78 Laketon Road -- Snoddard's Switch?!?

[Derrick J Brashear]

On Sat, 19 Jun 1999, Jim Holland wrote:

> Greetings!
> 
> 	In later years, the 78 Laketon was apparently a shuttle between 
> Franklin and Wood in Wilkinsburg to Montier and Laketon Roads.  When did this 
> service terminate?

Dunno, but this is a date I have around somewhere...

> 	This line apparently went much further to Verona and Oakmont.

Yup.

> 		*Was the above operated by PRCo?

Apparenty. (I'm sure Ed'll get me if I'm wrong, but I'm pretty sure of it)

> 		*When was this service cut back to Laketon Road?

Dunno.

> 		*Was there a location on this line known as Snoddard's (sp?)
> 			switch?

Yup. Don't know why I remember it either.

This line ran along a hillside along the southern edge of Verona Road in
part of Penn Hills, and I did some work one summer in a garage below it. I
noticed the line of utility poles and wondered...

It's not "obvious" that a trestle crossed Coal Hollow Road but I've seen a
picture, and on the east side of the valley it runs up is a shelf which
comes out to cross Verona Road as the road swings uphill to the
intersection with the end of Saltsburg. 

If I don't miss my guess, the construction of Robinson Boulevard (4 lanes
between Montier and Frankstown Road) was made possible with the right of
way from this line, but I don't know that, it's just a guess. On the far
side of Frankstown Road, the line swung back off Verona (which connects
across Frankstown from the current Robinson Blvd.) up along the edge of
the aforementioned hillside, parallelling a small street off Graham Blvd
(at that point a connector between Verona and Frankstown) called Hochberg,
and when Hochberg also curved toward Frankstown the line stayed straight,
roughly parallel to Verona Rd, along the edge of the hill.

I found some old email I had about this just 2 days ago. I'll dig it out.

-D