BNSF helps fund congestion relief study for Washington town

Written by Jenifer Nunez, assistant editor

BNSF plans to contribute $50,000 to help study potential solutions to ease congestion at railroad crossings along the Edmonds waterfront in the state of Washington.

 

Recently, the State Legislature approved $500,000 for Edmonds to complete an Alternatives Analysis that would determine the best approach to resolving these at-grade crossing conflicts. With the city of Edmonds committing $100,000 as a match toward completion of this work and the Port of Edmonds committing an additional $25,000, a total of $675,000 has now been committed to the study.

“We are greatly encouraged by the progress being made to address the problem of increasing train traffic blocking the Edmonds waterfront,” says Edmonds Mayor Dave Earling. “BNSF’s announcement shows their strong commitment to helping our community find a solution to this critical public safety issue.”

Currently, about 35 trains travel daily across Dayton and Main Streets along the city’s waterfront, which creates safety concerns and interrupts traffic to and from the waterfront and the Washington State Ferry Terminal. Further growth in both vehicular and train traffic is expected to add to these safety concerns and delays for services and business along the waterfront.

The Alternatives Analysis will study a variety of potential projects, including various grade-separation concepts for an appropriate balance between cost and efficiency in eliminating conflicts. Once the study is complete, the city will be in position to proceed directly to seek funding for design development of the preferred alternative, detailed design and construction.

“BNSF is dedicated to being a good neighbor in the communities where we operate and we’re pleased to help support Edmonds with this study” said Andrew Johnsen, BNSF assistant vice president for community affairs. “As communities develop long-term plans, we believe it is critical for all of us to be at the table to help identify solutions that benefit the community and freight mobility.”

 

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