Union Pacific Railroad will continue improving Idaho’s transportation infrastructure with a $23.1 million investment in the rail line that runs from Weiser to Mountain Home in the west and from Pocatello to Idaho Falls in the east.
The 180-mile project includes removing and installing new rail and more than 206,000 railroad ties along this critical railroad corridor through Idaho. Crews will spread 106,000 tons of rock ballast to ensure a stable roadbed.
In 2011, Union Pacific plans to spend approximately $3.3 billion in capital investments to support America’s current and future freight transportation needs and enhance the safety and efficiency of the railroad’s 32,000-mile network.
Improved and additional rail capacity benefits everyone. It allows freight rail service to grow, helping to build a cleaner environment. Union Pacific can move one ton of freight nearly 500 miles on a single gallon of diesel fuel, and, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, freight trains are nearly four times more efficient than trucks.
Motorists also benefit from reduced congestion on highways as a single Union Pacific train can remove up to 300 trucks from roads.
