Western Railroad Discussion > BNSF Interbay roundhouse gone… :(

Well….

I posted a warning about this a couple years ago, and unfortunately it has become a reality.

I’m not sure exactly when the facility was built, but it is a prior Great Northern property over 100 years old, servicing equipment also for the BN and then BNSF.

A couple years ago they went from 3 shifts to 1 skeletonized day shift, and sadly enough, about a month ago, operations were ceased there…everybody given instruction to exercise their seniority.

The lights are still on, and there are 20+ locomotives in storage there, but the windows are boarded up and no work to ever be done there again…at least not by BNSF. Word is, is that Sound Transit has purchased the property and will use it for a repair facility for their trains in the near future.

Sad to see it go….get your pictures while you can.

Tex

Is the little switch engine named "Freckles" still there?

well maybe rail work will continue which is great , better than it getting torn down!  or they building new stuff?

NWRail Wrote:
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> Is the little switch engine named "Freckles" still
> there?

Yes. Stored in deadline near the shipping/recieving building.

Yes, as stated above, the little shop switcher “Freckles” is still there, although in very poor condition, as are all of the remaining locomotives.

I don’t believe any of those engines will ever run again…although they could, with a little respect and $$$.

Lots of vintage stuff there…several early 60’s GP30’s, BNSF 1551 SD9 built in 1954 LUGO, a handful of GP60B’s, and other random GP’s and SD’s. Plus the most current shop switcher, the BNSF 3606, an SW10, is in perfect working order…

Be careful going over there. A trainman buddy of mine who was a precious roundhouse employee went over there to try and find a headlight for his locomotive that day, and the police showed up…so somebody is paying attention to things over there.

Get your pics while you can….

Texican65 Wrote:
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> Seems to be a common theme.
>
> The Interbay roundhouse in Seattle…an old GN
> facility well over 100 years old is gone and out
> of business too. The property has been sold and
> all the windows boarded up.
>
> Makes sense to get rid of a repair facility in the
> biggest terminal in the NW division. Not…..

So curious, where does BNSF send their locomotives now for shop maintenance and FRA inspections in the PNW now?  I know there is a shop in Havre MT and the only other "close" one would be Alliance NE, but both of those are quite a ways away from the PNW.

I had heard rumors about BNSF building a facility at Vancouver WA; if that happened, that would be well kept secret.

On a slightly different note, I suspect BNSF will quickly close down MRL's former NP shops at Livingston MT.  That would be sad since they had a nice come back after BN had previously closed it down.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/23/24 08:49 by wyeth.

A friend who worked for BN in about 72 one evening gave me a tour of it. Well almost all of it befroe someone caught us and were told to leave.

Texican65 Wrote:
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> Plus the most current shop switcher, the
> BNSF 3606, an SW10, is in perfect working
> order…

They recently sent 3606 down to Vancouver to be shop switcher, there.

wyeth Wrote:
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> I had heard rumors about BNSF building a facility
> at Vancouver WA; if that happened, that would be
> well kept secret.

Vancouver was expanded greatly the last couple of years.  That's what replaced Interbay.

1) Google Earth image from June 2021.
2) Google Earth image from June 2023.

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Pretty Rediculous….having to send Seattle switch power down to Vancouver for inspections and repairs …the yard jobs are already feeling the negative effects of it as they’re short on power now.

Texican65 Wrote:
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> Pretty Rediculous….having to send Seattle switch
> power down to Vancouver for inspections and
> repairs …the yard jobs are already feeling the
> negative effects of it as they’re short on power
> now.

You've got it good. In the early 80s, Frisco Northern closed all shops except (of course) Springfield. Of course, that meant that anything dead or switchers that didn't MU went as tonnage. That meant sometimes leaving revenue tonnage behind or use another unit to pull the tonnage the dead units added to the train. That lasted a couple of years.

TAW

TAW Wrote:
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> Texican65 Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Pretty Rediculous….having to send Seattle
> switch
> > power down to Vancouver for inspections and
> > repairs …the yard jobs are already feeling
> the
> > negative effects of it as they’re short on
> power
> > now.
>
> You've got it good. In the early 80s, Frisco
> Northern closed all shops except (of course)
> Springfield. Of course, that meant that anything
> dead or switchers that didn't MU went as tonnage.
> That meant sometimes leaving revenue tonnage
> behind or use another unit to pull the tonnage the
> dead units added to the train. That lasted a
> couple of years.
>
> TAW

Another fine example of Modern North American Railroading, still alive and well In the 20’s too.

Regards

Posted from iPhone

This is sad to hear.  I recall seeing so many units back in the BN days bearing the 'Interbay' stencil on the frame.  There must have been a few hundred units calling it home for maintenance at one point.
 

TAW they had Alliance in the 80's  or did it come on line like 1985?

Denver did work, Havelock, galesburg, northtown?

dan Wrote:
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> TAW they had Alliance in the 80's  or did it come
> on line like 1985?
>
> Denver did work, Havelock, galesburg, northtown?

They even tried shutting down Alliance. They figured out the stupidity of that one before the others.

TAW