By the early 20th century, the Brighton Park crossing comprised tracks belonging to the Baltimore and Ohio Chicago Terminal Railroad; the Chicago Junction Railroad, eventually controlled by the New York Central Railroad as the Chicago River and Indiana; and the Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, Chicago and St. Louis Railroad, commonly known as the "Panhandle Route", which was controlled by the Pennsylvania Railroad (PRR) running north to south and crossing the Chicago and Alton main line running east to west. The PCC&StL was the first railroad to cross the C&A at Brighton Park in the 1860s and therefore was responsible for arranging the safe crossing of trains. As other railroads built along the Panhandle right of way, this arrangement remained in effect with the responsibility passing to the PRR.