Brainerd Subdivision

{{Short description|Railway line in Minnesota}}

{{Use American English|date=February 2025}}

{{more sources|date=August 2021}}

The Brainerd Subdivision is a rail line owned and operated by BNSF Railway. It runs from Staples, Minnesota where it connects with the Staples Subdivision to Carlton, Minnesota and the Lakes Subdivision, about {{convert|150|mi}} in length.

The line was initially built by Northern Pacific Railway with service commencing in about 1911.{{cn|date=August 2021}} In 1970, the Northern Pacific merged with other railroads to form the Burlington Northern Railroad. The company then merged with Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway (ATSF) in 1996 to form BNSF.

{{As of|2021}} the rail line gets about seven trains daily, most of which are coal and one local that works Sunday and Wednesday{{cite book |title=Central Minnesota Freight Study |date=December 2012 |publisher=Minnesota Department of Transportation |pages=48, 49 |url=https://www.dot.state.mn.us/ofrw/freight/PDF/CentralMinnesotaFreightStudy.pdf |access-date=9 August 2021}} Speed limits along some parts of the line are a maximum of 49 mph.{{cite web|url=http://www.dot.state.mn.us/ofrw/maps/MNFreightRailroadMapJan2015Large.pdf|title=Minnesota Freight Railroad Map|author=Office of Freight and Commercial Vehicle Operations|publisher=Minnesota Department of Transportation|date=January 2015|accessdate=March 20, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160527181341/http://www.dot.state.mn.us/ofrw/maps/MNFreightRailroadMapJan2015Large.pdf|archive-date=May 27, 2016|url-status=dead}}