First section of East Broad Top sold NEWSWIRE

DUBOIS, PA. — The East Broad Top Preservation Association has purchased its first section of the fabled East Broad Top Railroad, according to Association President Larry Salone. The first segment includes the standard gauge trackage from the Norfolk Southern main line to Route 522 in Mount Union, including the yard in Mount Union. Salone says the next phase of the acquisition will include the railroad from Route 522 to the Aughwick Creek bridge, and he hopes this will be completed in the next 30 days.

“This is the first step in hopefully the Association’s purchase of the entire railroad. If we can complete the remainder of the purchase as expected, we would hope to resume tourist operations in 2014 on a full schedule,” Salone says. Workers have begun brush removal and track repairs in Mount Union with the hope of starting freight service to support the tourist operation.

Salone acknowledges the seller of the EBT, the Kovalchick family of Indiana, Pa., noting that the family has supported the operation of the EBT since it was reopened as a tourist line in 1960. Joeseph Kovalchick and his family, Salone says, “have kept this railroad intact so a future is possible for many more generations to enjoy. Their preservation work has been ongoing since 1960, and we are proud to be able to hopefully carry this railroad’s heritage into the future for a long, long time.”