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Who had the best Twin Cities - KC route?

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[quote user="nordique72"] WIAR-  Actually to build a connection between the MSTL and the CGW on the west side of Marshalltown would have been a tremendous pain to achieve. The CGW did enter on the southwest side and paralleled the CNW main for a short time on the south side before crossing it at the exact same spot as where the MSTL crossed coming in from the north (at a southeasterly angle through a residential area). To make the two railroads connect- another pair of diamonds (or overpass) over the CNW main line would have been needed to connect the two lines, most likely a ways west of town where the CGW grade comes in from the south and begins to parallel the CNW main. After crossing the CNW- the new connection would have needed to head north cutting out of the valley the CGW was following, over a pair of ridges before dropping back down to connect with the MSTL's line in the valley they followed into Marshalltown. The topography on the west side of town isn't the best for hacking a new connection between the two railroads. Ironically back in the late 70s the CNW built a connector track on the east side of town between their main and the CGW's line which eliminated a needed back up move for trains arriving from the north off the CGW (and departing to the north likewise) that needed to get into the yard at Marshalltown- it also got the trains off the short segment of street trackage on the CGW main. You can see the remnants of this connection near South 18th Avenue and Main Street. [/quote]I always thought there was more "elbow room" over there just west of the overpass - I'm looking at some pictures I took in 1995 in Marshalltown looking west.  I can barely see the old M&StL coming in from the northwest and what was left of the CGW main on the right, with the M&StL yard to the left.  I can't really see the point where the CGW crossed the CNW (too distant with another road overpass obscuring my view), and I can see some houses way off west of the M&StL's line to Albia.  I can see a connecting track between the CGW main and the north track of the CNW main, again west of my position, connecting to the CNW north track just a little east of M&StL yard's west throat.  There are I think 3 overpasses crossing the trackage in Marshalltown now, and I'm not sure what road I was on at the time.  There's what looks to be lumber yard north of the CGW trackage.Anyway - do you think it might've been more feasible to build a connecting line between the CGW and M&StL, say going north/south between Melbourne & Union?  If they went that way (about 26 miles of new track through good Iowa farmland) they wouldn't have had to build another bridge over the Iowa River.
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