Those pillars of the city, such as Armco (now known as AK Steel) began reducing their workforce in an effort to stay competitive, and many of the jobs were outsourced to local contractors . The Bellefonte Furnace at the steel making plant was mothballed and the hot strip was discontinued. CSX, formerly known as Chesapeake and Ohio Railway, operates one of the largest switchyards in the world in nearby Russell and Raceland. In 1997 a former C&O freighthouse was repurposed as the Ashland Transportation Center, a passenger transportation hub for Amtrak, Greyhound Lines and the Ashland Bus System.