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The EBT Foundation and the Rockhill Trolley Museum are at odds over the introduction of rail bike rides on the standard gauge track that is used by the streetcar museum but is owned by the narrow gauge railroad. 

The EBT Foundation is the owner of the East Broad Top Railroad, a national historic landmark and the oldest narrow gauge railroad in the East. The trolley museum was founded in 1960 and has leased track from the EBT for decades. 

In early June, the trolley museum announced that beginning July 1, it would only be operating on Friday, Saturday and Sunday afternoons, because of new rail bike rides being offered by the EBT on the tracks used by the streetcars. The announcement set off a firestorm of rumors online that the EBT was about to evict the trolley museum. 

On June 12, the EBT Foundation issued a three-page press release giving its side of the story. According to the foundation, the EBT has been renewing the trolley museum’s lease annually since 2022 and has been negotiating a new, long-term lease to benefit both parties. But those negotiations have been fruitless, EBT officials wrote. As a result, the EBT has said it would not renew the current lease and that if a new one were not negotiated, the trolley museum would have to vacate EBT-owned property by December 2027, per the current lease. EBT officials put the blame for the impasse on the trolley museum’s management. 

“The current situation has reached this point due to the failure of their management, which failed to negotiate in good faith, and their lawyer, who has never responded to any of our letters and has failed to try to find common ground to reach a new lease,” EBT officials wrote.

EBT officials added that it was their responsibility to provide visitors with a robust and diverse experience, and the rail bike tours would be a part of that. The tours are expected to begin later this summer.

In a follow-up email with Railfan & Railroad, EBT Foundation General Manager Brad Esposito wrote, “We are still hoping for a positive long-term solution to the ongoing negotiations with RTY. A diverse visitor experience in Rockhill Furnace has always been a goal for the EBT Foundation, and I am convinced a solution that will benefit all will be achieved.”

Officials with the Rockhill Trolley Museum have rejected the EBT Foundation’s claims, but also said that they hoped to find a resolution that would benefit both parties.

In response to the EBT’s press release, the trolley museum provided the following statement to Railfan & Railroad: “In response to the Rockhill Trolley Museum’s announcement of curtailed operating hours, due to the operation of East Broad Top Foundation railbikes along RTM’s leased standard-gauge line, it was the decision of EBTF to air the details of the disputes between RTM and EBTF. While EBTF’s response contains inaccuracies and misrepresentations, RTM management does not believe it would be appropriate to post a detailed rebuttal in a public forum, and we do not intend to engage in an exchange of personal insults. The management of the Rockhill Trolley Museum stands behind its decisions and continues to believe that all issues between RTM and EBTF can be resolved to the reasonable satisfaction of both parties through good faith negotiations.”

—Justin Franz 

The post East Broad Top, Trolley Museum At Odds Over Rail Bikes appeared first on Railfan & Railroad Magazine.