Like the roundhouse, the abandoned railroad yard had fallen into severe disrepair by the time the Park Service took possession of Steamtown in 1986. The tracks wee overgrown and strewn with debris, and much effort was required to return the tracks to operating standard. Visitors are now allowed to wander the yard freely, despite the active switching operations of a short-line freight railroad that shares the yard. Observation opportunities are much enhanced by a long, raised pedestrian ramp that provides birds eye views of the yard’s sprawling trackage.