Empire Builder Sidelined Until Saturday

Amtrak is hoping to get its Empire Builder back to normal winter operation following a week of delays and cancellations due to severe winter weather.

However, the passenger carrier said Wednesday that it doesn’t expect to resume operations on the route until Saturday due to equipment and crews being out of place.

Mudslides and two derailments of BNSF freight trains on the Builder’s route in Washington State have led to a tangle of issues.

An avalanche on Jan. 7 in Montana in Marias Pass halted rail traffic. News reports indicated the snow, mud and other debris was 60 feet wide and in some places 15 feet deep.

The westbound No. 7 was one of the last trains to traverse the route before the avalanche struck.

The Empire Builder originates in Chicago, Seattle and Portland with sections for the latter two cities converging and diverging at Spokane, Washington.

Tags: Amtrak, Amtrak service cancelations, Amtrak service disruptions, Amtrak's Empire Builder, BNSF Railway, Empire Builder, Marias Pass, winter storms