Finger Lakes Scenic Railway - Auburn, NY (Legacy)
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PTCrazy
N 42° 57.825 W 076° 32.371
18T E 374441 N 4757939
The Finger Lakes Scenic Railway ran rail excursions all year long, but their biggest excursions ran in the early fall under Fall Foliage Rail Excursions.
Waymark Code: WM2BNQ
Location: New York, United States
Date Posted: 10/07/2007
Views: 192
Finger Lakes Scenic Railways' main office is located in Geneva, New York, however, they have several different routes they run, depending on the day of the week and the season as well.
The nostalgic experience of rail travel has spurred a resurrection of passenger excursions throughout the northeast. Currently, Vermont, New York, New Hampshire, and Pennsylvania are among the states that are utilizing their iron horses and box cars for more than hauling freight. Locally, the Finger Lakes Railway Corporation (FLRC), with offices in Geneva, NY, has been offering special passenger excursions since 2000. “These types of trips are really events in and of themselves,” states Events Coordinator, Deb Murphy of DL Murphy and Associates. “We are stimulating tourism in the Finger Lakes region by hosting out-of-state bus groups and pulling in passengers from over 100 miles away who want to reserve seats for one of 20 excursions being offered this year.” Murphy has been working with FLRC for just over one year promoting the train as a venue for special events.
Following this train of thought, FLRC hosted their first-ever, Scenic Railway Conference at the Geneva Ramada Inn on April 8 with over 30 regional, scenic railway operators and engineers in attendance. The main focus was to share best practices and highlight benchmarking criteria for future growth of the industry, especially within New York State. One conference attendee, Bob Colucci, Regional Manager from the Syracuse office of OnTrack/NYS&W Railway that stretches from Syracuse to New Jersey, remembers their attempt at doing passenger excursions on a regular basis. “We still do the Holiday Rides with great success,” Colucci commented, “But the one thing FLRC has that we don’t is access to the beauty of the Finger Lakes. That is a true destination.”
The Finger Lakes Railway Corporation began operations on July 23, 1995 when investors purchased 118 miles of track from the well-known train company, Conrail. The lines were previously known as the Geneva cluster. Now just over 10 years later, they are successfully offering both freight and passenger services along those lines. Finger Lakes Railway’s main line of track used to be the New York Central / Auburn Rail Road , which runs between Canandaigua and Syracuse and dates back to 1835. This line rambles through Shortsville, Clifton Springs, Phelps, Geneva, Waterloo, Seneca Falls, Cayuga, Auburn, Camillus, and ends in Solvay, just west of Syracuse. Other portions of the Finger Lakes Railway were once the Lehigh Valley (south from Geneva to Kendaia) and the Pennsylvania Railroad (south from Penn Yan to Watkins Glen).
Since 1995, Finger Lakes Railway has grown rapidly from 6 to 30 employees; from 3 to 10 locomotives; and from an initial car movement of 5,600 to over 16,000 car loads per year. The freight lines serve a diverse customer base handling a wide range of commodities including plastics, canned foods, grain, lumber, paper products, scrap and finished steel, along with minerals such as salt, sand, soda ash and fertilizer. Customized rail service has allowed for new companies to locate on the FLRC line while giving existing customers an efficient way to increase their business.
On the passenger side, there has been steady growth in interest with triple the number of passengers from last year alone. Each coach is named for a town or lake in the Finger Lakes region. The Cayuga and the Canandaigua each hold about 64 passengers, and the 2 two-season coaches (for spring & fall) are named the Seneca and the Geneva. Each holds about 72 passengers. “The general public has been very receptive and curious about our train excursions,” comments Murphy. This year’s popular addition to the line-up is the Blues-n-Brews excursions which are slated for every 3 rd Saturday of the month and feature onboard entertainment from authentic blues band and local microbrewery companies. Other upcoming excursions include a Mother’s Day Champagne Brunch, a Memorial Day Ride, scenic rides during the Watkins Glen Wine Fest, and many more. These excursions are open to the public, vary in cost and length, and do require a ticket purchase or RSVP for seating purposes.
The Finger Lakes Scenic Railway ceased operations in 2013.
Engine Type: Diesel
Gauge of Railway: Standard Gage
Approximate Adult Fare: 17.00 (listed in local currency)
Approximate Child Fare: 15.00 (listed in local currency)
Type: Spur (out and back)
Length of Route: 35 miles
Dates of Operation: From: 03/01/2007 To: 12/31/2007
Frequency of departures: twice daily
Key Attractions:
Seneca Lake, Cayuga Lake, city of Auburn
Watkins Glen
Does this Scenic Railroad Provide: Brunch, Lunch or Dinner Trains?: yes
Railroad Website: [Web Link]
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Visit Instructions:Provide a picture of something with the train. Possible photos include the entertainment on board the train, the train itself at any location along the route, a picture of the scenery with part of the train in view, the kids borrowing the engineer’s hat. Show us you had a good time visiting the train. If the train isn't running when you visit get a photo of one of the many railway related items that can be found in locations like this.