JOC Staff | Nov 28, 2012 3:21PM EST
The U.S. Department of Transportation awarded more than $3.2 million to Washington state to improve capacity and reliability for freight and intercity passenger rail in the Pacific Northwest.
The grant will support the $8.4 million Mount Vernon Siding Extension Project, which will extend the existing siding track that is currently not long enough for freight train use in order to accommodate both intercity and freight trains.
The project will avoid backups caused by freight and passenger trains sharing the same tracks. It will reduce congestion, add capacity and improve a substantial bottleneck, providing long-term benefits for freight.