Union Pacific service disruptions may last two weeks

Union Pacific service disruptions may last two weeks    It may take two weeks, or possibly more, to restore rail service on a Los Angeles/Salt Lake City line of Union Pacific damaged by storms in California and Nevada during the past week.
   Union Pacific confirmed the track was cut by flooding and mudslides at several points. According to the railroad, the worst damage is in the very narrow Caliente Canyon in Nevada, where all access roads were washed out and repair work will be very difficult.
   The storms forced the closure of two of the five main routes in and out of the Los Angeles Basin. Union Pacific instituted embargoes to restrict traffic to and from a significant portion of its California and Las Vegas service areas.
   But the “Sunset” route between Los Angeles, Calif. and El Paso, Texas, is now open and operating at capacity, UP said Thursday.
   The coastal route that runs north from Los Angeles to Oakland is cut in several places with debris from mudslides, and ocean tides have eroded track support at other points. As of yet, Union Pacific does not have an estimate for the reopening of this line.
   The railroad said it is able to reroute a number of trains, and the Burlington Northern Santa Fe railroad is allowing a few Union Pacific trains to operate over its line.
   Union Pacific is unable to estimate the financial impact of these service interruptions until all of the damage can be assessed.