The early operations of the Western & Atlantic Railroad While the first train operated over a portion of the Western & Atlantic Railroad on December 24, 1842, 20 miles of the line did not go into regular operation until September 15, 1845, the same VIDEO: CSX runs special train honoring Medal of Honor recipients What’s it like to ride through the modern Western & Atlantic tunnel? Running through the ‘new’ tunnel in Tunnel Hill, Georgia Let’s start by defining what constitutes a railroad oddity