Boise Valley Railroad files with STB to operate Idaho line

Written by jrood

Watco Transportation Services, Inc., said a definitive agreement has been reached with Rio Grande Pacific Corporation to obtain 36 miles of track from the Idaho Northern & Pacific Railroad. A notice will be filed shortly with the Surface Transportation Board to operate the track as the Boise Valley Railroad (BVRR), to be headquartered in Boise, Idaho.

The
BVRR will operate two branches: the 11-mile Wilder Branch that runs from Wilder
to Caldwell, Idaho, and the 25-mile Boise Cut Off that runs from Nampa to just
southeast of Boise, Idaho.  The
agreement also includes trackage rights from Nampa to Caldwell, Idaho. The BVRR
has entered into a lease-purchase agreement with the Idaho Northern &
Pacific Railroad, a Rio Grande Pacific Corporation subsidiary, which currently
leases the segments from the Union Pacific.

There
are 84 customers who will be served by the BVRR, several of which are currently
customers of Watco’s Eastern Idaho Railroad, Great Northwest Railroad and
Yellowstone Valley Railroad. Commodities shipped on the branches include
potatoes, lumber, fertilizer and fuels. The BVRR looks forward to interviewing
existing INPR employees to operate the line, which is looking at a mid-October
start-up date.

"This
fits in well with our existing infrastructure in Idaho," said Ed McKechnie, chief
commercial officer for Watco Companies said.  "We look forward to serving the customers and expanding opportunities
to help to grow their businesses. This will be our fourth railroad in the State
of Idaho. We love doing business in Idaho and believe this railroad can grow
and continue to be a strong part of the Boise economy."

Tags: