Shortlines in Action

(The Best of Northland Trains, III)
To acknowledge the channel's 10th Anniversary this year (2011-2021), there will be video montages of various trackside sightings over the years grouped by certain categories.

Part 3 is shortline railroads.
In this video, you'll witness a variety of vintage locomotives operating on shortline railroads. Shortline railroads featured in this video are:
Twin Cities & Western Railway
Minnesota Commercial Railway
Northern Lines Railway
(All in Minnesota)
A shortline railroad is a small or mid-sized railroad company that operates over a relatively short distance relative to larger, national railroad networks. The term is used primarily in the United States and Canada. In the U.S., railroads are categorized by operating revenue, and most shortline railroads fall into the Class III or Class II categorization defined by the Surface Transportation Board. Shortlines generally exist for one of three reasons: to link two industries requiring rail freight together; to interchange revenue traffic with other, usually larger, railroads; or to operate a tourist passenger train service. Often, short lines exist for all three of these reasons.

Video footage was collected over the 10 years in the channel's history thus far. Unfortunately, many videos have been lost over time due to data loss or corrupt files, among other things. Thankfully, most of the footage remains for your enjoyment, seen here.

Видео Shortlines in Action канала NorthlandTrains