Western Railroad Discussion > GN and NP trains a day

Not sure if this belongs on the history board? How many GN trains was Marias Pass seeing a day in a 24hr period during WW2 and how many NP trains was Bozeman and Mullan Pass seeing a day in a 24 hour period during the WW2 years and the peak? Thanks for any info.
 

I can't quote you numbers, but I will note that I'd expect the NP numbers would be much higher during the war. The Northern Pacific was a land grant railroad and part of the original charter stated that they had to give the government preferential pricing on US government shipments. As a result, the NP became the preferred routing for government personnel and materials up through WW II. There was an accounting done after the war and it was determined that the NP had more than repaid any land grant preference by quite a bit and that requirement was eliminated.

dano
Montana

Your thinking of Sec 22 rates.  All federal government traffic moved at discounted rates negotiated between the Fed and the railroads. The TCFB would have insured rates via NP, GN, MILW and UP from and to the Pacific Northwest would have been equal.

steeplecab Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I can't quote you numbers, but I will note that
> I'd expect the NP numbers would be much higher
> during the war. The Northern Pacific was a land
> grant railroad and part of the original charter
> stated that they had to give the government
> preferential pricing on US government shipments.
> As a result, the NP became the preferred routing
> for government personnel and materials up through
> WW II. There was an accounting done after the war
> and it was determined that the NP had more than
> repaid any land grant preference by quite a bit
> and that requirement was eliminated.
>
> dano
> Montana

Bob Wilcox
Charlottesville, VA
My Flickr Shots

True. Except that this version of history ignores the fact that these land grants were from a federal government that stole the land from the original inhabitants. The NP repaying the federal government through discounts on its freight did not address the original injustice.

steeplecab Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I can't quote you numbers, but I will note that
> I'd expect the NP numbers would be much higher
> during the war. The Northern Pacific was a land
> grant railroad and part of the original charter
> stated that they had to give the government
> preferential pricing on US government shipments.
> As a result, the NP became the preferred routing
> for government personnel and materials up through
> WW II. There was an accounting done after the war
> and it was determined that the NP had more than
> repaid any land grant preference by quite a bit
> and that requirement was eliminated.
>
> dano
> Montana