East Penn Railroad
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| Reporting mark | ESPN |
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| Locale |
Pennsylvania Delaware |
| Dates of operation | 2007– |
| Track gauge | 4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge |
| Length | 114 mi (183.5 km) |
| Headquarters | Kennett Square, Pennsylvania |
| Website | eastpennrr.com |
The East Penn Railroad (reporting mark ESPN) is a short-line railroad that operates a number of mostly-unconnected lines in the U.S. states of Pennsylvania and Delaware. Except for two industrial park switching operations, all are former Pennsylvania Railroad or Reading Company lines, abandoned or sold by Conrail or its predecessors.
ESPN was formed in 2007 through the merger of East Penn Railways (reporting mark EPRY) and Penn Eastern Rail Lines (reporting mark PRL), each of which began operating in the 1990s. The railroad is owned by Regional Rail, LLC, which also owns the Middletown and New Jersey Railroad, Tyburn Railroad, and Conshohocken Recycling & Rail Transfer.
East Penn Railroad (ESPN) was formed in 2007 by the merger of East Penn Railway and Penn Eastern Rail Lines. Since the merger, the railroad has improved service and infrastructure on lines with customer growth potential; weaker lines were abandoned or sold off. 4.5 miles (7.2 km) of track was returned to service. A yard was also constructed in Pocopson, Pennsylvania along the Wilmington & Northern (W&N). ESPN has acquired additional locomotives and replaced older locomotives to handle increased traffic, including the acquisition of two rebuilt EMD GP38-2's from GATX to be used along the W&N and Octoraro lines.
ESPN attempted to abandon the Colebrookdale line between Pottstown and Boyertown in 2008; it was eventually purchased by Berks County. In 2010, the Chester Valley line between King of Prussia and Bridgeport was abandoned and subsequently sold to Montgomery County so that it can become a part of the Chester Valley Rail Trail.
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