Scottslawn Subdivision (160.860 MHz):
The Scottslawn Subdivision is part of the former T&OC Western Branch between Thurston and Toledo. Originally a continuous line through Columbus, the line was severed at Scioto Tower in early 1999, to allow bridge consolidation as part of the reconstruction of State Route 315. The Conrail merger fit well into this project; the Western south of Scioto was destined for NS ownership, while the portion north went to CSX. After the merger, the CSX portion of the Western was combined with the Scottslawn Secondary north of Hilliard; the combined lines are known as the Scotts Secondary Subdivision, or more commonly as the Scottslawn Subdivision.
The combined Scottslawn today hosts as much or more traffic than it did under Conrail, with several manifest, locals and intermodal trains running between Parsons Yard and points north. Operation remains manual block, which means trains must contact the dispatcher in Indianapolis to obtain verbal clearance to use a specified portion of the line. This makes train watching much easier.
The Scottslawn ends at Ridgeway, junction with the ex-NYC Cleveland to Indianapolis main. North of Ridgeway it becomes the Toledo Branch, which is one of the former Conrail lines which has diminished in importance since the merger. Most Toledo-bound traffic turns east at Ridgeway for Marion, where it again turns north and heads to Toledo via the ex-C&O Columbus Subdivision.
Lilly Chapel Line (161.040 MHz):
The Camp Chase is the former NYC mainline from Columbus to Cincinnati via London. Downgraded by Penn Central between Columbus and London in favor of the former PRR route through West Jefferson, it remained a Conrail secondary line until the early 1990s, when Conrail began spinning off some of the less profitable secondary lines. The portions through downtown Columbus and between Lilly Chapel and London have been removed since the late 1970s, while the London to Cincinnati portion is today part of Norfolk Southern's Dayton District.
The line connects with the NS Dayton District at the former CP-Miami, once the location of Miami Crossing Tower, crossing with the PRR Columbus-Xenia main line. The line today hosts several industries, including Pillsbury at Lilly Chapel, Con-Agra at Sullivant Avenue, and the Columbus Dispatch printing plant near Georgesville.
Dayton District (160.980 MHz):
The Dayton District is a combination of former PRR and NYC mainlines. From downtown Columbus to London it uses the former PRR Columbus-Xenia main; at CP-162 in London it changes to the former NYC main line to Cincinnati. Several miles west of downtown Columbus is Buckeye Yard, built by Penn Central in 1968-69 to replace the aging PRR and NYC facilites scattered around Columbus. The Dayton District begins at CP-138 in downtown Columbus, junction with the CSX Columbus Line Subdivision, the OC C&N Subdivision, and the NS Weber Connection, which was built just prior to the 1999 merger to allow NS Sandusky District trains access to and from Buckeye Yard.
The Dayton District is Norfolk Southern's primary route between Columbus and Cincinnati, and has gained in importance for this routing since the downgrading of the Cincinnati District between Portsmouth and Cincinnati. Traffic bound for Cincinnati from the east coast now comes up to Columbus via the Columbus District and heads west to Cincinnati.