Woodinville, Washington, December 8, 1979
After doubling its train from Snohomish to Maltby, Milwaukee Road train #905 slows to register at the BN shack at Woodinville, Washington. An F7 slug/F7A trail GP9 284, an rarity to see the "Hill Engine" F-units outside the Tacoma area. The thrice-weekly trains out of Bellingham were profitable for the Milwaukee Road, with interchange off BC Hydro at Sumas, local traffic off the Bellingham-Sumas line, and lumber traffic out of Everett. Woodinville was an unusual branchline junction at the time, crossings of two former Northern Pacific lines, the old NP line from Seattle through Bothell and on to Redmond and Issaquah (and eventually as far as Snoqualmie and North Bend), and the line from Black River Junction through Renton and Bellevue, which once continued through to Sumas. Milwaukee trains began using the BN between Snohomish Junction and Renton shortly after the 1970 BN merger in a trackage rights swap that allowed BN use of the Milwaukee from Renton to Snoqualmie, allowing the abandonment of the former NP from Issaquah to Snoqualmie to allow interstate highway construction. The MILW was able to abandon the old Everett Branch between Snoqualmie and Monroe as well.
Woodinville, Washington, December 8, 1979
After doubling its train from Snohomish to Maltby, Milwaukee Road train #905 slows to register at the BN shack at Woodinville, Washington. An F7 slug/F7A trail GP9 284, an rarity to see the "Hill Engine" F-units outside the Tacoma area. The thrice-weekly trains out of Bellingham were profitable for the Milwaukee Road, with interchange off BC Hydro at Sumas, local traffic off the Bellingham-Sumas line, and lumber traffic out of Everett. Woodinville was an unusual branchline junction at the time, crossings of two former Northern Pacific lines, the old NP line from Seattle through Bothell and on to Redmond and Issaquah (and eventually as far as Snoqualmie and North Bend), and the line from Black River Junction through Renton and Bellevue, which once continued through to Sumas. Milwaukee trains began using the BN between Snohomish Junction and Renton shortly after the 1970 BN merger in a trackage rights swap that allowed BN use of the Milwaukee from Renton to Snoqualmie, allowing the abandonment of the former NP from Issaquah to Snoqualmie to allow interstate highway construction. The MILW was able to abandon the old Everett Branch between Snoqualmie and Monroe as well.