11/15/07 Statement from Federal Railroad Administration on the Safety of Tunnels on the Central Oregon and Pacific Railroad
The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) concurs with the findings of a detailed engineering report commissioned by the Central Oregon and Pacific (CORP) Railroad regarding the safety conditions of three tunnels between Eugene and Coquille, Oregon. FRA agrees that all three tunnels need immediate repairs to permit the safe resumption of railroad operations.
FRA reached this determination after a team of federal inspectors, lead by the agency’s Chief Engineer for Bridges and Structures, compared the tunnel conditions identified in the CORP engineering report with their own observations made during an on-site review.
In September, CORP made the decision to embargo rail traffic on its Coos Bay Subdivision line as a result of the tunnel safety issues.