Freight cars are once again rolling though the western North Carolina town of Spruce Pine after CSX Transportation crews reopened about 2 miles of its Clinchfield Railroad route north of Spruce Pine, gaining access to a local freight customer. CSX officials confirmed the line’s restoration in a video posted to LinkedIn on Saturday.
The railroad is now able to deliver and pull railcars from The Quartz Corp., a producer of high-purity quartz used in the semiconductor business. Its business was affected by the significant flooding caused by the aftermath of Hurricane Helene on Sept. 27, 2024. Various sources say quartz from western North Carolina accounts for as much as 70% of the world’s quartz for semiconductors.
The railroad’s Blue Ridge Subdivision north of the customer’s spur through the Nolichucky River Gorge to Erwin, Tennessee, remains out of service as crews continue reinforcing a new roadbed and rebuilding a bridge at Poplar, North Carolina. No public timeline has been provided for the reopening of that line.
For now, revenue freight headed for Spruce Pine is being routed from Spartanburg, South Carolina, and Bostic Yard in Bostic, North Carolina, to the south, just as rock trains and maintenance-of-way equipment have gained access to the out-of-service areas.
At the same time CSX was restoring service to Spruce Pine, about 45 miles to the northwest, local reports say CSX ran its first work train across the Chestoa Bridge over the Nolichucky River near Unaka Springs, Tennessee. The steel bridge collected significant debris from high waters during Helene’s historic floods.
Trains News Wire has reached out to CSX for an update on when the rail line through the Nolichucky River Gorge may open.
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