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Feds Fund Expansion of Washington Grain Terminal by Don Jenkins Capital Press, October 28, 2024

Rehabilitation of the Palouse River & Coulee City Railroad received $37.7 million.
The state-owned line spans five counties in Eastern Washington.

The Federal Railroad Administration has awarded more than $115 million for nine projects to electrify trains and move freight and farm goods by rail through Washington.

U.S. Sens. Maria Cantwell and Patty Murray announced the grants in press releases. During a visit to the Port of Kalama on Monday, Cantwell said the projects will help connect farmers to overseas markets.

"We're just making it easier to get grain out of our state and on to Asia," she said.

The Kalama port, on the Lower Columbia River in southwest Washington, received $26.3 million to expand the TEMCO grain export terminal, co-owned by CHS Inc. and Cargill.

The state, port and company are contributing to the project. The terminal will add enough new track to accommodate two more 115-car trains.

Unloading a train can take five to 24 hours, Plant Manager Tom Rodman said. By having more room, trains can get into the port sooner and into position for unloading.

The terminal expects to be able to export 30% more grain. The additional capacity will be important when overseas demand for crops such as wheat, soybeans and corn is high, Rodman said.

"It won't necessarily take away from any other terminal," he said. "We're all pretty much at capacity."

The other funded projects are:

• The Washington Department of Transportation received $37.7 million to rehabilitate the Palouse River & Coulee City Railroad. The department received a federal grant of $72.8 million for the railroad last year. The state-owned line spans five counties in Eastern Washington.

• The St. Paul & Pacific Northwest Railroad Company in northeast Washington received $23.4 million to improve the railroad's mainline between Chewelah, Wash., and Columbia Gardens, British Columbia.

• The Columbia Basin Railroad received $11.5 million to rehabilitate 10 miles of track. The company operates between Moses Lake and Connell in Central Washington.

• City-owned Tacoma Rail received $8.3 million to replace four locomotive engines with newer engines that use less diesel. The locomotives are intended to help the city and Port of Tacoma meet climate goals.

• The Department of Transportation received $6.5 million for projects along the Puget Sound rail corridor. The projects will include installing electric heaters to keep ice and snow from building up on tracks.

• Rainier Rail, a short line railroad between Chehalis and Tacoma, received $1.7 million to improve four bridges in Western Washington.

• Rail company OmniTrax received $50.5 million to replace ties in four states. A portion will be spent on replacing ties over 30 miles of track operated by the Kettle Falls Railroad in northeast Washington.

• Watco Cos. received $19.8 million to replace diesel locomotives with electric locomotives. The Pittsburg, Kan.-based transportation company has operations in Washington.

Related Pages:
Region Gets Big Fed Boost to Rails by Emily Pearce, Capital Press, 8/23/23