West Michigan Railroad Co.

West Michigan Railroad Co. West Michigan Railroad Co. is Class III rail carrier serving Southwest Michigan since 2015.

As the sun is setting, empty railcars are swapped out for loaded railcars on our newest transload track near Hartford, M...
09/18/2024

As the sun is setting, empty railcars are swapped out for loaded railcars on our newest transload track near Hartford, MI. Built in the fall of 2023, this new track has a railcar unloading pit and two stub tracks. This significant investment has reduced the amount of time it takes to load a truck & has eliminated almost all spillage, which is easily swept up at the end of the day. Just another example of how we are helping feed America.

Bringing a railroad back from the verge of abandonment is no easy task. It takes a massive financial investment & a lot ...
12/20/2021

Bringing a railroad back from the verge of abandonment is no easy task. It takes a massive financial investment & a lot of hard work. Most importantly it takes one of the best, most dedicated teams of railroaders in the industry, who all have a passion for the long term vision of this railroad.

The first picture is from 2016, shortly after we took over the railroad. The picture was taken at our "middle bridge" which can barely be seen in the weeds just to the right of the brush cutter.

The remaining pictures were taken in the same general area around the "middle bridge", Friday December 17, 2021. This is just one small example of the remarkable transformation that would not have been possible without our amazing team!

Special thanks to Mike Tabone for the fantastic pictures documenting our progress.

We continue to invest in our track and overall infrastructure to not only provide excellent and timely service to our cu...
06/11/2021

We continue to invest in our track and overall infrastructure to not only provide excellent and timely service to our customers, but to do so in the safest and most efficient way possible. Our bridge over Hog Creek (pictured here) recently received some rehab work, while another of our bridges was completely rebuilt from the caps up, including a new deck. If you haven’t seen our railroad in a few years, you might not recognize it! Photo by Jonathon Leese.

Our refrigerated traffic is really starting to take off! There are 5 refrigerated boxcars (called “reefers” by railroade...
04/14/2021

Our refrigerated traffic is really starting to take off! There are 5 refrigerated boxcars (called “reefers” by railroaders) in this picture, including our first car of fresh apples from Washington. We are excited to be partnering with our friends at Union Pacific and CSX to move this perishable traffic across the country.

We are excited to partner with our friends at Paw Paw River Transload LLC, located in Hartford, as we bring in thousands...
03/27/2021

We are excited to partner with our friends at Paw Paw River Transload LLC, located in Hartford, as we bring in thousands of tons of stone by rail! This stone will be used for, among other things, several projects along the Lake Michigan shoreline to reduce erosion.

For the last month & a half we have been working with a couple new customers who are moving frozen food products across ...
12/29/2020

For the last month & a half we have been working with a couple new customers who are moving frozen food products across the country, as well as across globe to another continent. After completing a number of test loads for both customers that moved without a single issue, we are happy to announce the return of refrigerated boxcar traffic to the West Michigan Railroad Co. Even though this new traffic is just starting to ramp up, the significance of this business is that it has already created or retained jobs at four Southwest Michigan companies. Three of which are located in Van Buren County, Michigan.

The view Monday night was absolutely spectacular while switching out cars on the new (almost finished) transload track. ...
10/06/2020

The view Monday night was absolutely spectacular while switching out cars on the new (almost finished) transload track. West Michigan is known for producing many beautiful sunsets & last night was no exception. We are so proud to be investing, growing & creating jobs in beautiful Southwest Michigan!

Today marks a very special day on our journey rehabilitate & grow the railroad while creating jobs for our neighbors in ...
08/28/2020

Today marks a very special day on our journey rehabilitate & grow the railroad while creating jobs for our neighbors in Van Buren County, MI. With the track structure of our new transload track completed, it is time to spread ballast. Supplied by our partner National Lime & Stone Company & spread by the hard working men from CR Construction of Michigan, today we successfully completed the challenging task of spreading ballast through the switch area. Tomorrow we will finish spreading ballast on the rest of the new track as well as in a few key places on our mainline for enhanced safety.

In addition to the new transload track, CR Construction of Michigan is also replacing a little over 1,100 ties, 2 bridge decks & building a new private crossing for one of our farmer neighbors to safely cross our mainline.

Our new spur track is about half done! It won’t be long now.
08/14/2020

Our new spur track is about half done! It won’t be long now.

The new mainline switch is installed & ready for stone. To top it off, the sunset last night made for a beautiful end to...
08/12/2020

The new mainline switch is installed & ready for stone. To top it off, the sunset last night made for a beautiful end to a great day.

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Hartford, MI

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