Courtesy Idaho Transportation Department IDAHO FALLS – The Idaho Transportation Department is seeking public comment on the future of the rail industry in the Gem State. ITD helps ensure safety along the state’s highways and one of the ways it does that is by installing infrastructure to regulate the flow of traffic. The agency works with Union Pacific Railroad to install and update lights, gates and signage at railroad crossings. While the rail industry is managed by the private sector, there are no state funding sources for freight or passenger rail. ITD helps provide federal funds for infrastructure needs. In a news release earlier this week, ITD says it’s updating the 2013 Idaho Statewide Rail Plan to “provide a strategic path forward for Idaho’s freight and passenger rail systems.” Through Nov. 12, ITD is asking the public to weigh in on infrastructure needs across the state. “We are asking the public, particularly those who are involved in the railroad industry, to give feedback on the conditions they see currently, the trends that will impact the market and what opportunities exist to strengthen rail infrastructure in Idaho to support our economy,” ITD spokeswoman Megan Jahns tells EastIdahoNews.com. Map of the existing rail lines in the state of Idaho. Idaho’s only passenger rail stop is the Amtrak station in Sandpoint, ID. There are 1,828 miles of rail in the state, almost all owned by private rail companies. | Courtesy ITD Idaho has 1,828 miles of privately-owned rail track, according to ITD’s latest rail data. It primarily serves freight. ITD reports Amtrak has one active passenger station in Sandpoint. As of 2023, it carried more than 6,500 passengers annually. It runs between Chicago and Portland or Seattle and offers daily service with one train in each direction. Idaho’s freight rail network, which includes 11 railroad lines and 1,793 miles of track, moves about 130 million tons annually. Most of its freight is farm products. In Idaho, the railroad industry employs 1,197 people, according to the Association of American Railroads, and accounts for about $7.8 billion of the state’s GDP. Union Pacific, the largest rail line in Idaho and across the country, has 872 miles of track in the Gem State and invests about $77 million in the state’s economy annually. “Southern Idaho is home to Union Pacific’s main artery to the Pacific Northwest. Heavy amounts of transcontinental traffic travel the track following the Snake River,” a fact sheet about Union Pacific Railroad states. Important terminals for Union Pacific are in Nampa and Pocatello. These terminals are a hub for branch line activities and crew change points. Photo in the Pocatello Model Railroad and Historical Society Museum showing the old roundhouse repair shop for the Oregon Short Line Railroad. | Rett Nelson, EastIdahoNews.com History of the railroad in eastern Idaho Union Pacific Railroad dates back to the late 1800s during construction on the Transcontinental Railroad. America was at the height of the Civil War when it got underway in 1863. Two railroad companies were formed. Central Pacific Railroad started laying track in Sacramento and continued east through the Sierra Nevada Mountains. Union Pacific started at the Missouri River near the Iowa-Nebraska border and continued west. They met in the middle about six years later. “On May 10, 1869, they had the driving of the golden spike down by Brigham City, Utah (to celebrate its completion). The Oregon Short Line started off of there after the Transcontinental Railroad was built,” Larry Gilbreath, president of the Pocatello Model Railroad and Historical Society, told EastIdahoNews.com in 2024. A celebration of the completion of the Transcontinental Railroad on May 10, 1869. | Courtesy Wikipedia RELATED | President of Pocatello Model Railroad and Historical Society shares history that ‘built this town’ and why it matters The Oregon Short Line Railway was an arm of the Union Pacific Railroad that extended through Wyoming, Idaho, Utah, Montana and Oregon. It was intended to be the shortest route from Montana to Oregon. The first rail line built in Idaho was the Utah and Northern Railway. It came out of Corinne, Utah about seven miles west of Brigham City. By 1878, it extended into Pocatello, Fort Hall, Blackfoot, Idaho Falls and onward to Garrison, Montana. A painting on display in the Pocatello museum shows Shoshone-Bannock tribal members on horseback looking at the first train depot in the area. “The railroad went to Chief Pocatello to get permission to lay their tracks through here. The Chief asked (what was in it for them) if they donated land. The railroad said, ‘Anytime you or your braves want to ride the train, we’ll let you ride it for free.’ That’s what it took to get the tracks through here,” says Gilbreath. The picture on display in the museum showing tribal members overlooking the Pocatello train depot. | Rett Nelson, EastIdahoNews.com Gilbreath says it’s the railroad that’s responsible for establishing Pocatello as the “Gateway to the Northwest,” and many of those early settlers initially came here searching for gold, silver or copper before settling down. The Utah and Northern Railway later merged with the Oregon Short Line in 1889, which served thousands of passengers for the next 82 years. On May 1, 1971, Union Pacific’s passenger service transferred to Amtrak, and stopped serving passengers in southern Idaho. May 1, 1971: Union Pacific’s passenger service transferred to #Amtrak. Find out more: https://t.co/iuoqBRzWbY #TBT pic.twitter.com/HJdvcSczR8 — Union Pacific (@UnionPacific) May 20, 2016 https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js A recent push by the Biden Administration to bring back passenger rail service hit a few snags in Idaho. In 2024, the Idaho Statesman reported a coalition advocating for an Amtrak line connecting Boise and Salt Lake was denied a federal grant because ITD failed to apply for it. RELATED | ‘A little mistake’: Idaho didn’t apply to study Boise-Salt Lake City rail service In 2023, a group in Oregon signed a petition to bring back an Amtrak line that was discontinued in 1997. It would connect Portland and Salt Lake City through Pocatello. Matt Krabacher, the Eastern Oregon vice president for the Association of Oregon Rail and Transit Advocates, told the Oregon Capital Chronicle it would bring economic opportunity and bridge the gap between rural towns in Oregon, Idaho and Utah. Amtrak has not responded to multiple inquiries from EastIdahoNews.com, but Jahns offers her perspective on the appeal of passenger rail service. “I’d rather hop on a train and do some reading and make a grocery list or take a nap than drive a car,” Jahns says. “That’s just my personal opinion, but I’m not sure what the public consensus is.” The U.S. Federal Railroad Administration in January 2025 recommended Amtrak add 15 new routes, including the Pioneer line, which is shown in green above. | (Screenshot of Federal Railroad Administration’s Amtrak Daily Long-Distance Service Study via Oregon Capital Chronicle) Freight and what happens next When it comes to freight, Union Pacific spokesman Mike Jaixen says maintaining rail infrastructure remains a priority and they’re working on developing their input to ITD’s rail plan. “Over the last five years, we’ve invested more than $262 million into strengthening our Idaho infrastructure. Annual projects include new ties and rail, as well as bridge maintenance. Nationwide, Union Pacific invests $10 million every day to maintain its own infrastructure and safely deliver the goods Americans rely on,” Jaixen says. Since launching its public comment period on Oct. 29, Jahns says there have been more than 1,500 responses. Public input will be shared with stakeholders in the railroad industry. Jahns says the goal is to collaborate with the railroad in assessing current conditions and apply for potential grants to implement changes. Any future action taken is pending a final report, which will be released in the spring of 2026. To weigh in, click here.The post The future of rail in Idaho focus of new survey and ITD wants your input appeared first on East Idaho News.
Source: eastidahonews.com