January 2018

INSIDE TRACK	\|	The latest BNSF Railway information and resources for communities of the Pacific Northwest.
JANUARY 2018

Southwest Washington siding gets named for family with long history on the rails

Sidings are a critical part of rail infrastructure. They help trains safely pass each other and increase rail line capacity. Each of these sidings have a name and it is an honor to have one of them named after you. Recently, BNSF opened the new Melonas siding in the Columbia River Gorge, which is named after the Melonas family. Three generations of Melonas family members have contributed to the Spokane, Portland and Seattle (SP&S) and BNSF Railways. Twin brothers, Gus and Louis Melonas were on hand for the sign unveiling. Gus has been with the railroad for over 40 years and has been the regional spokesman since 1985. Louis is a welder in the maintenance department. Gus and Louis share the railroad legacy with their father, Sam-an SP&S senior officer and their grandfather-who helped build the railroad and cut the tunnels through the Fallbridge Subdivision, which is BNSF’s route through the Columbia River Gorge. This siding project consisted of constructing a new siding track adjacent to and south of the existing mainline track. It is about 2.08 miles in length. To learn more about this rail dedicated family, click HERE.

To learn more about the benefits of sidings, click HERE!

Severe weather conditions keep BNSF busy

Even in the harshest winter conditions, BNSF is hard at work ensuring our customers don’t experience delays. Click the picture or HERE to learn of all the ways BNSF is working to beat extreme weather.

BNSF partners with the Port of Portland to assist shippers

Shippers now have a new option for getting their products to market. Thanks to a partnership between BNSF Railway and the Port of Portland, a new service will move containers between Portland and Seattle/Tacoma where they can be loaded onto container ships. As a leader in the intermodal industry, this new service will help companies throughout the Pacific Northwest get their products into the hands of their customers faster.

BNSF Police keep our rails and communities safe

Imagine a community that is 32,500 miles long and only 100 feet wide. That is the BNSF community crisscrossing hundreds of local and state jurisdictions throughout the Western part of the country. Helping to patrol our community is the nearly 200 commissioned police officers and some K-9 friends who make up the BNSF Police Team, which is active in all forms of police duties. These officers work closely with local state and federal law enforcement officers. From analyzing statistical data to discovering crime trends to combating trespassing and cargo thefts, their job is to guard BNSF’s resources – people, property and freight -and enforce the laws protecting these.

Railroad police have an invaluable impact on the safety and profitability of our business. At BNSF today, the Police includes three groups: police, homeland security and special investigations.

To learn more about the hard work it takes to keep our rail lines and communities safe, click HERE.

BNSF renovates their Network Operations Center

BNSF has long been known as a quick adopter of new technologies. In 1995, BNSF created a Network Operations Center at their headquarters. Home to over 150 dispatches and other support staff, operations center recently completed a total renovation. With an operating floor the size of a football field, this facility handles 500 train starts per day across 32,500 miles of tracks. Completed in October 2017, the upgraded center will support current and future technologies for years to come. Click on the video above to see a time-lapse of the renovations or click HERE. And to learn more about how BNSF keeps pushing technology and safety forward at our Network Operations Center, click HERE.

Keeping our locomotive history alive

Locomotive train history has always been an important part of the history of the Pacific Northwest. Out of the nearly 2,800 Shay steam locomotives built between 1878 and 1945, only 116 still exist and less than 15% are operational. The Oregon Historical Society has been operating excursions on Shay steam locomotives since 1994. This year, BNSF Railway Foundation donated the needed maintenance funds to keep Mount Emily Shay #1 in Oregon running for another year providing over 2,000passengers the opportunity to ride our steam powered history. Click on the picture to view the video from one of this year’s excursions aboard the Mount Emily Shay #1.

To learn more about the Mount Emily Shay #1, click HERE!

BNSF Railway Foundations donates $10,000 to Suquamish Tribal Council

The BNSF Railway Foundation gave a grant of $10,000 to the Suquamish Tribal Council for their Tribal Child Welfare department. These funds will be used to purchase tablets and laptops for children in the program. Tribal Child Welfare supports families with native children living on the Port Madison Indian Reservation by providing child welfare family support services, and independent living skills programs. The Department also provides services to Suquamish children residing off-reservation.

Emergencies – Call 800-832-5452

To report a vehicle stalled on a crossing, suspicious circumstances, malfunctioning crossing gates and lights or any other emergency, call 800-832-5452 immediately.

Have a Question for Us?

Do you have a question about BNSF or rail in the Pacific Northwest that you would like addressed in future issues of Inside Track? Send them to
[email protected].

We welcome your feedback and ideas!

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