The Reading Modeler

The information presented here is transcribed directly from the official Reading Company freight schedule effective October 1, 1970. This may be useful as a guide to planning freight operations on your layout to decide which trains are most appropriate to model. The online edition of the 1954 Reading Company Freight Shippers Guide can help you determine an appropriate mix of freight traffic by providing information about the specific industries served at the destinations listed in the schedule.

The freight train symbols listed below generally indicate the abbreviation of the origin and destination of each train, or the initial and final terminal. The numbers following the symbol letters indicate the departure time of the train, expressed in military time (24-hour clock) to the nearest hour. For example, train NH-21 would be Newberry Junction to Harrisburg (Rutherford Yard), departing at 2100 (9:00 pm).

On March 5, 1976, a few weeks before the advent of Conrail, a pair of GP-35s hauls train RW-5 along the Reading's Wilmington & Northern Branch at Valley, PA, just north of Coatesville. The hi-cube boxcars contain auto parts for the GM plant in Wilmington. Photo courtesy of Richard W. Jahn.

Here is a key to the symbols for the origin and destination terminals:

A	Allentown, PA	B	Bethlehem, PA
C	Lancaster, PA	D	Darby Creek, PA (Chester)
E	Eastside, PA (Philadelphia)	G	Gettysburg, PA
H	Rutherford, PA (Harrisburg)	J	Jersey City, NJ
K	Haucks, PA	L	Lurgan, PA
M	Manville, NJ	N	Newberry Junction, PA
O	Maybrook, NY	P	Philadelphia, PA
R	Reading, PA	S	Port Reading, NJ
T	Tamaqua, PA	V	St. Clair, PA (Pottsville)
W	Wilmington, DE	X	Abrams, PA (Bridgeport/Norristown)
AJ	AlphaJet	CSD	Central States Dispatch

A consolidated system map showing principal connections and terminals on the Reading system can be found here. The image will open in a new window.