail) owns much of the track as part of their light rail right-of-way acquisitions. UTA utilized the right-of-way for its TRAX light rail system, and is used, at least in part, by all three of its TRAX lines (Blue, Green, and Red, but primarily the Blue Line). The SL operates over the UTA tracks via trackage rights.

On September 30, 1999 the SL became a subsidiary of the Utah Railway.

Sources

  • "Genesee & Wyoming, Inc.: Utah Region". gwrr.com. Archived from the original on 9 June 2007. Retrieved 5 Jan 2016 via web.archive.org.
  • Stindt, Fred A. (1996). American Shortline Railway Guide (5th ed.). Waukesha, Wisconsin: Kalmbach Publishing. pp. 272–273. ISBN 0-89024-290-9.
  • Strack, Don (2004). "Salt Lake City Southern Railroad" (PHP). utahrails.net. Retrieved 12 Mar 2006.
  • Walker, Mike (1999). SPV's Comprehensive Railroad Atlas of North America—Colorado & Utah. Faversham, Kent, United Kingdom: Steam Powered Publishing. pp. 39, 41, & 45. ISBN 1-874745-03-X.
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