Editing Pennsylvania Railroad (section)

== Decline and Merger ==

The Pennsylvania Railroad's decline began after World War II as automobiles, trucks, and airlines diverted traffic from railroads. Passenger service became increasingly unprofitable as Americans chose automobiles for short trips and airlines for long ones. Freight traffic held up better but faced intense competition from trucking. The PRR's dense network in the industrial Northeast, which had been an advantage when factories clustered near railroad lines, became a liability as manufacturing dispersed to locations accessible by highway. The company's fixed costs—maintaining stations, yards, and track—could not be reduced proportionally with declining traffic.<ref name="salsbury">{{cite book |last=Salsbury |first=Stephen |title=No Way to Run a Railroad: The Untold Story of the Penn Central Crisis |year=1982 |publisher=McGraw-Hill |location=New York}}</ref>

In 1968, the PRR merged with its historic rival, the New York Central Railroad, to form Penn Central. The merger combined two declining railroads into a company that proved even less viable than its predecessors. Management conflicts, incompatible operations, and continued traffic losses overwhelmed the combined company. On June 21, 1970, Penn Central filed for bankruptcy—the largest corporate bankruptcy in American history to that date. The railroad's passenger services were eventually absorbed by Amtrak, while freight operations became part of Conrail and later Norfolk Southern and CSX. The Pennsylvania Railroad as an independent company ceased to exist, though its physical infrastructure continues to serve as the backbone of rail transportation in the northeastern United States.<ref name="salsbury"/>