12. The Allegheny Portage Railroad was a short-lived convenience
The Allegheny Portage Railroad reversed the process to descend the mountain on the other side. Gravity pulled the cars down the inclines, braked by ropes attached to the steam engines. A total of ten inclines were used to cross the mountain, five on each side. Upon reaching the base, the passengers, their luggage, and the freight being carried were transferred to another canal boat for the journey to Pittsburgh in one direction, and Philadelphia in the other. Once wire ropes were installed the passenger cars were discontinued, and the canal boats themselves ascended and descended the mountains, carried on articulated base railcars.
The Allegheny Portage Railroad and the canals reduced the travel time between Philadelphia and Pittsburgh to as little as three days, and never more than five. Ten years after Dickens crossed the mountain the Pennsylvania Railroad traversed the Alleghenies, and the journey between the two cities was reduced to just over twelve hours. The Allegheny Portage Railroad operated year-round, 24 hours per day, for 20 years before the railroads made the canals and its services crossing the mountains obsolete. During its lifetime, both stationary and locomotive engines carted passengers and freight across the mountains in what was a thrilling and unique experience in western Pennsylvania.