Railroad project expected to bring more business, jobs to Carrollton, Ohio

Eleven Hopedale residents have managed to put a land agreement with a short line railroader on pause.

Do not underestimate the power of the railroad. In an effort to improve business and bring more jobs to Carrollton, Ohio, Griffeth & Son Trucking is planning to build a railroad spur at a vacant industrial plant.

Limestone is big business for Griffeth & Son Trucking, and carrying the product by train will be better than by truck. The product comes from a north-central Ohio quarry near Findlay.

Griffeth & Son Trucking plans on adding 1,100 ft to an existing spur and will install a pit underneath it for the limestone. Wheeling & Lake Erie Railway Co. will handle the rail delivery, and the goal is to bring in more limestone in the coming years. Currently, Griffeth & Son Trucking handles 25,000 tons a year. After the rail spur project is completed that total could go up to 100,000 tons a year with one train delivery per week. Griffeth & Son Trucking is not ruling out the possibility of handling two or three train deliveries a week.

The project will cost $3.5 million, with $350,000 in grants expected to come in. The Ohio Rail Development Commission is expected to contribute a $100,000 grant. Another $200,000 will come from JobsOhio, which is working with the Appalachian Partnership for Economic Growth. The Carroll County Community Improvement Corporation will contribute $50,000.

Griffeth & Son currently employs 29 workers, and plans on hiring 40 more in the next three years.

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