Farmer buys track, opens rail line

CORVALLIS, Ore. – Oregon’s newest rail line has opened for business.

The Venell Farms Railroad Co. took delivery of four covered hopper cars Friday from the Portland & Western and filled them with wheat for shipment to Portland.

Venell Farms bought 5.3 miles of track this spring from Union Pacific Railroad, three years after the long-neglected branch line south of Corvallis was shut down by the Portland & Western, which was leasing it from UP.

Larry Venell and other south Benton County freight shippers had fought the Portland & Western for years, first trying to force the railroad to repair the line and improve service, then suing to block the shutdown.

Now Venell has teamed up with the Albany & Eastern, a Lebanon, Ore.-based short line operator, to repair and operate his railroad. The partners have completed $750,000 worth of work on the line.

In addition to his own produce, Venell intends to haul wheat and other commodities for area growers who have been without rail service for the last three years. Several have already delivered loads of grain to Venell’s warehouse for shipment, and he hopes to ship about 400 carloads the first year.

The farm’s loading facility was a busy place Friday afternoon as workers scrambled to fill the first four cars with grain for a quick handoff to the P&W at Corvallis.

“We’re up and running,” Venell said. “They want these cars back tonight. We’re trying to prove a little something to the Portland & Western.”