Decline
After World War II the decline continued; many branches were closed down. In 1950 the company was reorganized as the Rutland Railway. The year 1953 brought three weeks of employee strike action, which killed off the remaining passenger service on the line.
In 1961 after further strikes the railroad apparently decided it was no longer viable and applied to the Interstate Commerce Commission for complete abandonment. This was approved, and the railroad closed down on May 20, 1963. The strike was brought on by the employees' unwillingness to accept changes that would have moved the center of operations from Rutland to Burlington, requiring them to relocate from Rutland to Burlington.
The changes would have lengthened the runs, running from Burlington to Bellows Falls or Ogdensburg on one day, staying over and then running back the next day. Under current operating orders they would make the run from Rutland to Burlington or Bellows Falls and back in a day, or from Malone, New York running out and back to Ogdensburg and Burlington.
A few years later the national unions agreed to nationwide job changes that allowed this type of change.
Much of the right-of-way was purchased by the State of Vermont. The Northern Division across the top of New York State from Ogdensburg to Norwood remains in tracks. Interestingly, it is operated by Vermont Railway, so all the remaining trackage of the Rutland is operated by one company. Ownership of the railbed from Norwood to Burlington has been dispersed, but a 21-mile (34 km) section from Norwood to Moira is the multi-use Rutland Trail.
Read more about this topic: Rutland Railway
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