Since SIDEWINDER asked a question regarding the historic railroad being rebuilt near the Mound House brothels over on the old message board, I thought I'd repeat the information here (for the benefit of those folks here who are no longer reading that board):
BTW: When is that railroad between Virginia City and Carson City gonna be done? I can't wait.
Well, it is now completed to just past the new Eastgate siding & depot on the Mound House bypass, which is
technically within the Carson City limits (off Flint Drive to the east of the STOLport and the Pick&Pull and just north of the Model Airplane Park and landfill. Runs between there and Virginia City are now being made every Saturday through Nevada Day (known to the rest of us as Halloween).
Phase 3A, now under construction (using Federal Economic Sitmulus Package funds), will extend the tracks another 1.1 miles, back along the original, historical route from the end of Highlands Drive in Mound House (back over the border in Lyon County) to the Eureka siding, on the way down to Carson Canyon. Phase 3B, which will take the tracks to and along the river down as far as Brunswick canyon, is in the final design stage and is awaiting construction funding. Phases 3C & 4 will complete the restoration project to a planned Carson City (Empire) Depot off U.S. 50 on Drako Way. It is hoped that the entire line will be finished by sometime in 2012, but that is contingent on enough money being available.
Also worth noting, there is a dispute between the public Commission for the Restoration of the Virginia and Truckee Railway (which was created by the State Legislature to facilitate and oversee the reconstruction of the tracks) and the privately held Virginia and Truckee Railroad Company (owned by the Gray family) which owns most of the V&T trademarks, the northernmost 1.8 miles of tracks, and has run excursion trains to Gold Hill on those rails (that they rebuilt themselves) for the last 30+ years. The NCRCTR contracted to bring in another operator (the Sierra Railroad) to run trains on their new tracks from Gold Hill south and the whole thing got very messy (especially since that operator has damaged a steam locomotive the NCRVTR had purchased and had contracted them to store and maintain). So right now, the Carson City Convention & Visitors Bureau has acted as an intermediary between the NCRVTR (V&T Rwy) and the Gray family (V&T RR) to get the first trains running over the whole line this summer & fall, using the V&T RR's equipment. We'll see what develops as time goes on.
BTW, one other bit of trivia. The original rail line operated under both the V&T Railroad and V&T Railway monikers, the former from its inception in 1868 to a reorganization in 1910 and the latter from 1910 to May 1950 (when the last tracks were abandoned). Robert Grey purchased the V&T Railroad Co. name and trademarks from that company's successors when he started plans to reconstruct the line in the early 1970s. That's why the NCRVTR has had to use the V&T Railway name for its project, but it is also historically valid.
Best Regards,
Speed Racer
