Damaged rail lines means increased train traffic through Reno

Friday, Jan. 10, 1997 | 11:59 a.m.

Union Pacific spokesman John Bromley said about 900 miles of track is out of service, including the Feather River Canyon route. That traffic will be diverted through Reno.

"We need all the capacity through Reno we can get right now," Bromley said.

Damage from floods and mud slides in the Feather River Canyon was extensive and severe, he said.

"We have landslides over the tracks, we have a number of places where the track is washed out and the rail bed is washed out and the rail is hanging over the Feather River," Bromley said.

"Because of the difficult canyon conditions in there, it is very difficult to get to it to repair it so it's going to be a very slow process."

Reno officials, who fought Union Pacific's recent merger with Southern Pacific because of concerns over increased freight trains, were not pleased by the latest announcement.

The emergency rerouting could boost the number of trains rolling through downtown Reno from 10 per day to 24 or more. That means more delays and tie-ups for drivers caught at railroad crossings that bisect the city.

"We're just coming out of the floods and now we have to turn around and deal with this on top of it," said City Manager Charles McNeely. "That's asking an awful lot of this community."

McNeely said the city will monitor impact the additional trains have on public safety, traffic and businesses.

The city also wants the federal Surface Transportation Board to approve the temporary increase before the trains run through town. City officials contend 24 trains per day exceeds a 14-per-day limit imposed by the STB while an environmental analysis is conducted as a condition of the Union Pacific-Southern Pacific merger approval.

Bromley, however, said the STB's ruling permits more train traffic in emergencies and that Reno was notified of the additional rail traffic as a courtesy.