The Alaska Railroad is descended from two short lines: the Alaska Northern Railway and the Tanana Valley Railroad. The Alaska Northern was reorganized in 1909 from the Alaska Central Railroad, a standard gauge line incorporated in 1902. It had a 72-mile line extending inland from Seward when it was purchased by the U.S. government in 1915. The Tanana Valley was a narrow gauge line connecting Fairbanks to the head of navigation on the Tanana River and to a gold-mining area 35 miles to the northeast. It began operation in 1904, was purchased by the U.S. government in 1917, and was converted to standard gauge in 1923.
There was pressure to build a tidewater-to-interior railroad to unlock the treasure chest which Alaska was considered at the time, but the lack of population in the territory made it clear that such a line would have to be built by the government. In 1912 President Taft asked Congress for such a measure; Congress provided it later that year as a rider on a bill granting Alaska self-government. The Alaska Central and the Tanana Valley were taken over by the Alaska Engineering Commission, which then built a railroad connecting the two lines, no small task. The line was renamed the Alaska Railroad in 1923, the year of its completion. The last spike was driven by President Harding.
The railroad was operated by the Department of the Interior until 1967, when it came under the Federal Railroad Administration, part of the new Department of Transportation. Ownership of the railroad was transferred to the State of Alaska on January 6th, 1985.
Today's ARR is a class II railroad with a main line extending to Anchorage to Fairbanks, 356 miles. Other routes reach south from Anchorage to Seward and Whitter. All main routes have passenger service. Privately owned tour cars supplement regular equipment on the Anchorage-Fairbanks run. Auto-ferry trains used to operate the Portage-Whitter branch because there was no highway. The ARR has no direct connection with other railroads, relying on car barges (operating from Whitter to Seattle and Prince Rupert, B.C.) for interchange traffic.
The main motive power is a fleet of 28 EMD SD70MACs, 12 of which are equipped with head-end power for passenger service. Several GP40-2s and GP38-2s round out the mainline power.
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The ULTIMATE Historical Guide To North American Railroads (200+ Railroads)
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