The first section of LE&E
NY-2, formerly known as
LCL-2, has just been handed off by the L&A in Cincinnati. The
LCL trains originated on the LE&E as a technical classification for fast freight, less than carload trains, which were branded as the
Midnight Service on the LE&E, and the
PDQ Service on the L&A. Through an operating agreement, certain
PDQ trains were handed off to the LE&E in Cincinnati or Columbus, and carried on to Chicago, Cleveland, New York, and Boston as
Midnight Service trains. Likewise, certain
Midnight Service freights were handed off to the L&A in Columbus or Cincinnati, and carried on to points on L&A rails, such as Charleston, Louisville, Nashville, and Chattanooga. After the
Midnight Service trains were called off in the mid-1950's, the LE&E kept this arrangement with the L&A, but instead ferried TOFC traffic and other time sensitive freight instead of LCL cargo. This lucrative arrangement lasted for many years between the two roads, and was one of the building blocks of the
Concord Lines of the late 1970's and early 1980's.