The Phoenix Subdivision is a railroad line in the U.S. state of Arizona owned by the BNSF Railway. It runs from Phoenix in the south to Williams Junction in the north where it connects to the Seligman Subdivision and Southern Transcon.[1] As of 2018[update] about eight trains daily operate over the line with top speeds of up to 49 miles per hour (79 km/h).[2] The line is part of a system of proposed commuter rail lines in the Phoenix metropolitan area.
The line from Williams to Ash fork was initially laid out by the Atlantic and Pacific Railroad, though much of this section was reconstructed by the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway (predecessor to BNSF) in 1960 to bypass several sharp curves and steep gradients.[3][4] South of Ash Fork the route largely follows the original Santa Fe, Prescott and Phoenix Railway, except for segments around Prescott which were similarly bypassed in the 1960s.
BNSF has purchased land from the State of Arizona and is in the process of planning and getting approval for a large intermodal/logistics center near Surprise.[5]
Pry, Mark; Andersen, Fred (December 2011). "Arizona Transportation History" (PDF). ADOT. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2017-06-06. Retrieved 2024-07-11.