Do any former Erie mainlines still exist with heavy Class I traffic? From what I can see it looks like Erie lost more than the others through consolidations.
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I believe the NS southern tier line from Binghamton towards Buffalo is mostly former Erie, although portions are also former Lackawanna. However, you are correct, most of the Erie mainline from Jersey City to Chicago is either abandoned or secondary track. I should note that if we included passenger operations, the Erie main is still quite busy through New Jersey and into New York State as far west as Port Jervis.
By my understanding, the Southern Tier route is Erie's former Buffalo-Hornell-Binghamton-Port Jervis route. It was all Erie. NS owns the portion West of Binghamton and NYSW East. Neither qualifies as heavy traffic.
The Hornell to Buffalo line was actually a branch built from the mainline that was meant to terminate in Dunkirk, NY. Hornell-Dunkirk traffic never quite matched the Hornell-Buffalo business.
There's VERY LITTLE left of the DL&W west of Binghamton.
Lee
Traffic on the western Tier (Buffalo (Bison) - Binghamton) has picked up over the last 18 months or so. By my count there are about ten dailies plus extras. Traffic increases are due to frack sand, butane tankers, stacks headed to the Patriot Corridor, Bakkan oil unit trains, and a significant increase in Allentown traffic. NS is expected to "reopen" the eastern Tier (Binghamton - Croxton) later this year with a few consists that now run the Lehigh line through Allentown. Traffic is expected to continue to grow as more stack traffic out of northern NJ bound for the inland port of Buffalo develops. Also, the ultimate disposition of CP's D&H line may also play into the Tier's future traffic levels.
With all of that being said, the traffic levels on the Tier are no where near those of CSX on the former NYC Water Level Route.
BTW, the former D,L&W main between Painted Post and Cohocton is still in use by LAL/B&H.
Poppyl
The original Erie main line is intact from Hoboken, NJ, to Buffalo; the line to Chicago (the western segment of the S. Tier line) diverges from the Buffalo line at Cass St., in Hornell, NY. The Chicago line is still intact from Hornell west thru Salamanca, Olean, & Jamestown, NY out to Meadville, PA. That part - Hornell to Meadville - is operated by the all-Alco Western NY & Pennsylvania RR, based in Olean, where the ex-Erie Chicago line crosses the former Pennsylvania RR line from Buffalo south to Harrisburg, PA.
The EL mainline was cut west of Akron, OH, on "C" day on 4/1/76, with the formation of Conrail.
