the risk. Coast Division (Othello to Tacoma/Seattle) The second division to be electrified was the Coast Division between Othello, Washington to Tacoma, and to Black River just south of Seattle. This covered a distance of and began electric operation in 1919. The electrification remained in operation until 1972, when diesel locomotives took over. The main reason for electrifying was to get over the Saddle Mountains. Norfolk and Western Railway The Norfolk and Western Railway (N&W) had an electrified district of from Bluefield to Iaeger, West Virginia, between 1913 and 1950. It was an , 25 Hz overhead electrification in a mountain region with a major tunnel (Elkhorn Tunnel). Virginian Railway The VGN had an electrified district of of mountainous terrain built in the 1920s from Roanoke, Virginia to Mullens, West Virginia. It went to the N&W with the 1959 merger and was de-electrified in 1962. Traffic Density Amtrak Amtrak, the national intercity passenger railroad, inherited a 1930s-era 11 kV electrification system from the Pennsylvania Railroad (PRR), which it is slowly modernizing, and has completed two electrification projects on its own lines. A short portion of the Empire Connection was electrified when it was built in 1991, allowing trains from Albany direct access to Penn Station New York by use of dual-mode locomotives. Track near the terminal was electrified with third rail, compatible with the third rail system used within Penn Station by the Long Island Rail Road (LIRR). The Northeast Corridor mainline from New Haven to Boston was electrified in 1999, completing the thwarted ambition of the former New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad. This electrification was part of the Acela Express high-speed project, and involved the building of overhead lines electrified at , requiring trains to handle a change of voltage on the fly at New Haven. Plans to convert the rest of the Northeast Corridor to have been shelved, although the section from New Haven to the Hell Gate Bridge has been converted to by Metro-North. Boston, Revere Beach and Lynn Railroad This railroad changed from steam to electric operation in 1928 using a overhead system. The company filed for bankruptcy in 1937, and ceased operating in 1940. In 1952 a section of the line between East Boston and Revere was bought by the MBTA and is now a part of the Blue Line. The remainder of the line to Lynn is owned by the Commonwealth of