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Railroad officials were told Thursday to first reopen the 120-mile spur line between Coquille and Eugene that was closed in September, then the state will consider further negotiations.
During a meeting with Gov. Ted Kulongoski, officials from RailAmerica were told the line that had serviced Roseburg Forest Products, American Bridge and other shippers in coastal Douglas and Coos counties was a critical transportation component.
Unless the line is reopened, the state is unwilling to talk about providing the company with money to help with the repair costs and other expenses.
“The governor needs that as a gesture of good faith,” Kulongoski spokeswoman Patty Wentz said.
U.S. Rep. Peter DeFazio, who attended the meeting at the governor’s office in Salem, said Kulongoski remained firm.
“The governor was fabulous,” DeFazio said. “He wants that line reopened.”
Central Oregon & Pacific Railroad, based in Roseburg, shut down the line without warning in September. The company said conditions inside three sets of tunnels along the line were dangerous and required immediate repairs.
Officials from RailAmerica, a Boca Raton, Fla., company that owns CORP, said it would cost $23 million to make the repairs.
It has asked for a group of public and private entities to foot most of the bill, while offering to put up $4.66 million of its own.
“They were trying to convince us that their plan was credible,” DeFazio said. “Their proposal was routinely criticized and dismissed.”
DeFazio also took RailAmerica to task, saying its investment ownership group is more interested in profits than in running its railroads and maintaining infrastructure.
It would take an estimated six months to make the repairs and have the line open again.
Paul Lundberg, vice president of operations for RailAmerica, told the governor he would have to take the state’s proposal back to the company for discussion.
He said he would provide an answer within a week.
Allyn Ford of Roseburg Forest Products attended the meeting, along with other shippers affected by the closure.
Union Pacific Railroad had representatives there, as did Genesse & Wyoming, a Greenwich, Conn.-based short line rail operator.
DeFazio invited that company to the meeting, in case the state or the Port of Coos Bay looks to obtain the spur line and needs an operator to run it.
• You can reach reporter JohnSowell at 957-4209 or by e-mail at jsowell@newsreview.info.
During a meeting with Gov. Ted Kulongoski, officials from RailAmerica were told the line that had serviced Roseburg Forest Products, American Bridge and other shippers in coastal Douglas and Coos counties was a critical transportation component.
Unless the line is reopened, the state is unwilling to talk about providing the company with money to help with the repair costs and other expenses.
“The governor needs that as a gesture of good faith,” Kulongoski spokeswoman Patty Wentz said.
U.S. Rep. Peter DeFazio, who attended the meeting at the governor’s office in Salem, said Kulongoski remained firm.
“The governor was fabulous,” DeFazio said. “He wants that line reopened.”
Central Oregon & Pacific Railroad, based in Roseburg, shut down the line without warning in September. The company said conditions inside three sets of tunnels along the line were dangerous and required immediate repairs.
Officials from RailAmerica, a Boca Raton, Fla., company that owns CORP, said it would cost $23 million to make the repairs.
It has asked for a group of public and private entities to foot most of the bill, while offering to put up $4.66 million of its own.
“They were trying to convince us that their plan was credible,” DeFazio said. “Their proposal was routinely criticized and dismissed.”
DeFazio also took RailAmerica to task, saying its investment ownership group is more interested in profits than in running its railroads and maintaining infrastructure.
It would take an estimated six months to make the repairs and have the line open again.
Paul Lundberg, vice president of operations for RailAmerica, told the governor he would have to take the state’s proposal back to the company for discussion.
He said he would provide an answer within a week.
Allyn Ford of Roseburg Forest Products attended the meeting, along with other shippers affected by the closure.
Union Pacific Railroad had representatives there, as did Genesse & Wyoming, a Greenwich, Conn.-based short line rail operator.
DeFazio invited that company to the meeting, in case the state or the Port of Coos Bay looks to obtain the spur line and needs an operator to run it.
• You can reach reporter JohnSowell at 957-4209 or by e-mail at jsowell@newsreview.info.
