The Adirondack Scenic Railroad will be able to run seasonal passenger excursion trains between Tupper Lake and Lake Placid, N.Y., for just one more year, according to a report published by the Adirondack Almanack. After 2016, New York State will follow through with a plan to lift the 34 miles of track to construct a recreational trail. Adirondack Scenic would continue to operate trains between the current end of serviceable track at Big Moose (north of Thendara) south to Remsen and Utica, connecting with Amtrak’s Empire Service trains. The possibility remains for tracks to be repaired to allow service between Utica and Tupper Lake, but perhaps with a new operator selected by the state.

The tracks in question are former New York Central Adirondack Division, abandoned north of Remsen by Penn Central following floods and washouts from Hurricane Agnes in 1972. New York State purchased the corridor and rehabilitated the line to allow for through service between Utica and Lake Placid to serve the 1980 Winter Olympics. The Adirondack Railway shut down in 1981, but the corridor was slowly reactivated in sections starting in 1992. Adirondack Scenic Railroad began operation in 1994, but has come under attack in recent years from various groups within Adirondack State Park that want the railroad removed.

—Passenger Train Journal