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Martin Callery
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Rail congestion in downtown Roseburg must be eliminated to benefit area residents, local businesses and southwest Oregon rail shippers. However, the assertion that the Coos Bay Line and the Winchester Yard are two separate issues is disingenuous because the Central Oregon & Pacific Railroad’s commitment to Oregon is integral to both issues.
The Oregon International Port of Coos Bay supports restoration of ConnectOregon funds for the Winchester Yard, only as long as the funds go to a responsible public entity that can help assure that the investment will maximize the benefit for Oregon.
Douglas County, working with the Oregon Department of Transportation Rail Division, should manage the Winchester Yard project and then require CORP to maintain the rail infrastructure – both private and public; something they have continually failed to do.
The primary intent of the ConnectOregon program is to increase and preserve system capacity to better serve the economy of Oregon, not to bail out firms that pay little if any attention to long-term maintenance needs and the evolving transportation requirements of their customers.
RailAmerica Inc. knew of the deteriorated condition of the CORP system when it purchased the assets of RailTex in February 2000 – the condition of the tunnels and the bridges was clearly defined in engineering reports – and yet after the purchase they continued to defer maintenance on the railroad. That is one of the reasons that the Federal Railroad Administration issued a consent decree to CORP to force it to bring its railroad up to safe operating standards.
Now CORP want public funds to pay those bills while at the same time it is seeking federal authority to abandon a vital transportation asset in southwest Oregon.
CORP was more than willing to have the Port of Coos Bay invest $7.2 million in public funds in phase I restoration of the Coos Bay rail bridge, which provides access to the two largest shippers and largest employers on the line. The Port also lined up $12 million for phase II of the bridge, which due to the embargo of the Coos Bay line may now be lost. And CORP also benefited from a $4.8 million public investment in the North Spit rail spur to serve a new customer and provide rail access to adjacent developable industrial property.
However, until CORP embargoed the Coos Bay Line in late September 2007, CORP officials told the Port that the tunnels were fine, and CORP never provided the shippers or the state any advance notice that CORP’s failure to maintain its tunnels would result in the closure of the line and the inability of CORP to continue to serve these customers, even though CORP received the engineering report about the severe condition of the tunnels two months before the embargo notice was issued.
The state of Oregon acted responsibly in freezing funds for the Winchester Yard project for a company that was acting and continues to act irresponsibly in the operation of critical transportation infrastructure in the region.
Rather than fix the problems, CORP and RailAmerica continue to look for someone to blame for their failings.
Martin Callery is director of communications and freight mobility for the Oregon International Port of Coos Bay. He can be reached at 541 267-7678 or by e-mail at MCallery@PortofCoosBay.com.
The Oregon International Port of Coos Bay supports restoration of ConnectOregon funds for the Winchester Yard, only as long as the funds go to a responsible public entity that can help assure that the investment will maximize the benefit for Oregon.
Douglas County, working with the Oregon Department of Transportation Rail Division, should manage the Winchester Yard project and then require CORP to maintain the rail infrastructure – both private and public; something they have continually failed to do.
The primary intent of the ConnectOregon program is to increase and preserve system capacity to better serve the economy of Oregon, not to bail out firms that pay little if any attention to long-term maintenance needs and the evolving transportation requirements of their customers.
RailAmerica Inc. knew of the deteriorated condition of the CORP system when it purchased the assets of RailTex in February 2000 – the condition of the tunnels and the bridges was clearly defined in engineering reports – and yet after the purchase they continued to defer maintenance on the railroad. That is one of the reasons that the Federal Railroad Administration issued a consent decree to CORP to force it to bring its railroad up to safe operating standards.
Now CORP want public funds to pay those bills while at the same time it is seeking federal authority to abandon a vital transportation asset in southwest Oregon.
CORP was more than willing to have the Port of Coos Bay invest $7.2 million in public funds in phase I restoration of the Coos Bay rail bridge, which provides access to the two largest shippers and largest employers on the line. The Port also lined up $12 million for phase II of the bridge, which due to the embargo of the Coos Bay line may now be lost. And CORP also benefited from a $4.8 million public investment in the North Spit rail spur to serve a new customer and provide rail access to adjacent developable industrial property.
However, until CORP embargoed the Coos Bay Line in late September 2007, CORP officials told the Port that the tunnels were fine, and CORP never provided the shippers or the state any advance notice that CORP’s failure to maintain its tunnels would result in the closure of the line and the inability of CORP to continue to serve these customers, even though CORP received the engineering report about the severe condition of the tunnels two months before the embargo notice was issued.
The state of Oregon acted responsibly in freezing funds for the Winchester Yard project for a company that was acting and continues to act irresponsibly in the operation of critical transportation infrastructure in the region.
Rather than fix the problems, CORP and RailAmerica continue to look for someone to blame for their failings.
Martin Callery is director of communications and freight mobility for the Oregon International Port of Coos Bay. He can be reached at 541 267-7678 or by e-mail at MCallery@PortofCoosBay.com.
