Woodinville Subdivision
Encyclopedia
The Woodinville Subdivision is a railroad line that was formerly owned by BNSF Railway
and takes its names from one of its original end points in Woodinville
, Washington, United States
. The line extends approximately 42 miles (67.6 km) in east King County
and Snohomish County
. The line's ownership has been transferred in a deal involving King County and the Port of Seattle
. The section from Snohomish to Woodinville is operated, on contract, by a company called Eastside Rail Freight, which is associated with the Ballard Terminal Railroad
and Meeker Southern.
and Tukwila
, at a place called Black River Junction, and runs north along the shore of Lake Washington
through Bellevue
and several smaller cities before reaching its northern terminus
in the small city of Snohomish
. It was completed more than a century ago and is still used daily by local freight trains and until recently, the Spirit of Washington Dinner Train
, a popular and profitable tourist attraction
. However, the Spirit of Washington's current contract to use the railroad ended on July 31, 2007 and efforts to renew it have been rejected by both BNSF Railroad and King County.
The railroad is mostly single track
ed with a few passing sidings
to allow trains to pass each other and spurs
for local industries, and is a former Northern Pacific branch line. There is also a branch line from Woodinville to downtown Redmond
, which is a remnant of a former Northern Pacific line to North Bend
via Issaquah
. A major feature of the railroad is the spectacular Wilburton Trestle
, which was originally constructed in 1904 and was the longest wooden trestle in use in the Northwest, until the line was severed, just south of the trestle, in 2008.
use to use the line to deliver 737
fuselage
s to its Renton plant from its supplier in Wichita, Kansas
, Spirit AeroSystems
. The line also use to serve as a bypass during outages for the only other north-south rail route between the Cascade Mountains and Puget Sound
, the Seattle/Scenic Subdivisions
, which runs through downtown Seattle and along Puget Sound
. The line also use to be used by trains whose loads are too bulky to fit through the century old Great Northern Tunnel
that runs under downtown Seattle
. However, when the line was used as a bypass, its sharp curves, at-grade street crossing
s, and poor condition requireds trains to keep speeds to no more than 30 mph (13.4 m/s). After a rainstorm washed out part of the Seattle line in 1997, a freight train derailed navigating the line as a bypass.
, in which a majority of the line is located, negotiated for the purchase of the railroad for the stated purpose of keeping the right of way intact for possible future transit use but replacing most of the track with a bicycle trail. A deal was worked out in conjunction with the Port of Seattle
, and also involved Boeing Field
.
There is widespread public support for preventing the right of way from being sold off piecemeal. However, there is growing opposition to the plan to dismantle the railroad and replace it with a bicycle trail. This is a result of concern about the economic harm from the loss of the dinner train and freight service and the interest in using the railroad to create a commuter rail connecting east King County cities that are currently only serviced by bus
es and the heavily congested I-405
freeway.
Another reason for the opposition to replacing the tracks by a trail is that it would involve an expenditure of approximately $66 million of public funds at a time when the County has been closing parks because it claims that it has insufficient funds to keep them open. Moreover, most of the right of way is about 100 feet wide, which is more than sufficient for both the tracks and a trail.
from Snohomish
.
BNSF Railway
The BNSF Railway is a wholly owned subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway Inc., and is headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas. It is one of seven North American Class I railroads and the second largest freight railroad network in North America, second only to the Union Pacific Railroad, its primary...
and takes its names from one of its original end points in Woodinville
Woodinville, Washington
Woodinville is a city in King County, Washington, United States. The population was 10,938 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Seattle metropolitan area. There is also a much larger population with Woodinville mailing addresses in adjacent unincorporated areas of King and Snohomish counties...
, Washington, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The line extends approximately 42 miles (67.6 km) in east King County
King County, Washington
King County is a county located in the U.S. state of Washington. The population in the 2010 census was 1,931,249. King is the most populous county in Washington, and the 14th most populous in the United States....
and Snohomish County
Snohomish County, Washington
Snohomish County is a county located in the U.S. state of Washington. It is named after the Snohomish tribe. Since 2000, the county's population has grown from 606,024 to 713,335 residents , making it one of the fastest-growing in the state, ranking third in overall population after King and...
. The line's ownership has been transferred in a deal involving King County and the Port of Seattle
Port of Seattle
The Port of Seattle is a port district that runs Seattle's seaport and airport. Its creation was approved by the voters of King County, Washington, on September 5, 1911, authorized by the Port District Act. It is run by a five-member commission. The commissioners' terms run four years...
. The section from Snohomish to Woodinville is operated, on contract, by a company called Eastside Rail Freight, which is associated with the Ballard Terminal Railroad
Ballard Terminal Railroad
The Ballard Terminal Railroad , a short line terminal railroad in Seattle, Washington, USA's Ballard neighborhood, was formed in 1997 to operate trains on three miles of track on the north side of Salmon Bay. The spur had been abandoned earlier that year by the Burlington Northern and Santa Fe...
and Meeker Southern.
Route
The route begins between RentonRenton, Washington
Renton is an Eastside edge city in King County, Washington, United States. Situated 11 miles southeast of Seattle, Washington, Renton straddles the southeast shore of Lake Washington. Founded in the 1860s, Renton became a supply town for the Newcastle coal fields...
and Tukwila
Tukwila, Washington
Tukwila is a city in King County, Washington, United States. The northern edge of Tukwila borders the city of Seattle. The population was 19,107 at the 2010 census.-History:...
, at a place called Black River Junction, and runs north along the shore of Lake Washington
Lake Washington
Lake Washington is a large freshwater lake adjacent to the city of Seattle. It is the largest lake in King County and the second largest in the state of Washington, after Lake Chelan. It is bordered by the cities of Seattle on the west, Bellevue and Kirkland on the east, Renton on the south and...
through Bellevue
Bellevue, Washington
Bellevue is a city in the Eastside region of King County, Washington, United States, across Lake Washington from Seattle. Long known as a suburb or satellite city of Seattle, it is now categorized as an edge city or a boomburb. The population was 122,363 at the 2010 census.Downtown Bellevue is...
and several smaller cities before reaching its northern terminus
Terminal Station
Terminal Station is a 1953 film by Italian director Vittorio De Sica. It tells the story of the love affair between an Italian man and an American woman. The film was entered into the 1953 Cannes Film Festival.-Production:...
in the small city of Snohomish
Snohomish, Washington
Snohomish is a city in Snohomish County founded by the british, Washington, United States. The population was 9,098 at the 2010 census. The mayor of Snohomish is Karen Guzak, and the City Manager is Larry Bauman...
. It was completed more than a century ago and is still used daily by local freight trains and until recently, the Spirit of Washington Dinner Train
Spirit of Washington Dinner Train
The Spirit of Washington dinner train was a dinner train that operated for 15 years out of Renton, Washington, with trips heading from Renton to Woodinville and back, and then for ten months out of Tacoma, with trips heading from Tacoma to Lake Kapowsin near Mount Rainier...
, a popular and profitable tourist attraction
Tourist attraction
A tourist attraction is a place of interest where tourists visit, typically for its inherent or exhibited cultural value, historical significance, natural or built beauty, or amusement opportunities....
. However, the Spirit of Washington's current contract to use the railroad ended on July 31, 2007 and efforts to renew it have been rejected by both BNSF Railroad and King County.
The railroad is mostly single track
Single track (rail)
A single track railway is where trains in both directions share the same track. Single track is normally used on lesser used rail lines, often branch lines, where the traffic density is not high enough to justify the cost of building double tracks....
ed with a few passing sidings
Passing loop
A passing loop is a place on a single line railway or tramway, often located at a station, where trains or trams in opposing directions can pass each other. Trains/trams in the same direction can also overtake, providing that the signalling arrangement allows it...
to allow trains to pass each other and spurs
Spurs
Spurs are tools worn on the heel of a boot, used when riding horses.Spurs can also refer to:* The Chancellor's Spurs, a traveling trophy awarded to the winner of the college football game between Texas Tech University and the University of Texas at Austin...
for local industries, and is a former Northern Pacific branch line. There is also a branch line from Woodinville to downtown Redmond
Redmond, Washington
Redmond is a city in King County, Washington, United States, located east of Seattle. The population was 54,144 at the 2010 census,up from 45,256 in 2000....
, which is a remnant of a former Northern Pacific line to North Bend
North Bend, Washington
North Bend is a city in King County, Washington, United States. The town was made famous by David Lynch's television series Twin Peaks Since the Weyerhaeuser sawmill closed, North Bend has become an upscale bedroom community for the Eastside of Seattle, Washington, with property values more than...
via Issaquah
Issaquah, Washington
Issaquah is a city in King County, Washington, United States. The population was 30,434 at the 2010 census.Based on per capita income, Issaquah ranks 25th of 522 areas in the State of Washington to be ranked....
. A major feature of the railroad is the spectacular Wilburton Trestle
Wilburton Trestle
The Wilburton Trestle is a historic wooden railway trestle in Bellevue, Washington. Measuring 102 feet high and 975 feet long , it is the longest wooden trestle in the Pacific Northwest....
, which was originally constructed in 1904 and was the longest wooden trestle in use in the Northwest, until the line was severed, just south of the trestle, in 2008.
Uses
The line is primarily used for local freight traffic. BoeingBoeing
The Boeing Company is an American multinational aerospace and defense corporation, founded in 1916 by William E. Boeing in Seattle, Washington. Boeing has expanded over the years, merging with McDonnell Douglas in 1997. Boeing Corporate headquarters has been in Chicago, Illinois since 2001...
use to use the line to deliver 737
Boeing 737
The Boeing 737 is a short- to medium-range, twin-engine narrow-body jet airliner. Originally developed as a shorter, lower-cost twin-engine airliner derived from Boeing's 707 and 727, the 737 has developed into a family of nine passenger models with a capacity of 85 to 215 passengers...
fuselage
Fuselage
The fuselage is an aircraft's main body section that holds crew and passengers or cargo. In single-engine aircraft it will usually contain an engine, although in some amphibious aircraft the single engine is mounted on a pylon attached to the fuselage which in turn is used as a floating hull...
s to its Renton plant from its supplier in Wichita, Kansas
Wichita, Kansas
Wichita is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kansas.As of the 2010 census, the city population was 382,368. Located in south-central Kansas on the Arkansas River, Wichita is the county seat of Sedgwick County and the principal city of the Wichita metropolitan area...
, Spirit AeroSystems
Spirit AeroSystems
Spirit AeroSystems, Inc. , based in Wichita, Kansas, is the world's largest first-tier aerostructures manufacturer. The company builds several important pieces of Boeing aircraft, including the fuselage of the 737, portions of the 787 fuselage, and the cockpit of nearly all of its airliners...
. The line also use to serve as a bypass during outages for the only other north-south rail route between the Cascade Mountains and Puget Sound
Puget Sound
Puget Sound is a sound in the U.S. state of Washington. It is a complex estuarine system of interconnected marine waterways and basins, with one major and one minor connection to the Strait of Juan de Fuca and the Pacific Ocean — Admiralty Inlet being the major connection and...
, the Seattle/Scenic Subdivisions
Scenic Subdivision
The Scenic Subdivision or Scenic Sub is a railway line running about from Seattle, WA to Wenatchee, WA. It is operated by BNSF Railway as part of their Northern Transcon and contains the record setting Cascade Tunnel as well as the final spike completion site, in 1893, at Scenic, WA, for the whole...
, which runs through downtown Seattle and along Puget Sound
Puget Sound
Puget Sound is a sound in the U.S. state of Washington. It is a complex estuarine system of interconnected marine waterways and basins, with one major and one minor connection to the Strait of Juan de Fuca and the Pacific Ocean — Admiralty Inlet being the major connection and...
. The line also use to be used by trains whose loads are too bulky to fit through the century old Great Northern Tunnel
Great Northern Tunnel
The Great Northern Tunnel is a double tracked railway tunnel under downtown Seattle, Washington, completed by the Great Northern Railway in 1905, and now owned by the BNSF Railway and is on its Scenic Subdivision. At the time it was built, the tunnel was the highest and widest in the United States...
that runs under downtown Seattle
Downtown Seattle
Downtown is the central business district of Seattle, Washington. It is fairly compact compared to other city centers on the West Coast because of its geographical situation: hemmed in on the north and east by hills, on the west by the Elliott Bay, and on the south by reclaimed land that was once...
. However, when the line was used as a bypass, its sharp curves, at-grade street crossing
Level crossing
A level crossing occurs where a railway line is intersected by a road or path onone level, without recourse to a bridge or tunnel. It is a type of at-grade intersection. The term also applies when a light rail line with separate right-of-way or reserved track crosses a road in the same fashion...
s, and poor condition requireds trains to keep speeds to no more than 30 mph (13.4 m/s). After a rainstorm washed out part of the Seattle line in 1997, a freight train derailed navigating the line as a bypass.
Proposed sale and dismantling
In 2003, BNSF announced that it was looking to sell the line because of declining freight revenues and rising maintenance costs. King CountyKing County, Washington
King County is a county located in the U.S. state of Washington. The population in the 2010 census was 1,931,249. King is the most populous county in Washington, and the 14th most populous in the United States....
, in which a majority of the line is located, negotiated for the purchase of the railroad for the stated purpose of keeping the right of way intact for possible future transit use but replacing most of the track with a bicycle trail. A deal was worked out in conjunction with the Port of Seattle
Port of Seattle
The Port of Seattle is a port district that runs Seattle's seaport and airport. Its creation was approved by the voters of King County, Washington, on September 5, 1911, authorized by the Port District Act. It is run by a five-member commission. The commissioners' terms run four years...
, and also involved Boeing Field
Boeing Field
Boeing Field, officially King County International Airport , is a two-runway airport owned and run by King County, Washington, USA. In promotional literature, the airport is frequently referred to as KCIA, but this is not the airport identifier. The airport has some passenger service, but is mostly...
.
There is widespread public support for preventing the right of way from being sold off piecemeal. However, there is growing opposition to the plan to dismantle the railroad and replace it with a bicycle trail. This is a result of concern about the economic harm from the loss of the dinner train and freight service and the interest in using the railroad to create a commuter rail connecting east King County cities that are currently only serviced by bus
Bus
A bus is a road vehicle designed to carry passengers. Buses can have a capacity as high as 300 passengers. The most common type of bus is the single-decker bus, with larger loads carried by double-decker buses and articulated buses, and smaller loads carried by midibuses and minibuses; coaches are...
es and the heavily congested I-405
Interstate 405 (Washington)
Interstate 405 in Washington is a stretch of freeway that bypasses Seattle east of Lake Washington. The northern terminus is in Lynnwood and the southern terminus is in Tukwila...
freeway.
Another reason for the opposition to replacing the tracks by a trail is that it would involve an expenditure of approximately $66 million of public funds at a time when the County has been closing parks because it claims that it has insufficient funds to keep them open. Moreover, most of the right of way is about 100 feet wide, which is more than sufficient for both the tracks and a trail.
Freeway widening
In June 2008 work commenced on the widening of the I-405 freeway south of Bellevue. As a result, the line was severed at the point at which it crosses the southbound lanes. Currently there are no plans to reinstate the track now the widening project is completed. Trains for the Boeing plant at Renton have been diverted to enter the factory from the south. A bridge north of Renton depot was replaced in order to accommodate the width of the Boeing 737 fuselages transported by rail. Eastside Rail Freight continues to serve WoodinvilleWoodinville, Washington
Woodinville is a city in King County, Washington, United States. The population was 10,938 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Seattle metropolitan area. There is also a much larger population with Woodinville mailing addresses in adjacent unincorporated areas of King and Snohomish counties...
from Snohomish
Snohomish, Washington
Snohomish is a city in Snohomish County founded by the british, Washington, United States. The population was 9,098 at the 2010 census. The mayor of Snohomish is Karen Guzak, and the City Manager is Larry Bauman...
.