Juice Train facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Tropicana Juice Train |
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Tropicana box-cars as seen of 2009
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| Overview | |
| Status | Operational |
| Locale | FL (split up in different routes to CA, NJ and OH) |
| Termini | Bradenton, FL |
| Service | |
| Type | Freight rail |
| System |
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| Services | 3 |
| History | |
| Opened | 1945 |
| Technical | |
| Track gauge | 1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in) standard gauge |
| Electrification | No electrification |
The Juice Train is a special name for trains that carry fresh orange juice for Tropicana Products. These trains travel across the United States. Sometimes, people also call them the "Orange Juice Train." They are a very important way for Tropicana to get its juice from Florida to stores far away.
History of the Juice Train
Tropicana Products started in 1947 in Bradenton, Florida. It was founded by Anthony T. Rossi, who was an immigrant from Italy. The company grew from 50 employees to over 3,000 by 2003.
At first, fresh orange juice was delivered by hand in jars to homes nearby. But more and more people wanted Tropicana juice, especially in New York City. By 1957, a ship called S.S. Tropicana began carrying huge amounts of juice to New York every week. The ship stopped its journeys in 1961. After that, juice was moved by trucks and trains.
In 1970, Tropicana started shipping juice in large, insulated boxcars by train. This was one weekly trip from Florida to Kearny, New Jersey. By the next year, the company was using two trains each week. Each train had 60 cars and carried about 1 million US gallons (3.8 million litres) of juice.
On June 7, 1971, the "Great White Juice Train" began its service. This was the first time a single train was used only for food in the food industry. It had 150 special insulated boxcars. These cars were built in Alexandria, Virginia. The train traveled over 1,250 miles (2,010 km). Soon, 100 more cars were added to the fleet. Small cooling units were put in the cars to keep the juice cold on hot days. Tropicana saved a lot of money on fuel in the first ten years by using these trains.
Routes and Operations
The original Juice Train started on the Seaboard Coast Line Railroad (SCL) in Florida. It used tracks that used to belong to other railroad companies. The train then moved to the Richmond, Fredericksburg and Potomac (RF&P) in Richmond, Virginia. From there, Penn Central Transportation (PC) took over. They used electric locomotives to pull the train most of the way to Kearny, New Jersey.
Many things have changed over the years. Tropicana is now part of PepsiCo. It has become the world's top producer of branded fruit juices. In 1976, Conrail (CR) took over from Penn Central. The electric trains stopped running in 1981. The SCL railroad became part of CSX Corporation (CSX) in 1980. CSX later also included the RF&P.
In 1997, a second Juice Train started going to Cincinnati, Ohio. When CSX bought part of Conrail in 1999, CSX began running an all-CSX train. This train went to a new, bigger facility in Jersey City, New Jersey.
The train cars have also changed. They are orange, white, and blue. Some have new ways to keep the juice cold. These cars are called "TPIX" and are custom-built for Tropicana. The Florida East Coast Railway (FEC) now carries Tropicana cars from another juice plant in Fort Pierce, Florida.
The Juice Trains are a reliable and cost-effective way to transport juice. They also act as a powerful advertisement for Tropicana. Ten trips run each week to Jersey City and Cincinnati. Other shipments with special refrigerated cars travel 3,000 miles (4,800 km) by rail to California. Tropicana even had its own small locomotive, No. 98, to move cars at the New Jersey location.
In the 21st century, the Tropicana-CSX Juice Trains have been studied for their efficiency. They have also won awards. They are seen as great examples of how modern rail transport can successfully compete with trucks and other ways of moving products that spoil easily.
In 2017, CSX stopped running separate Juice Trains between Philadelphia and Florida. Now, Tropicana products are carried on other CSX trains to and from Florida. A separate train for Tropicana still runs for a short distance north of Philadelphia.
Juice Train Routes
| Route number | To | From |
|---|---|---|
| #1 | Jersey City, New Jersey | Bradenton, Florida |
| #2 | Cincinnati | |
| #3 | City of Industry, California |
