Longhorn

Company History: Launched in 1996, The Longhorn Railway took over freight operations on 162 miles of former Southern Pacific line from Llano through Austin to Giddings, Texas from the Austin & North Western. The track was owned by the city of Austin which in 1998 transferred it to the city’s transit agency Cap Met. The Longhorn was owned by Central of Tennessee Railway & Navigation Company (note the CT logo on the cabs.)

Commodities hauled included aggregates, beer, calcium carbonate, chemicals, limestone, lumber, plastics and paper. Traffic was pretty modest with about 100 cars per week moving on the line.

Relations between Longhorn and Cap Met were contentious leading to several revisions to the operating contract and multiple lawsuits, nearly all filed by Longhorn Railway. In 2000, the Longhorn Railway was terminated by Cap Met and the freight handling contract was taken over by Austin Area Terminal Railway.

Brief History: The U.S. is a country of 50 states covering a vast swath of North America, with Alaska in the northwest and Hawaii extending the nation’s presence into the Pacific Ocean. Major Atlantic Coast cities are New York, a global finance and culture center, and capital Washington, DC. Midwestern metropolis Chicago is known for influential architecture and on the west coast, Los Angeles' Hollywood is famed for filmmaking.