In a Surface Transportation Board filing dated July 2, the Eastern Kentucky Railway Co. issued its notice of exemption to lease and operate a portion of the Ravenna Yard and neighboring tracks from the Kentucky Steam Heritage Corp. The non-profit preservation group announced its purchase of the neighboring Ravenna property from CSX in May.
The notice of exemption includes 18.5 miles, including 10.6 miles in Ravenna Yard, along with a request of an additional 7.9 miles of trackage rights on CSX Transportation’s EK Subdivision between Milepost 142.2 near Irvine, Ky., to near Milepost 150.1 near Pryse, Ky. The filing states that CSX and the EKRC will interchange at or near Pryse.
“As of now we have just set up the entity in order to be prepared for how fast or slow this will transpire,” Kentucky Steam President Chris Campbell tells Trains News Wire.
Campbell says the establishment of a railroad will help the organization transfer equipment in and out of the Ravenna facility when the group prepares to relocate its equipment.
No timeline has been given on when that may take place, as the group continues its focus on rehabilitating the Ravenna Shops before relocating equipment to the property.
The group doesn’t have any immediate plans for locomotives to be stationed in Ravenna either, but Campbell says the group does have various organizations prepared to mobilize motive power if those needs were to arise.
He says the ability to interchange and handle local switching will help the Kentucky Steam Heritage Corp. and work in partnership with the group, operating on KSHC-owned tracks in Ravenna.
Campbell is the only person representing Eastern Kentucky Railway Co., who also represents the Kentucky Steam Heritage Corp.
