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WCTU Railway

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WCTU Railway LLC
Overview
HeadquartersWhite City, Oregon
Reporting markWCTR
LocaleSouthern Oregon
Dates of operationNovember 3, 1954–March 14, 2013
Technical
Track gauge4 ft 8+12 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge

The WCTU Railway LLC (reporting mark WCTR) was a 13-mile (21 km) shortline railroad that connects White City, Oregon, United States to a junction north of Medford with the Central Oregon and Pacific Railroad, which hauls its cars to the Union Pacific Railroad at Eugene or Black Butte. The line began operations on November 20, 1954, on an abandoned Southern Pacific Transportation Company right-of-way[citation needed] as the White City Terminal & Utilities Co., and was renamed after the Union Tank Car Company bought it in 1974.[1] WCTU Railway was owned by Marmon Transportation Services LLC, a unit of Berkshire Hathaway.

Around 2000, WCTU acquired the engine RSS SW1200 #82 (formerly RF&P 82). After waiting for about a year before it was ready for service, it became the No. 1 power, with #5119 as back-up, while the 5117 was basically out of service. About 2004 they received another SW1200 engine, the 1503. Now WCTU uses one unit for a month, then swaps units. The 5119 is still operable, but the 5117 needs work.[citation needed]

On December 17, 2012, Marmon Transportation announced the sale of WCTU Railway LLC to RVTR Rail Holdings (now CCT Rail System Corporation), a holding company owned by Scott DeVries of Superior, Wisconsin.[2] The railway is now known as Rogue Valley Terminal Railroad Corporation (RVT).[3][4]

References

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  1. ^ Edward A. Lewis, American Shortline Railway Guide, 5th Edition, Kalmbach Publishing, 1996, pp. 329-330, 361
  2. ^ Stiles, Greg (December 20, 2012). "Wisconsin engineer buys White City railroad". Mail Tribune. Medford, Oregon. Retrieved July 14, 2013.
  3. ^ Wilner, Frank N. (January 16, 2013). "Engineer rides American Dream to a short line". Retrieved July 14, 2013.
  4. ^ "Freight Tariff RVT 9000 – Adoption Notice" (PDF). Rogue Valley Terminal Railroad Corporation. March 29, 2013. Retrieved March 24, 2018.