Verde Valley Railway
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Railroad |
| Founded | 1989 |
| Founder | David L. Durbano |
| Headquarters | Clarkdale , United States |
Area served | Arizona |
Key people | David L. Durbano (owner) |
| Products | Freight rail transport, Passenger rail excursions |
| Website | verdecanyonrr |
The Clarkdale Arizona Central Railroad is a short-line railroad based in Arizona that operates beginning at a junction with the BNSF Railway's Phoenix Subdivision located in Drake, Arizona. The Drake Switching Company facilitates the interchange between BNSF and AZCR at Drake. The railroad extends its line from Drake to Clarkdale, Arizona. On this same track, the Verde Canyon Railroad runs scenic excursion services through Verde Canyon. Ownership of AZCR belongs to David L. Durbano, and as of spring 2025, the transaction for its sale is awaiting approval from both the FRA and the Surface Transportation Board.
Traffic
Annually, AZCR moves roughly 1,500 railcars, primarily carrying inbound materials such as coal, coke, lime, bauxite, and fly ash destined for the Phoenix Cement Company, while outbound shipments mainly consist of cement products. The Verde Canyon Railroad attracts about 100,000 passengers each year (figures from 2013).
Verde Valley Railway
Between 1913 and 1989, this line was under the operation of the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway (Santa Fe Railway). Initially chartered on November 17, 1911, as a non-operating subsidiary of Santa Fe, the Verde Valley Railway constructed the track from Cedar Glade (west of Drake) to Clarkdale between February 1912 and February 1913 at an expenditure of $1,286,061. The primary purpose was to serve the United Verde Mine near Jerome, Arizona. Full ownership passed to Santa Fe Railway on December 31, 1942.
On April 14, 1989, David L. Durbano acquired the Clarkdale branch from Santa Fe. Freight operations were reorganized under the Clarkdale Arizona Central Railroad name while passenger excursions were branded as Verde Canyon Railroad. Passenger service recommenced in November 1990.
Motive power
The AZCR roster includes seven locomotives originally manufactured by EMD. This fleet consists of one EMD GP7 unit (AZCR 2164), two EMD GP9 locomotives (AZCR 3413 and AZCR 2279), two former ICG Paducah-rebuilt GP26 models (2601 and 2602) acquired from Cimarron Valley Railroad in 2019, along with two classic EMD FP7 units (1510 and 1512) dedicated to excursion service. These FP7s are among just ten still operational in North America and were initially produced for the Alaska Railroad in 1953 at EMD's La Grange facility.
| Locomotive model | Road number |
|---|---|
| EMD FP7 | 1510 |
| 1512 | |
| EMD GP7U | 2164 |
| EMD GP26 | 2601 |
| 2602 | |
| EMD GP9 | 3413 |
| 2279 |
Route
Running alongside the Verde River and positioned between two national forests as well as near a protected wilderness area, the line includes a tunnel measuring 680 feet (207 meters) in length and several bridges.
- Drake – connection point with BNSF Phoenix Subdivision
- Mack – absent from official timetables
- Bear – named after an incident where a bear was shot during construction
- Perkinsville – currently classified as a ghost town
- Sycamore
- Clarkdale
References
External links
- Verde Canyon Railroad, official site