A light in the tunnel
NOTI The Coos Bay Rail Link has exactly three flatbed railcars riding its rails. No, they aren t hauling any cargo. They are helping restore rail service to shippers along the 111-mile line. Their current home is inside Tunnel 13. It cuts through a...
 4.5K - Sep. 19, 2009; scored 208.0 A new line of talks
Port officials are talking with railroad giant Union Pacific about leasing or purchasing the tracks from Coos Bay to Coquille. The short segment of line is considered crucial to operating the railroad successfully. Repairs are under way on four tunne...
2.3K - Sep. 18, 2009; scored 274.0 Railroad ready for repairs
Contractors could begin repairs to four tunnels on the Coos Bay Rail Link by the end of the month. The Oregon International Port of Coos Bay awarded a contract to LRL Construction of Tillamook to do the work, but it has been delayed by paperwork requ...
1.8K - Jul. 17, 2009; scored 196.0 Port awards contract for tunnel repairs
The Oregon International Port of Coos Bay is moving forward with tunnel repairs that led Central Oregon Pacific Railroad to close the Coos Bay Rail Line in September 2007. The Board of Commissioners awarded a contract to LRL Construction Co. of Til...
0.9K - Jun. 27, 2009; scored 196.0 Worn tracks pose new rail problem
Workers could begin repairing tunnels along the Coos Bay Rail Link as soon as next month. But aging bridge trestles and worn tracks also need repairs before the line can open. Port officials don't have any money for that. The port got $2.5 m...
4.2K - May. 12, 2009; scored 241.0 It's our railroad now
COOS BAY - The Coos Bay rail line officially changes hands and its name today. The new owner, which renamed the line Coos Bay Rail Link, now has to change gears. After spending the past year seeking ownership of the 111-mile railroad, the Oregon Inte...
3.7K - Mar. 13, 2009; scored 233.0 House OKs small port dredge funds
The vote on the Omnibus Appropriations Act was 245 to 178 along party lines in the U.S. House on Wednesday. The result is money for the Coos Bay railroad and dredging for South Coast if the Senate goes along. Congressman Peter DeFazio, D-Ore., anno...
1.6K - Feb. 26, 2009; scored 175.0 Railroad awaits costly bridge repairs
Failing tunnels may have led Central Oregon Pacific Railroad to close the Coos Bay rail line, but it s the route s 107 bridges that could prove to be more expensive to repair. No one is sure how much it will cost to bring the 111-mile line back int...
3.9K - Feb. 24, 2009; scored 324.0 Rail line sale is pushed back
Central Oregon Pacific Railroad and the Oregon International Port of Coos Bay have been at logger heads since the former shut down on the Coos Bay rail line in September 2007. They have disagreed over how to re-open the line, its value and the fede...
1.1K - Feb. 12, 2009; scored 198.0 Port picks new rail line boss
COOS BAY The Oregon International Port of Coos Bay announced plans to hire its first railroad employee Monday, after accepting $12.6 million in loans to purchase the Coos Bay rail line. The port is in negotiations with the city of Prinevil...
3.2K - Feb. 10, 2009; scored 929.0 Ready for repairs
COOS BAY The Oregon International Port of Coos Bay is going to buy the Coos Bay rail line after all, and officials already are lining up funds for repairs to get it open. Rep. Arnie Roblan, D-Coos Bay, said he and Sen. Joanne Verger, D-Coos Bay, ar...
4.6K - Feb. 6, 2009; scored 1000.0 The hardest work is ahead on the railroad
The Oregon International Port of Coos Bay has scored a big win in the economic development game, but it s just one round. The state will lend the port $12.6 million (hurrah!) to buy the closed rail line. Now comes the hard work. Not only doe...
2.1K - Feb. 6, 2009; scored 198.0 Port struggles to meet rail deadline
COOS BAY The Oregon International Port of Coos Bay s efforts to purchase the Coos Bay rail line are in jeopardy. Less than a month remains for the port to procure $16.6 million to pay Central Oregon Pacific Railroad for the tracks, tunne...
2.7K - Jan. 23, 2009; scored 175.0 Challenge stalls effort to create ATV mecca
HAUSER When Coos County purchased the 135-acre Riley Ranch near Hauser in 2002, the county s dream was for it to become an ATV mecca, complete with dunes access by this summer. Not so fast. A national environmental group the Center for Biologica...
5.3K - Jan. 15, 2009; scored 181.0 Rail closure still pinches businesses
Central Oregon Pacific Railroad s decision to close the Coos Bay rail line didn t just limit transportation options from the South Coast to Eugene. It has turned a Reedsport business with contacts throughout the Midwest into a purely regional inter...
4.2K - Jan. 10, 2009; scored 842.0 April
Council closes Chinook season Keeping the Sacramento River s fall Chinook stock healthy in 2008 would take 122,000 returning fall Chinook, but fewer than half that number are expected to return even with no fishing at all. So the Pacific Fishery Ma...
1.2K - Dec. 31, 2008; scored 202.0 All aboard! Port OKs railroad purchase
COOS BAY Local port officials have agreed to buy the Coos Bay rail line, accepting the price established by the U.S. Surface Transportation Board. That doesn t mean the port is happy with the $16.6 million price tag, though. Right after au...
3.0K - Nov. 21, 2008; scored 760.0 Feds side with CORP on railroad price
The U.S. Surface Transportation Board set the price for the Coos Bay rail line Wednesday at $16.6 million. The Oregon International Port of Coos Bay now has until Dec. 1 to decide whether to accept the STB s price and terms of sale. The STB ...
1.6K - Nov. 20, 2008; scored 181.0 Cheers and jeers
Happily helping Cheers to the folks organizing food and gift drives for the needy during the holiday season. Additional cheers to those who give. When times are hard, those of us who have enough should help those who don t. And remember, the need goe...
2.6K - Nov. 15, 2008; scored 175.0 Railroad sues over grant money
Central Oregon Pacific Railroad has filed a complaint in Douglas County Circuit Court, claiming the state breached its agreement to provide $7.7 million to help build a new rail yard in Winchester, north of Roseburg. The filing preceded a ...
1.6K - Nov. 14, 2008; scored 198.0 | 
