I'm not so sure BN missed a good opportunity by not investing in this line. I mean much of the former Rock Island railroad remains in use today despite having one of the worst grid systems in the midwest, which shows that its routes were still viable. If a direct line between Seattle and Chicago is abandoned, it's probably a good indication that it's not very viable. Plus BN already owned the Northern Pacific line (which the Milwaukee closely followed) and the Great Northern High Line, so the Pacific Extension would have been redundant. Great picture though Bill!
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As a UK resident, I am not really aware of the circumstances or history here. The remarks from Bill and the additional information encourage me to investigate further. Looks like and interesting story. Nice shot too Bill!
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Here is a theory, the BN should never have been allowed to merge to begin with, two parallel roads, NP & GN, SP&S and CB&Q created a monopoly and put the weaker MILW out of the game even though they had superior construction, easier grades and a decent route, they just couldn't compete.
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From a practical sense, BN's Stevens Pass is steep and high maintenance with the 8 mile tunnel. Stampede Pass was never improved to handle tall loads, including auto racks and TOFC, let alone double stacks. BN would have had to connect MILW to the old NP near Ravensdale, which was doable. It would have had to beef up several bridges like this one. The trade off would have been s straight shot over the Cascades to Easton, and if desired to Lind, WA where it would reconnect with the old NP main into Spokane. This could have created a "super railroad" that could have permitted BN to abandon Stampede Pass and Stevens. Also UP was interested in accessing this line to connect to its Yakima branch, thus forming an alternate mainline to avoid Portland from Puget Sound. Unfortunately quarterly shareholder reports overrode long term strategic thinking hurting both railroads, affecting Amtrak, and lessening the value of using Puget Sound as an international gateway. But at least there is a trail for nature lovers to walk on.
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Trains Magazine's "Professional Iconoclast" advocated saving the MILW as a dedicated route for his cherished "integral trains". His vision came to pass with the advent of distributed power unit trains, just not on this route.
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