Could the Yreka Western Railroad in Northern California be on its last legs? The latest news about the Siskiyou Line from Ashland, Oregon to Black Butte, California does not look good.
Shippers have petitioned the Surface Transportation Board for an Emergency Order to let another rail operator run that segment. The STB came back and asked for more information from Central Oregon & Pacific Railroad and the Shippers, Roseburg Forest Products, Timber Products and Suburban Propane. The shippers apointed in the original filing that the West Texas & Lubbock Railroad be the new operator for their shipments. Now for the bad news, the STB decision might not be what the shippers want and right now the case will not be heard until mid September. President Obama needs to appoint a new member to the STB board, Congress needs to appove or disaprove the apointment. Congess will ajourn for August and that leaves September open for any action if any. As for the Yreka Western, a rail line that is only 8 miles long and conects to CORP their chance for survival seems slim. Timber Products is the main shipper on the line and reports that they want to stay with trucks to move their product to Oregon. Suburban Propane ships in just a few cars per year and the Yreka Western lost its star attractin the 2-8-2 Mikado Engine #19 in a reposession earlier this year. The Depot and shop buildings are also on the foreclosure list. According to officials in the Southern Oregon and Northern California rail industry the Yreka Western may not see the light at the end of the tunnel and CORP and RailAmerica may not be to far behind this year.