Rumors of its demise have been mildly exaggerated! Following the recent decision to route through traffic away from the Yakima Valley and Stampede Subs, BNSF planned a series of Electronic Train Management System tests over Stampede Pass utilizing a loaded grain train. With the tests using an 80-car section of train concluding yesterday, BNSF today put the whole 108-car, 15,445-ton train back together at Ellensburg and ran it west over the Cascade Range. The swing helpers have little work to do near Bristol as the line follows the grade of the Yakima River towards Easton; visible a half-mile ahead of the rear DPU is the two-unit mid-train remote helper set. With the passage of this train, it's unknown when the line will next host revenue movements...
