Paoli Line Cleared After Derailment

Penn Central officials worked Saturday to get eastbound train runs from Harrisburg to Paoli back to normal following an early morning derailment of 21 freight cars.

Commuter service from Paoli to Philadelphia returned to normal late Saturday morning, although trains continued to run slightly behind schedule.

Earlier, commuters had to be shuttled by diesel trains to Bryn Mawr where they boarded electric trains for the rest of the trip to the city.

The derailment of the 21 cars, part of an 85-car freight train from Harrisburg to South Philadelphia, forced officials to cut off electric power at the Paoli station.

The cars jumped the tracks about 50 yards west of the Paoli station at 2:55 a.m. One car struck the signal tower at the station.

Four crews spent most of the day trying to clear the wreckage and open the tracks for eastbound traffic through Paoli. No injuries were reported.

Trains from Harrisburg to Philadelphia also had to be re-routed tgrough Bryn Mawr. The Chicago to New York "Broadway Limited" was re-routed through Trenton. Passengers had to leave the trains at Downingtown where buses took them to the city.

All eastbound freight trains that would normally pass through Paoli had to be re-routed through Trenton.

The light commuter traffic on Saturday morning ran about half an hour behind schedule during the shuttling to Bryn Mawr, a Penn Central spokesman reported.

Philadelphia Inquirer 2/13/1972