The Port of Tillamook Bay Railroad was severely damaged by last winter's storms, but the Port alone cannot afford to fix it.

1 October 2008

Tillamook Railroad Repair Cost Tops $57 Million

Salmonberry River Canyon Oregon USA - Repairing the damage last winter's storms wreaked on the Port of Tillamook Bay Railroad, an economic lifeline for Tillamook and its sawmills, will cost about $57.3 million, some four times as much as repairs after a severe storm in 1996.
 
The new total is much higher than a preliminary $26.6 million estimate drawn up shortly after severe storms last winter demolished part of the rugged, 95-mile railroad from the Willamette Valley over the Coast Range to Tillamook. The new estimate is the result of a more formal study underwritten in part by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, which has pledged to fund 75 percent of the cost of repairs.
 
The Port of Tillamook Bay will have to find a way to come up with the balance of the cost, perhaps with state help, loans, or other means, said General Manager Michele Bradley.
 
She said railroad crews have already repaired some of the minor damage from last winter, but the most severely damaged section now includes about 11 miles, much of it in the Salmonberry River canyon. She said roughly 80 percent of the areas that were repaired after the 1996 storms remain intact.
 
The repair costs include $7.7 million for rail, ties, and ballast, $4 million to repair tunnels, and $8.5 million for bridges, Bradley said. The estimate was drawn up by the IBIS Group of Astoria.
 
The state helped the Port of Tillamook Bay buy the railroad for $2.9 million in 1990 by chipping in $1.9 million in lottery money. The state has also paid for past repairs, including storm damage in 1990.
 
The line carried about 3,000 railcars of finished lumber to market each year and brings in grain for dairy farmers. The line indirectly supports about 500 manufacturing jobs that can pay $35,000 to $45,000 a year, according to the Port.
 
The railroad's route through the Coast Range makes it especially scenic but also puts it at risk during storms. It winds along the remote Salmonberry River, which is known for its steelhead run but also is at risk of landslides.
 
An environmental review would be required as part of FEMA's commitment to funding the repairs.
 
Fisheries groups question the value of rebuilding the railroad. Joyce Sherman of the Association of Northwest Steelheaders said that economically, the railroad is not viable, and environmentally, rebuilding it would affect fish runs already hammered by last winter's storms.
 
"There's no way they can rebuild it without impacting fish," she said.
 
In addition, she said, the railroad is likely to be damaged again during future storms. She disputed the idea that 80 percent of the 1996 repairs escaped damage.
 
Michael Milstein.