Lake Washington Belt Line
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The Woodinville Subdivision was a
railroad Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in railway track, tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel railway track, rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of ...
line that was formerly owned by
BNSF Railway BNSF Railway is the largest freight railroad in the United States. One of six North American Class I railroads, BNSF has 36,000 employees, of track in 28 states, and over 8,000 locomotives. It has three Transcontinental railroad, transcontine ...
. It takes its name from one of its original end points in Woodinville,
Washington Washington most commonly refers to: * George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States * Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A ...
,
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
. The line extended approximately in east King County and
Snohomish County Snohomish County () is a county located in the U.S. state of Washington. With a population of 827,957 as of the 2020 census, it is the third-most populous county in Washington, after nearby King and Pierce counties, and the 72nd-most popul ...
. The line's ownership was transferred in a deal involving King County and the
Port of Seattle The Port of Seattle is a public agency that is in King County, Washington. It oversees the seaport of Seattle as well as Seattle–Tacoma International Airport. With a portfolio of properties ranging from parks and waterfront real estate, to ...
. After BNSF discontinuation of service, the section from Snohomish to Woodinville was operated under contract by Eastside Rail Freight, owned by Ballard Terminal Railroad and Meeker Southern. As of 2024, the line is officially railbanked as decided by the Surface Transportation Board.


Route

The line was completed more than a century ago, between 1887 and 1904 by the
Seattle, Lake Shore and Eastern Railway The Seattle, Lake Shore and Eastern Railway (SLS&E) was a railroad founded in Seattle, Washington, on April 28, 1885, with three tiers of purposes: Build and run the initial line to the town of Ballard, Seattle, Ballard, bring immediate results ...
and by
Northern Pacific Railroad The Northern Pacific Railway was an important American transcontinental railroad that operated across the northern tier of the Western United States, from Minnesota to the Pacific Northwest between 1864 and 1970. It was approved and chartered b ...
. The northern section between present day Woodinville and Snohomish was completed in 1888 and the section between Renton and Woodinville known as "The Belt Line" was completed in 1904. By 1902
Northern Pacific Railroad The Northern Pacific Railway was an important American transcontinental railroad that operated across the northern tier of the Western United States, from Minnesota to the Pacific Northwest between 1864 and 1970. It was approved and chartered b ...
held all interest in the line it (later became part of the
Burlington Northern Railroad The Burlington Northern Railroad was a United States–based railroad company formed from a merger of four major U.S. railroads. Burlington Northern operated between 1970 and 1995. Its historical lineage begins in the earliest days of railroad ...
and then the
Burlington Northern and Santa Fe BNSF Railway is the largest freight railroad in the United States. One of six North American Class I railroads, BNSF has 36,000 employees, of track in 28 states, and over 8,000 locomotives. It has three transcontinental routes that provide ra ...
). The route begins in the area of Renton and Tukwila, at a place called Black River Junction. The rails run north along the eastern shore of
Lake Washington Lake Washington () is a large freshwater lake adjacent to the city of Seattle, Washington, United States. It is the largest lake in King County, Washington, King County and the second largest natural lake in the state of Washington (state), Was ...
through
Bellevue Bellevue means "beautiful view" in French. Bellevue or Belle Vue may refer to: Places Australia * Bellevue, Queensland * Bellevue, Western Australia * Bellevue Hill, New South Wales Canada * Bellevue, Alberta * Bellevue, Newfoundlan ...
and several smaller cities before reaching its northern
terminus Terminus may refer to: Ancient Rome *Terminus (god), a Roman deity who protected boundary markers Transport *Terminal train station or terminus, a railway station serving as an end destination *Bus terminus, a bus station serving as an end des ...
in the small rural city of Snohomish. The railroad is mostly single tracked with a few passing sidings to allow trains to pass each other and spurs for local industries. It is a former
Northern Pacific Northern Pacific may refer to: * Northern Pacific Airways, an upcoming airline * Northern Pacific Field Hockey Conference, an NCAA Division I conference * Northern Pacific Hockey League, an American Tier III junior ice hockey league * Northern Paci ...
branch line. The route also includes a branch line from Woodinville to downtown Redmond; this is a remnant from which the tracks have been removed off a former
Northern Pacific Northern Pacific may refer to: * Northern Pacific Airways, an upcoming airline * Northern Pacific Field Hockey Conference, an NCAA Division I conference * Northern Pacific Hockey League, an American Tier III junior ice hockey league * Northern Paci ...
line to North Bend via Issaquah where the tracks have also been removed. A major feature of the railroad is the spectacular Wilburton Trestle, which was originally constructed in 1904. It was the longest wooden trestle in use in the Northwest until 2008. In June 2008, work commenced on the widening of I-405 south of Bellevue. As a result, the line was severed at the point at which it crosses the southbound lanes, just south of the railroad trestle. Currently there are no plans to reinstate the track now that the widening project has been completed.


Uses

The line was primarily used for local freight traffic.
Boeing The Boeing Company, or simply Boeing (), is an American multinational corporation that designs, manufactures, and sells airplanes, rotorcraft, rockets, satellites, and missiles worldwide. The company also provides leasing and product support s ...
uses the line to deliver 737
fuselage The fuselage (; from the French language, French ''fuselé'' "spindle-shaped") is an aircraft's main body section. It holds Aircrew, crew, passengers, or cargo. In single-engine aircraft, it will usually contain an Aircraft engine, engine as wel ...
s to its Renton plant from its supplier
Spirit AeroSystems Spirit AeroSystems Holdings, Inc. is an American Manufacturing, manufacturer of aerostructures for commercial airplanes, headquartered in Wichita, Kansas. The company produces fuselage sections for Boeing's Boeing 737, 737 and Boeing 787 Dreaml ...
in
Wichita, Kansas Wichita ( ) is the List of cities in Kansas, most populous city in the U.S. state of Kansas and the county seat of Sedgwick County, Kansas, Sedgwick County. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population of the city was 397, ...
. Trains for the Boeing plant at Renton traveled through Seattle and entered the factory from the south. A bridge north of Renton depot was replaced in order to accommodate the width of the Boeing 737 fuselages transported by rail. The line was also used to serve as a bypass during outages for the only other north–south rail route between the
Cascade Mountains The Cascade Range or Cascades is a major mountain range of western North America, extending from southern British Columbia through Washington and Oregon to Northern California. It includes both non-volcanic mountains, such as many of those in the ...
and
Puget Sound Puget Sound ( ; ) is a complex estuary, estuarine system of interconnected Marine habitat, marine waterways and basins located on the northwest coast of the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington. As a part of the Salish Sea, the sound ...
, the Seattle/Scenic Subdivision, which runs through downtown Seattle and along
Puget Sound Puget Sound ( ; ) is a complex estuary, estuarine system of interconnected Marine habitat, marine waterways and basins located on the northwest coast of the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington. As a part of the Salish Sea, the sound ...
. It was one of several corridors considered for potential
commuter rail Commuter rail or suburban rail is a Passenger train, passenger rail service that primarily operates within a metropolitan area, connecting Commuting, commuters to a Central business district, central city from adjacent suburbs or commuter town ...
passenger service or reuse by another transit mode by the Central Puget Sound Regional Transit Authority (now Sound Transit) in the 1990s. The line was also used by trains whose loads were too bulky to fit through the century-old Great Northern Tunnel that runs underneath
downtown Seattle Downtown is the central business district of Seattle, Washington. It is fairly compact compared with other city centers on the U.S. West Coast due to its geographical situation, being hemmed in on the north and east by hills, on the west by ...
. However, its numerous sharp curves and bends, at-grade street crossings, and poor rail condition required trains to reduce speeds to no more than when being used as a bypass. After a rainstorm washed out part of the Seattle line in 1997, a freight train derailed navigating the line as such. Until 2007, the line was also used by the Spirit of Washington Dinner Train, a
tourist attraction A tourist attraction is a place of interest that tourists visit, typically for its inherent or exhibited natural or cultural value, historical significance, natural or built beauty, offering leisure and amusement. Types Places of natural beaut ...
. The Spirit of Washington's contract to use the railroad ended on July 31, 2007, and efforts to renew it have been rejected by both BNSF Railroad and King County.


Sale and dismantling

In 2003, BNSF announced that it was looking to sell the line because of declining freight revenues and rising maintenance costs. The
Port of Seattle The Port of Seattle is a public agency that is in King County, Washington. It oversees the seaport of Seattle as well as Seattle–Tacoma International Airport. With a portfolio of properties ranging from parks and waterfront real estate, to ...
purchased the right of way in 2008 for conversion to public-access
rail trail A rail trail or railway walk is a shared-use path on a Right of way#Rail right of way, railway right of way. Rail trails are typically constructed after a railway has been abandoned and the track has been removed but may also share the rail corr ...
. In 2012 the City of Kirkland purchased the portion of the line running within the city limits, intending to convert to a trail. The Ballard Terminal Railroad's federal lawsuit to stop Kirkland's trail plans was dismissed in Seattle on May 9, 2013. In January, 2015, the Kirkland portion of the Eastside Rail Corridor, with compacted gravel surfacing, opened for pedestrians and bicyclists as the Cross Kirkland Corridor. Snohomish County acquired the right of way from Snohomish to the King County line at Woodinville in 2016. Snohomish county plans to continue with rail and trail in this part of the corridor.


References

{{Reflist, refs = {{Cite press release , title=Federal Judge dismisses injunction claim about Cross Kirkland Corridor rail removal , publisher=City of Kirkland , url=http://www.kirklandwa.gov/News_Room/NR0509CKCDismiss.htm , date=May 9, 2013 , url-status=dead , archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20131112043657/http://www.kirklandwa.gov/News_Room/NR0509CKCDismiss.htm , archivedate=November 12, 2013 , df=mdy {{cite web , title = Cross Kirkland Corridor Informational Brochure: The A, B, C Update , publisher = City of Kirkland Public Works Department , url = http://www.kirklandwa.gov/Assets/CMO/CMO+PDFs/Cross+Kirkland+Corridor+ABC+Brochure.pdf , date = December 5, 2012 , access-date = December 16, 2012 {{Cite web, title = The Eastside Railroad , publisher = Eastside Rail Now! , url = http://www.eastsiderailnow.org/route.html , date = February 7, 2008 {{Cite news, title = Rail-to-trail plan sparks debate over Eastside line , author = Ervin, Keith , newspaper = The Seattle Times , url = http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2003547239_railline30m.html , date = January 30, 2007 , access-date = April 9, 2008 {{Cite news, title = Group Wants Dinner Train To Relocate To Snohomish , publisher = KIRO , url = http://www.kirotv.com/news/11202743/detail.html , date = March 8, 2007 , access-date = April 9, 2008 {{Cite web, title = Railroad History , publisher = Centennialtrail , url = http://centennialtrail.com/past-forward/the-railroads/railroad_history , date = 2017 , access-date = June 28, 2017 {{Cite web, title = Seattle,_Lake_Shore_and_Eastern_Railway , publisher = Wikipedia , url = https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seattle,_Lake_Shore_and_Eastern_Railway , date = April 18, 2017 , access-date = June 28, 2017 {{Circular reference, date=November 2017 {{Cite web, title = Seattle, Lake Shore & Eastern Railroad Company , work =
HistoryLink HistoryLink is an online encyclopedia of Washington (state), Washington state history. The site has more than 8,100 entries and attracts 23,000 weekly visitors. It has 500 biographies and more than 14,000 images. The non-profit historical organi ...
, url = http://www.historylink.org/File/1736 , date = November 18, 1999 , access-date = June 28, 2017
{{Cite web, title = Timeline , publisher = woodinville-heritage-society , url = http://www.woodinvilleheritage.org/timeline/ , date = 2012 , access-date = June 28, 2017 http://www.woodinvilleheritage.org/timeline/


External links


Cross Kirkland Corridor

Eastside Rail Now!
a grassroots movement to preserve the Eastside route BNSF Railway lines Heritage railroads in Washington (state) Rail infrastructure in Washington (state) Transportation in King County, Washington Transportation in Snohomish County, Washington Woodinville, Washington