Blackwell Northern Gateway Railroad (reporting mark BNG) was a short-line railroad headquartered in Blackwell, Oklahoma. It operated on tracks owned by the Blackwell Industrial Authority (BIA) and the Oklahoma Department of Transportation (ODOT). [1] [2]
The BNG was a replacement for The Blackwell and Northern Railway (BNR), which started service over the same line on November 4, 2002, and which was in turn the replacement for the prior operator, the South Kansas and Oklahoma Railroad. [3] [4] The rails were former Santa Fe trackage, with a portion around Blackwell originating with the Frisco. [5] The BNG was chartered in Oklahoma on October 31, 2005, contracted to replace the BNR in late 2005, and began operating January 2, 2006. [3] [4] The BNG was an employer for the purposes of the Railroad Retirement Act. [3]
It operated 35.26 miles of line from Blackwell to Hunnewell, Kansas, with trackage rights to Wellington, Kansas. [4] It interchanged with the BNSF at Wellington, and (via the BNSF) with Union Pacific. [4] It also generated revenue storing railcars for larger railroads. [6] It had 8 employees as of 2017. [7]
When the region experienced flooding in May of 2019, the line was severely damaged in areas around Blackwell, Braman, Oklahoma, and South Haven, Kansas. [6] The line was temporarily shut down while the affected areas were repaired. [6]
In October 2023, BNG filed to extend its leases on both the BIA and ODOT portions of its line. [8] [9] However, on February 2, 2024, the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) issued an Emergency Order shutting down the BNG due to public safety concerns regarding operations and maintenance of the line after new ownership and management took over in October 2023. [10] [11] The FRA instigated its investigation into the railroad following two derailments which involved unqualified individuals operating locomotives at the railroad. [12] Prior to the shutdown order there was also an incident involving a hi-rail truck on January 28th that nearly collided with a vehicle at an unprotected grade crossing. [13]
Rock Island Rail requested in late February 2024, and received in early March 2024, an FRA emergency order allowing it to take over operations of the BNG for at least 30 days to be able to handle urgent needs for two shippers on the line. [14] [15] In August of 2024, Rock Island Rail was granted a long-term lease for the line. [5] However, on October 11, ODOT informed the Rock Island Rail-affiliated Oklahoma & Kansas Railroad that its lease was being terminated, alleging that the operator had made no effort to rehabilitate the line. [5] ODOT then began seeking a new operator for the trackage. [5]
