Grand Elk Railroad

Class III railroad in Indiana and Michigan, USA

Grand Elk Railroad

Grand Elk (WAMX)#4124 is headed to Grand Rapids.

Overview
Headquarters| Kalamazoo, Michigan
Reporting mark| GDLK
Locale| Indiana and Michigan
Dates of operation| 2009-
Technical
Track gauge| 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge

The Grand Elk Railroad (reporting mark GDLK) is a Class III railroad which operates in the states of Indiana and Michigan. It is one of 40+ short-line railroads owned by Watco.

The company leases a 123 miles (198 km) line from the Norfolk Southern running south from Grand Rapids, Michigan, through Kalamazoo, Michigan, to Elkhart, Indiana. The line they lease was a former Grand Rapids and Indiana Railroad mainline from Grand Rapids to Kalamazoo. From Kalamazoo to Elkhart, IN they use a former Lake Shore & Michigan Southern branch. Watco projects 22,000 carloads per year from 55 customers. Operations began on March 8, 2009.[1]

The railroad connects with three larger railroads, the Norfolk Southern (Elkhart and Kalamazoo), CSX (Grand Rapids) and Canadian National (Kalamazoo, Michigan via CN Kilgore Yard) as well as three short line railroads, the Marquette Rail (Grand Rapids), Grand Rapids Eastern Railroad (Grand Rapids), and Michigan Southern Railroad (White Pigeon, Michigan).[2][3][4][5]

Watco expanded to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan in 2021 when Canadian National divested many former Wisconsin Central Ltd. lines.[6] This includes a line from Trout Lake to Munising and an out of service line to a former mine in White Pine, both formerly operated by the Duluth, South Shore and Atlantic Railway. Watco's UP operations are based out of Newberry where they built a new engine house in 2022.[7]

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Nixon, Alex (December 4, 2008). "Rail line lease sought". Kalamazoo Gazette. Retrieved 2008-12-05.
2. ^ Wheelock, Chris; Shandra Martinez (2009-04-20). "Grand Elk roars into town". Grand Rapids Press. p. A10.
3. ^ "Marquette Rail company website". Retrieved 2015-04-20.
4. ^ "Grand Rapids Eastern Railroad company website". Retrieved 2015-04-20.
5. ^ "Michigan Southern Railroad Co. company website". Retrieved 2015-04-20.
6. ^ Lassen, David (March 31, 2021). "Watco purchases lines in Wisconsin, Michigan, Ontario from CN (updated)". Trains. Retrieved February 8, 2025.
7. ^ https://www.michiganrailroads.com/stations-locations/112-luce-county-48/1296-newberry-mi

## External links

[edit]

* Watco
* Elkhart Truth Article 2/25/09
* Grand Elk Railfan Page

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Watco

United States|

* Alabama Southern
* Alabama Warrior
* Ann Arbor
* Arkansas Southern
* Austin Western
* Autauga Northern
* Baton Rouge Southern
* Bogalusa Bayou
* Birmingham Terminal
* Blue Ridge Southern
* Boise Valley
* Decatur & Eastern Illinois
* Eastern Idaho
* Grand Elk
* Great Northwest
* Ithaca Central
* Kanawha River
* Kansas & Oklahoma
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* Swan Ranch
* Texas & New Mexico
* Timber Rock
* Vicksburg Southern
* West Texas & Lubbock
* Wisconsin & Southern
* Yellowstone Valley

Australia|

* Track IQ
* Watco Australia

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Railroads of Indiana

Common carriers|

* Bee Line Railroad
* Big 4 Terminal Railroad
* Baltimore and Ohio Chicago Terminal Railroad
* Central Indiana and Western Railroad
* Central Railroad of Indianapolis
* Chicago, Fort Wayne and Eastern Railroad
* Central Railroad of Indiana
* Chesapeake and Indiana Railroad
* C&NC Railroad
* Chicago SouthShore and South Bend Railroad
* CSX Transportation
* Dubois County Railroad
* Evansville Western Railway
* Elkhart and Western Railroad
* Fulton County Railroad
* Gary Railway
* Grand Trunk Western Railroad
* Honey Creek Railroad
* Hoosier Southern Railroad
* Indian Creek Railroad
* Indiana Eastern Railroad
* Indiana Harbor Belt Railroad
* Indiana Northeastern Railroad
* Indiana Rail Road
* Indiana and Ohio Railway
* Indiana Southern Railroad
* Indiana Southwestern Railway
* Indianapolis Union Railway
* Kankakee, Beaverville and Southern Railroad
* Kendallville Terminal Railway
* Logansport and Eel River Short-Line Company
* Louisville and Indiana Railroad
* Lake Michigan and Indiana Railroad
* Lucas Oil Rail Line
* Madison Railroad
* MG Rail, Inc.
* Napoleon, Defiance & Western Railroad
* Norfolk Southern Railway
* Ohio Valley Railroad
* R.J. Corman Railroad/Western Ohio Lines
* South Chicago and Indiana Harbor Railway
* Squaw Creek Southern Railroad
* Southern Indiana Railway
* Soo Line Railroad
* Southwind Shortline Railroad
* Toledo, Peoria and Western Railway
* U S Rail Corporation
* Vermilion Valley Railroad
* Wabash Central Railroad
* Winamac Southern Railway

Passenger carriers|

* Amtrak
* South Shore Line

Private carriers|

* BP
* City of Auburn Port Authority
* Steel Dynamics
* R.J. Corman
* Toyota

Heritage railroads|

* Fort Wayne Railroad Historical Society
* Hesston Steam Museum
* Hoosier Valley Railroad Museum
* Indiana Railway Museum
* Indiana Transportation Museum
* National New York Central Railroad Museum
* Whitewater Valley Railroad

* See also: Former carriers in Indiana
* List of United States railroads by political division

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Railroads of Michigan

Common carriers|

* Ann Arbor Railroad
* Adrian & Blissfield Rail Road
* Charlotte Southern Railroad
* Canadian National
* Coopersville & Marne Railway
* CPKC
* CSX
* Delray Connecting Railroad
* Detroit Connecting Railroad
* Escanaba & Lake Superior Railroad
* Grand Elk Railroad
* Great Lakes Central Railroad
* Grand Rapids Eastern Railroad
* Grand Trunk Western Railroad
* Hamilton Northwestern Railroad
* Huron & Eastern Railway
* Indiana Northeastern Railroad
* Indiana and Ohio Railway
* Jackson & Lansing Railroad
* Lapeer Industrial Railroad
* Lake Superior & Ishpeming Railroad
* Lake State Railway
* Mid-Michigan Railroad
* Marquette Rail
* Michigan Shore Railroad
* Michigan Southern Railroad
* Mineral Range Railroad
* Norfolk Southern
* Soo Line Railroad
* Sault Ste. Marie Bridge Company
* Wisconsin Central Ltd.
* West Michigan Railroad

Passenger carriers|

* Amtrak
* Ann Arbor–Detroit Regional Rail (proposed)
* Detroit People Mover
* ExpressTram
* QLine

Private carriers|

* Carmeuse Lime & Stone
* New Boston Rail Services

Heritage railroads|

* Coopersville & Marne Railway
* Huckleberry Railroad
* Lake Linden & Torch Lake Railroad
* Little River Railroad
* Michigan Transit Museum
* Quincy & Torch Lake Cog Railway
* Southern Michigan Railroad Society
* Steam Railroading Institute
* Weiser Railroad

* See also: History of railroads in Michigan
* Former carriers in Michigan
* List of United States railroads by political division

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