BNSF outlines investment plans

   BNSF officials said they have started a $1 billion investment plan along its northern corridor, which runs between the Pacific Northwest and Chicago.
   The company will spend $400 million in North Dakota to complete a second mainline track between Minot, N.D., and Glasgow, Mont., and to construct new sidings on four routes starting in North Dakota. The railroad also has plans to upgrade to a centralized traffic control system, in addition to regular maintenance projects.
   In Washington and Montana, BNSF will spend $235 million and $160 million, respectively, on expansion and maintenance projects. In Illinois and Minnesota, upgrades and maintenance projects will total $150 million and $120 million, respectively.
   “Following our record capital investment in 2013 of $4 billion, we are making the most significant capital investment in our history of approximately $5 billion this year,” BNSF President and Chief Executive Officer Carl Ice said in a statement. “Our capital investments along the Northern Corridor are critical to expanding our capacity to support the region’s rapidly growing economy, improving our ability to meet our customers’ expectations, and ensuring our railroad remains the safest mode of ground transportation for freight.”