Caldwell County Railroad

he Caldwell County Railroad is shortline railroad operating 17 miles of branchline between Hickory and Lenoir, North Carolina. The railroad is operated by Southeast Shortlines, Inc., which also operates the Thermal Belt Railway. The Caldwell County operation was formed in 1994 to take over from the short-lived Carolina & Northwestern Railroad — formed in 1990 in the first batch of Norfolk Southern's Thoroughbred Shortline Program, which spun off lower use branchlines to new shortlines utilizing structured lease agreements. The line was sold to the Caldwell County Economic Development, which leases to CWCY. In 2007, the last five miles of the branch were abandoned. Today the railroad serves 9 customers, handling approximately 425 carloads per year. Commodities handled are mostly plastics and building materials. The Caldwell County interchanges with Norfolk Southern and stores its power at Hickory.