Port of Tillamook Bay Railroad
Posted: Sun Feb 08, 2009 9:38 pm
I have started this topic to chart the progress on rebuilding the Port of Tillamook Bay Railroad.
For those who don't know or have forgotten, the POTB runs the old SP line over the Coast Range in northwestern Oregon. Completed in 1911, it allows goods to be efficiently transported over the mountains and keeps trucks off the dangerous highways (US-30, US-26 and OR-6) that run between the coast and the Portland area.
In December, 2007, northwestern Oregon was slammed with a record-breaking storm that dumped over five inches of rain, over-saturated the ground and caused widespread flooding. In Washington state, Interstate 5 near Centralia was about 10 feet underwater in some places.
The POTB took a huge hit. Entire sections of line were washed out as rivers swelled, tunnels became plugged with mud and debris and two bridges were knocked out. Some estimates peg the cost of repairs at $56 million or more and there are no guarantees that it won't happen again. A similar scenario played out in 1996 but all of the repairs and upgrades performed after the '96 storm held in the '07 storm. In January of '08, the POTB was able to inspect the line and realized the damage was far worse than originally feared. Shortly after, they laid off all employees and mothballed their locomotive fleet which includes some of the last EMD SD-9s in actual freight service (instead of just switching). Since then, the line has sat empty, rusting away with the damaged sections still completely unusable.
Because the railroad is part of the actual Port of Tillamook, its funding is extremely limited. Prior to the storm, the railroad's revenue was able to pay for basic upkeep and to keep the payroll of employees going. There was almost no spare cash for upgrades. Needless to say, the POTB does not have the necessary $56 million lying around. The best they can offer right now is $2 million. Thankfully, the Federal Government has already pledged 75% of the cost to rebuild the railroad and the Oregon Governor Ted Kulungoski has stated numerous times that if a bill to rebuild the line is put before him, he will sign it.
Despite this, attempts at repair have languished since the damage occurred. Trucks have taken the place of the trains in hauling lumber over the coast range and all POTB RR employees who were laid off are still without a paycheck.
This historic line is very maintenance-intensive due to its environment and repairs will be difficult due to its extremely remote locations. However there is good news. I spoke with a P&W engineer last week who told me progress is being made to push a POTB RR rescue package through the state senate. If it goes before the Governor, hopefully he will honor his promise and sign it, then things can get swinging again.
Railfans in this area have been biting their nails off for over a year now, waiting to see what the fate of this line will eventually be. Personally, I'm torn. The sensible side of me thinks it's stupid to tear out or abandon a perfectly good railroad that is far more efficient in carrying cargo over the mountains than trucks are. One car load is equal to ten extra trucks on the highways. The other side of me sees that damage like this is inevitable and that the losses should simply be cut. That would be a very sad day, though. I will keep everybody posted on what transpires.
For a view of the railroad before the storm click here. Please note that page was last updated in 2005 and ironically claims "Its future seems secure." How twisted is fate...
For those who don't know or have forgotten, the POTB runs the old SP line over the Coast Range in northwestern Oregon. Completed in 1911, it allows goods to be efficiently transported over the mountains and keeps trucks off the dangerous highways (US-30, US-26 and OR-6) that run between the coast and the Portland area.
In December, 2007, northwestern Oregon was slammed with a record-breaking storm that dumped over five inches of rain, over-saturated the ground and caused widespread flooding. In Washington state, Interstate 5 near Centralia was about 10 feet underwater in some places.
The POTB took a huge hit. Entire sections of line were washed out as rivers swelled, tunnels became plugged with mud and debris and two bridges were knocked out. Some estimates peg the cost of repairs at $56 million or more and there are no guarantees that it won't happen again. A similar scenario played out in 1996 but all of the repairs and upgrades performed after the '96 storm held in the '07 storm. In January of '08, the POTB was able to inspect the line and realized the damage was far worse than originally feared. Shortly after, they laid off all employees and mothballed their locomotive fleet which includes some of the last EMD SD-9s in actual freight service (instead of just switching). Since then, the line has sat empty, rusting away with the damaged sections still completely unusable.Because the railroad is part of the actual Port of Tillamook, its funding is extremely limited. Prior to the storm, the railroad's revenue was able to pay for basic upkeep and to keep the payroll of employees going. There was almost no spare cash for upgrades. Needless to say, the POTB does not have the necessary $56 million lying around. The best they can offer right now is $2 million. Thankfully, the Federal Government has already pledged 75% of the cost to rebuild the railroad and the Oregon Governor Ted Kulungoski has stated numerous times that if a bill to rebuild the line is put before him, he will sign it.
Despite this, attempts at repair have languished since the damage occurred. Trucks have taken the place of the trains in hauling lumber over the coast range and all POTB RR employees who were laid off are still without a paycheck.
This historic line is very maintenance-intensive due to its environment and repairs will be difficult due to its extremely remote locations. However there is good news. I spoke with a P&W engineer last week who told me progress is being made to push a POTB RR rescue package through the state senate. If it goes before the Governor, hopefully he will honor his promise and sign it, then things can get swinging again.
Railfans in this area have been biting their nails off for over a year now, waiting to see what the fate of this line will eventually be. Personally, I'm torn. The sensible side of me thinks it's stupid to tear out or abandon a perfectly good railroad that is far more efficient in carrying cargo over the mountains than trucks are. One car load is equal to ten extra trucks on the highways. The other side of me sees that damage like this is inevitable and that the losses should simply be cut. That would be a very sad day, though. I will keep everybody posted on what transpires.
For a view of the railroad before the storm click here. Please note that page was last updated in 2005 and ironically claims "Its future seems secure." How twisted is fate...
The line is officially mothballed and I highly doubt it will ever come back now. I suspect they will abandon completely within a few years. Here ends an era. 
