01/15/08 Scoot service may reduce trucking grain to Ritzville rail shuttle

Washington Ag January 15, 2008 The opening a few years ago of a shuttle train loading facility at Ritzville significantly increased the trucking of grain from the surrounding region to that loading elevator. The President of the of the Eastern Washington Gateway Railroad, which operates on the now-state owned Coulee City to Cheney rail line, or CW Line, told a joint legislative committee meeting Monday the railroad has plans that may soon reduce that truck traffic on local roads. John Howell says they plan to offer a CW-Scoot service by rail. Howell: "Because we have the capability of independently of pricing our product is make it very competitive with trucks that might move from the elevators from Coulee City going east towards Wilbur, and Creston and Davenport and Reardon. And by making it competitive to the truck offering we believe we can attract a significant amount of grain away from the highway to the rail and increase the utility and productivity of this railroad." Howell said the scoot service could begin by this weekend pending one more negotiating session with BNSF. The Washington Legislature began it 60-day 2008 session in Olympia yesterday. I'm Bob Hoff.