After BNSF discontinuation of service, the section from Snohomish to Woodinville was operated under contract by Eastside Rail Freight, owned by Ballard Terminal Railroad and Meeker Southern.
The line was completed more than a century ago, between 1887 and 1904[1][2] by the Seattle, Lake Shore and Eastern Railway and by Northern Pacific Railroad.
Boeing uses the line to deliver 737 fuselages to its Renton plant[5] from its supplier Spirit AeroSystems in Wichita, Kansas.
A bridge north of Renton depot was replaced in order to accommodate the width of the Boeing 737 fuselages transported by rail.
[6] The line was also used by trains whose loads were too bulky to fit through the century-old Great Northern Tunnel that runs underneath downtown Seattle.
However, its numerous sharp curves and bends, at-grade street crossings, and poor rail condition required trains to reduce speeds to no more than 30 mph (48 km/h) when being used as a bypass.
[9] The Ballard Terminal Railroad's federal lawsuit to stop Kirkland's trail plans was dismissed in Seattle on May 9, 2013.