BNSF Derailment in Marysville

Amazing pictures from the scene!

Train crashes into semi-truck at crossing near Marysville | Seattle Times Newspaper

The Milwaukee Road in Tekoa

This remains as one of my most favorite photos from The Milwaukee Road. Taken in the last days of the company's work in the Western US, the shot captures the essence of the MILW. Lonely. Quiet. Working hard despite scarce resources. Although The Road survived until the mid 1980s, my feeling is that the glory days were long over by the time Paul Greenfield snapped this photo outside of Tekoa WA in 1979.

His backstory about the photo makes it even more interesting:

"The shot itself was an exercise in patience," Paul writes. "Myself and another railfan, Art Riordan, waited near Rosalia for about three hours in the late afternoon. We watched as the sun got lower and lower. We finally heard the Milwaukee dispatcher talking to this guy and he indicated that he was on his way to Rosalia. We then chased him eastward for as long as the light held. Chased being a relative word since the track was in such bad shape slow orders had him down to 15 or 20 mph. If he hadn't been so late we wouldn't have had this shot. Somehow it summarizes the lonely Milwaukee Road traveling off into the sunset."

I totally agree with Paul on this one. Chance, along with a lot of patience, captured this moment for history, and for that I'm eternally thankful.

Make sure to check out Paul's other railroading photos HERE!

A Veteran GP30 In The 21st Century

Who would have ever thought a lowly industrial foot soldier like the EMD GP30 would survive 40+ years into the 21st Century? Consider BNSF 2745, a former GP30 on the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy when it was built in 1962, now a rebuilt GP39 that still racks up the miles on the BNSF system. I had the chance to catch this engine in Seattle last year, but it has also been seen in other parts of Washington and even the rest of the US.

This shot is my favorite of the 2745!

Demand for light rail will defy predictions | TheNewsTribune.com | Tacoma, WA

Demand for light rail will defy predictions | TheNewsTribune.com | Tacoma, WA

This opinion piece speaks to the idea that "if you build it they will come." Sound Transit added average 12% ridership last year, with spikes as high as 30% in some spots. That's an impressive number surely caused by the hike in fuel prices seen by the common commuter. People are finding out that some public transit options actually work for them.

This is an interesting trend that I'll be watching!

No streetcar for Everett, Mayor says

HeraldNet: No streetcar for Everett, Mayor Ray Stephanson says

He doesn't want it, but the city council does. Looks like we're in for some more "feasibility studies!"