The Rapid City, Pierre & Eastern Railroad is a Class II freight railroad operating across South Dakota and southern Minnesota in the northern plains of the United States. Portions of the railroad also extend into Wyoming and Nebraska. It is owned and operated by Genesee & Wyoming. The primary commodities shipped are grain, clay, and cement.Nord, James - Rail funding expected to fuel job growth, development. Rapid City Journal, November 2, 2015 Operations began on June 1, 2014.Stegl, Jeff - Rapid City, Pierre & Eastern Railroad aims to become engrained in South Dakota's agricultural products network Progressive Railroading, September 2014
History Genesee & Wyoming, a holding company of mostly shortline railroads, formed the Rapid City, Pierre & Eastern to acquire the western end of the former Dakota, Minnesota and Eastern Railroad (DM&E) rail line from the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR). The RCPE and DM&E entered an agreement on January 2, 2014, wherein RCPE would acquire 670 miles of track and 219 miles of trackage rights from the DM&E.Rapid City, Pierre & Eastern Railroad, Inc.-Acquisition and Operation Exemption Including Interchange Commitment-Dakota, Minnesota & Eastern Railroad Corporation The Federal Register. March 27, 2014. The acquisition was completed on May 30, 2014, for $210 million. Most of its employees came over from the DM&E. Operations began on June 1, 2014.
The state of South Dakota partnered with the RCPE to enhance rail service and keep agricultural commodities moving to market.Mall, Scott - FreightWaves Classics/Infrastructure: New railroad sidings opened in South Dakota FreightWaves, Friday July 8, 2022 In 2021, the RCPE received state and federal funding totalling US$42 million to upgrade 163 miles of rail between Fort Pierre and Rapid City.Thompson, Nathan - RCP&E railroad project receives $42 million in funding from state, feds Rapid City Journal, November 30, 2021 This project updated that portion of the line with 136 pound continuous welded rail.RCP&E Railroad to upgrade main line in South Dakota. Progressive Railroading, November 23, 2021 This increased the weight capacity of rail cars from 263,000-pound to 286,000-pound and the speed limit from 10 mph to a minimum of 25 mph. In December, 2025, the RCPE offered $3.125 million to purchase two segments of state-owned track: 4.2 miles at the Wolsey Interchange with BNSF, and the 15.3-mile branch between Huron, SD, and Yale, SD. The offer included some conditions, such as the state of South Dakota being able to repurchase the Yale branch should RCPE abandon it, and the right of first refusal should the railroad sell any or all of the properties to a third party. The sale was approved in January, 2026.
Route The Rapid City, Pierre & Eastern owns of track. The main line runs between Tracy, Minnesota, and Rapid City, South Dakota, with branches north to Colony, in Crook County, Wyoming, and south to Dakota Junction, Nebraska. Much of the main line from Tracy to Rapid City is paralleled by U.S. Route 14. The route travels the length of the state from the eastern border with Minnesota, to the western border with Wyoming, crossing the Missouri river at Pierre.Official South Dakota Rail Map. South Dakota Department of Transportation, June 2021 Huron Subdivision – Tracy, Minnesota to Huron, South Dakota - 136 miles Pierre Subdivision – Huron to Pierre - 118 miles PRC Subdivision – Pierre to Rapid City - 170 miles Black Hills Subdivision – Colony, Wyoming to Crawford/Dakota Junction, Nebraska - 174 miles There are three short branches as well: Blunt, South Dakota–Onida, South Dakota Huron, South Dakota–Yale, South Dakota (Originally owned by the State of South Dakota and operated by the RCPE, and now owned and operated by RCPE; meets the BNSF Railway at Yale from Watertown) Redfield, South Dakota–Mansfield, South Dakota (Accessed via trackage rights on the BNSF Mitchell - Wolsey - Aberdeen line) There are interchanges with the BNSF Railway at Wolsey, South Dakota, Crawford, Nebraska, and Florence, Minnesota. The interchange with the Canadian Pacific is at Tracy, Minnesota. The RCPE has trackage rights from Tracy to Mankato, Minnesota on the CPR, where there is an interchange with the Union Pacific Railroad. The RCPE also has trackage rights over the BNSF between Yale, SD to Watertown, South Dakota, and Wolsey, South Dakota to Aberdeen, South Dakota.
Operations , weight capacity between Fort Pierre, South Dakota and Tracy, Minnesota is 286,000 gross pounds per axle, while the weight capacity between Onida, South Dakota and Blunt, South Dakota is 263,000 gross pounds per axle.
Accidents and incidents
On May 17, 2020, SD40-2 #3437 collided with a 2002-built Ford F250 pickup at Rapid City East, South Dakota while leading a manifest train, but it was repaired and returned to service. However, the unit is slated to be scrapped or rebuilt by the G&W as part a fine resolution agreement with the EPA.
Locomotive fleet The vast majority of the fleet consisted of EMD SD40-2s.
Current fleet LocomotiveBuilderModelSerial no.Frame no.Build dateNotesCORP 2036EMDGP38354217191-11810/19692085GP38-3328655723-62/19672088328797961-43/19672089343127127-319/19682086343077127-269/19682087328737960-22/1967MNA 2762SD40M-2324317932-3212/1966MNA 2765379097324-219/1971PNWR 3007GP40326027942-151/1967stripped to frame and cabKRR 3201SD40M-2320947912-38/1966AGR 3362SD40-2796311-94/1980AGR 3412796305-77/19803420786263-2511/19793421796297-682/19803423796311-14/19803424796305-47/19803425796297-471/19803426786263-3211/19793427786181-266/197934287334-482/19723429796297-642/19803430786170-362/19793432786181-116/19793433766056-223/19773434786263-1511/19793435796297-11/19803436766056-143/19773437796297-842/1980Mandated scrapping by EPA3438786263-4512/19793444776064-68/19783445786193-3811/19793446786170-312/19793447766005-89/19763452786181-56/19793453786218-358/19793454766005-59/19763456806049-69/19813457786170-51/19793458786170-533/19793460786228-79/19793461796297-21/19803462GMDA39509/19803463A39479/19803464EMD786246-79/1979346574661-192/19753467796297-1023/19803468786263-3611/19793469796311-154/19803470786216-4112/19793471GMDA37709/19793480EMDSD40-3379067324-189/19713481376487324-108/19713482331707998-105/19673999SD40-2796297-171/1980MNA 4081SD40-274690-253/1975
Former locomotives LocomotiveBuilderModelSerial no.Frame no.Build dateNotesPNWR 3051EMDSD40-3345767148-71/1969to PNWR 3051, 2025LTEX 3099SD45T-272601-466/1972to LTEX 30993422SD40-2 786218-202/1979Donated to the American Heartland Railroad Society in 20263431796345-2511/1980scrapped 20243455796311-174/19803459796297-742/1980scrapped 20233466786170-633/1979scrapped 20243483SD40-3357267214-21/1970scrapped 2023ARZC 3996SD40M-27382-211/1972to KYLE/ARZC 39963997319987887-88/1966to KYLE 3997ARZC 400174601-68/1974scrapped 2024ARZC 4002343737163-42/19696050SD40-2314317865-183/1966to AGR 6050; to AGR 32116400786170-643/1979to BAYL 64006403786263-2211/1979to TPW 34406406806053-111/1980to AZER 3469; to BPRR 3318; to KYLE/BPRR 33186410796297-371/1980to NECR 33206414796297-772/1980to ARZC/RCPE 6414; to ARZC 3998; to CORP/ARZC 3998641574639-199/1974to TPW 34416416786218-27/1979to BAYL 33216429796297-842/1980to RCPE/AZER 3470; to AZER 34706434796297-171/1980to ARZC/RCPE 6434; to ARZC 39996444776064-48/1978to AZER 3471; to BPRR 3319; to KYLE/BPRR 33196445796297-963/1980to BAYL 6445; to AGR 32136453GMDA39519/1980to TPW 34426456EMD776088-33/1978to TPW 3443LTEX 9282SD45T-272625-223/1973to LTEX 9282LTEX 934573674-21/1975to LTEX 9345
See also
Dakota, Minnesota and Eastern Railroad
References
External links
Official site Diesel roster