At the time of the 1969 merger of the NH into Penn Central, all that remained of the original CNE was the westernmost section, from Maybrook over the Poughkeepsie Bridge and southeast along the Dutchess County Railroad to the former NY&NE as well as the easternmost portion to the northern part of Bloomfield, CT, from Hartford. The westernmost section was part of the Maybrook Branch, continuing east over former NY&NE and other lines to Derby. With the 1974 closure of the Poughkeepsie Bridge, the Maybrook Branch was abandoned west of Hopewell Junction. In 1976 the remaining line became part of Conrail. The Connecticut Department of Transportation later acquired it and in January 1999 the Central New England Railroad acquired the 8.7 mile (14 km) Griffins Industrial Track.