The , more commonly known as the '''Laurel Line''', was a
Third Rail electric
Interurban Streetcar line which operated
Commuter Train service from 1903 to 1952, and freight service until 1976.
Electrification was decommissioned in 1953, as diesel operations began. It was purchased by the
Delaware, Lackawanna And Western Railroad in 1957, but operated as an independent subsidiary under it and the
Erie Lackawanna until its inclusion in
Conrail in 1976.
The railroad's mainline ran from
Scranton, Pennsylvania to
Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania . Other cities served included
Dunmore, Pennsylvania and
Pittston, Pennsylvania .
Original sections of the line out of Scranton to Montage Mountain,
Moosic , have been purchased by
Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania , and placed back in service with overhead electrified wiring and designated-operator
Delaware-Lackawanna Railroad overseeing both freight operations and the county's tourist trolley runs, the
Electric City Trolley Museum .
The north-south route was duplicated with
Interstate 81 in the 1960s and today the four-lane highway is overtaxed with heavy trucks and cars, local traffic between Wilkes-Barre and Scranton and a deteriorating structure, leaving many wishing the L&WV system was retained in its entirety.
The Laurel Line Tunnel (also know as the Crown Avenue Tunnel) in South Scranton, at 4,750-feet, is one of the longest interurban streetcar tunnels ever built (1904) and was recently rehabilitated at a cost of over $3 million.
For 2006, a new, 2,000-foot extension connects the county's trolley line from the Steamtown National Historic Site, Scranton, to a new station and trolley restoration facility, immediately adjacent to the
Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Red Barons stadium off Montage Mountain Road, Moosic.
The new tracks and trolley barn are part of a $2 million project financed by capital funds from the county and the state. The barn has space for up to nine trolleys, allowing the county museum to spend more time working to bring defunct cars back to running order. It has a gallery where visitors can observe the process.
