Northern Lines Railway (NLR) and Columbia Basin Railroad have been added to BNSF Railway’s Shortline Select Program, the companies announced Tuesday.
BNSF’s Shortline Select program allows shortline railroads to share BNSF’s network reach. The program combines shortline customized service with the larger railway’s 32,500 miles across 28 states and three Canadian provinces.
“We’re proud to welcome two strong shortline partners to our Shortline Select program,” BNSF General Director of Marketing Mark Ganaway said. “Both NLR and CBRW exemplify BNSF’s dedication to dependable, integrated service and share our focus on supporting customer success through collaborative growth.”
Started in 2024, the program allows the railroads to collaborate on economic development and growth initiatives through “Premier Transloads” which includes the shortlines in BNSF’s Premier Transload Program of more than 400 transloaders across its system, and Certified Sites program that allows select location to be eligible for designation as a certified site of rail-ready, industrial sites that are pre-approved for development.
The Shortline Select partners work with BNSF on a suite of operational process improvements and have a pre-defined economic arrangement with BNSF that enables an expedited responsiveness to customer rate requests, officials said.
“We’re honored to join the BNSF Shortline Select program,” NLR Senior Director of Sales and Marketing Katie Sackett said. “Our two-decade relationship with BNSF has always been focused on supporting safe, efficient, and green supply chain options for our customers, and this new initiative is a welcome next step. We look forward to growing our partnership for many years to come.”