North Bay businesses await return of freight trains

Engineer Eric Sprague was part of a crew that checked Northwestern Pacific Railroad tracks in the North Bay for flaws last week.

KENT PORTER/Press Democrat

Freight trains hauled cargo on the Northwestern Pacific Railroad for nearly 100 years, in good times and bad.

After a 10-year absence, trains could return this summer to Sonoma, Marin and Napa counties. Will shippers be there to greet them?

That's the question as railroad operator NWP Co. gears up to provide service on a 62-mile stretch of track between Napa County and Windsor.

While some North Bay companies say they want to use rail, critics question whether there's enough business to support the train.

John Williams, a 45-year railroad veteran and NWP's president, said he's convinced there's a market.

“We're expecting to be profitable,” said Williams, who has worked for Southern Pacific and Conrail.

So far, NWP has invested more than $5 million in the project.

Williams predicts the railroad will haul 2,000 to 2,500 carloads a year by the end of its second full year, putting NWP in the black. It will cost shippers less to use rail than trucks, especially for longer hauls, he said.

Still, the railroad company doesn't have a contract with a single shipper yet. He can't sign them up until trains are rolling, Williams said.

“Our problem is convincing people we're here,” Williams said. Freight service has been delayed for years by litigation, environmental studies and track repairs.

But there's plenty of interest from shippers, he said, including feed and grain dealers, wood products manufacturers, wineries and aggregate companies.