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Central Oregon & Pacific Railroad is again in the news! As the retired manager of marketing and sales for CORP, it distresses me to see the problems Roseburg faces with traffic and the railroad. Now that I am no longer an employee of CORP, I can express my opinion regarding Winchester Yard.
The Coos Bay Line and the Winchester Yard are two separate issues, and my concern is the restoration of funds for the Yard, and will continue to be because of the benefits to Roseburg, Douglas County and beyond. ConnectOregon is a program started by Gov. Kulongoski to provide funding for non-highway infrastructure to move freight off the highways. It is a great program that could really benefit Oregon.
CORP received $7+ million from ConnectOregon I for Winchester Yard. Those funds were frozen by ODOT. With the restoration of funding, CORP could sort their cars in Winchester instead of Roseburg. Trains could then move through Roseburg on a schedule reducing considerably the blocking of traffic. This would help the city in getting a smoother flow of traffic from 1-5 to Highway 138. CORP had discussed with the city the possibility of selling some of their land for future development when the yard was done. By getting funds restored, Roseburg would benefit by smoothing out traffic and having additional land for development!
The politicians blew a chance to have the Coos Bay Line restored almost immediately. CORP was told not to apply for ConnectOregon II funding, as they would not get any. At the same time, the Port of Coos Bay filed an application for about $6.5 million to purchase the line and repair the tunnels. This was doomed for three reasons: 1) the line was not for sale; 2) the purchase price of $800,000 was not even the scrap value of the line; and 3) the remaining $5.7 million in the application was not sufficient to repair the tunnels. ODOT dismissed the application almost as soon as it was submitted. A ConnectOregon application by CORP could have restored the line within months.
A recent front page article in The-News Review quotes the Coos-Siskiyou Coalition “Rail repair needs were ignored by CORP,” but that is not true. The CORP had been under an Federal Railroad Administration consent decree for the past two years that required it to upgrade its track to eliminate derailments. You all remember those derailments, right? Logs on the road in Winchester, derailments in Roseburg Yard, lumber in Cow Creek? Have you heard of any in the last year? CORP has been putting millions of dollars into meeting the requirements of the FRA, and that has included money spent on the line. CORP submitted a ConnectOregon I application for $7+ million to upgrade track and to reline the three tunnels that caused the shutdown of the line. Those funds were not approved because they were considered maintenance. CORP knew the tunnels needed repairs, applied for the funds to fix them, and was told “No.”
The real reason for the freezing of the funds was as punishment for closing the line, even though it was closed to protect the lives of workers on the line. I know the politicians do not believe that, but they might want to talk to the employees on the line who were ready to quit because of fears about the tunnels. Had anyone been killed on the line, what would we be talking about now?
There is no downside to the restoring of funds to Winchester Yard for the citizens of Roseburg, Douglas County, and CORP customers. There is no downside for the governor and the politicians who are withholding the funds, as it would show their concern for the people of Roseburg and the employees of the companies that rely on CORP. If you want to see an improvement in the safety and livability of Roseburg and Douglas County, please contact the governor and our elected officials requesting they restore funding for Winchester Yard for the benefit of all of us.
Tom Hawksworth of Roseburg worked in the railroad industry for 35 years. He was employed by Rail America for 11 years, until his retirement in February as manager of marketing and sales for CORP.
The Coos Bay Line and the Winchester Yard are two separate issues, and my concern is the restoration of funds for the Yard, and will continue to be because of the benefits to Roseburg, Douglas County and beyond. ConnectOregon is a program started by Gov. Kulongoski to provide funding for non-highway infrastructure to move freight off the highways. It is a great program that could really benefit Oregon.
CORP received $7+ million from ConnectOregon I for Winchester Yard. Those funds were frozen by ODOT. With the restoration of funding, CORP could sort their cars in Winchester instead of Roseburg. Trains could then move through Roseburg on a schedule reducing considerably the blocking of traffic. This would help the city in getting a smoother flow of traffic from 1-5 to Highway 138. CORP had discussed with the city the possibility of selling some of their land for future development when the yard was done. By getting funds restored, Roseburg would benefit by smoothing out traffic and having additional land for development!
The politicians blew a chance to have the Coos Bay Line restored almost immediately. CORP was told not to apply for ConnectOregon II funding, as they would not get any. At the same time, the Port of Coos Bay filed an application for about $6.5 million to purchase the line and repair the tunnels. This was doomed for three reasons: 1) the line was not for sale; 2) the purchase price of $800,000 was not even the scrap value of the line; and 3) the remaining $5.7 million in the application was not sufficient to repair the tunnels. ODOT dismissed the application almost as soon as it was submitted. A ConnectOregon application by CORP could have restored the line within months.
A recent front page article in The-News Review quotes the Coos-Siskiyou Coalition “Rail repair needs were ignored by CORP,” but that is not true. The CORP had been under an Federal Railroad Administration consent decree for the past two years that required it to upgrade its track to eliminate derailments. You all remember those derailments, right? Logs on the road in Winchester, derailments in Roseburg Yard, lumber in Cow Creek? Have you heard of any in the last year? CORP has been putting millions of dollars into meeting the requirements of the FRA, and that has included money spent on the line. CORP submitted a ConnectOregon I application for $7+ million to upgrade track and to reline the three tunnels that caused the shutdown of the line. Those funds were not approved because they were considered maintenance. CORP knew the tunnels needed repairs, applied for the funds to fix them, and was told “No.”
The real reason for the freezing of the funds was as punishment for closing the line, even though it was closed to protect the lives of workers on the line. I know the politicians do not believe that, but they might want to talk to the employees on the line who were ready to quit because of fears about the tunnels. Had anyone been killed on the line, what would we be talking about now?
There is no downside to the restoring of funds to Winchester Yard for the citizens of Roseburg, Douglas County, and CORP customers. There is no downside for the governor and the politicians who are withholding the funds, as it would show their concern for the people of Roseburg and the employees of the companies that rely on CORP. If you want to see an improvement in the safety and livability of Roseburg and Douglas County, please contact the governor and our elected officials requesting they restore funding for Winchester Yard for the benefit of all of us.
Tom Hawksworth of Roseburg worked in the railroad industry for 35 years. He was employed by Rail America for 11 years, until his retirement in February as manager of marketing and sales for CORP.
