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The '''Uinta Basin Rail''' project is a proposed {{convert|100|mi|km|adj=on}} rail line<ref name="trains"/> to connect the [[shale oil]] rich [[Uinta Basin]] region of eastern [[Utah]] to the [[national rail network]]. Numerous proposals have been made, some as far back as 1902, that are still under consideration. The current effort is a [[Public–private partnership|public-private partnership]] between a coalition of 7 counties in Utah, the [[Rio Grande Pacific Corporation]] and [[Drexel Hamilton]] Infrastructure Partners. The railroad is also backed by the [[Ute Indian Tribe of the Uintah and Ouray Reservation|Ute Tribe]] who hold a 5% stake in the project.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://railfan.com/tribe-backs-uinta-basin-railroad-construction/ |title=Tribe Backs Uinta Basin Railroad Construction |author=Railfan & Railroad staff|date=September 30, 2021 |website=railfan.com |publisher=White River Productions |access-date=May 13, 2022}}</ref> If the rail line is built it will be the first major [[greenfield project|greenfield]] rail line built in the United States since the [[Chicago and North Western Transportation Company|Chicago and North Western]]’s line to the [[Powder River Basin]] was built in the early 1980s.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Franz |first=Justin |date=August 29, 2023 |title=After Court Rejects Approval, What's Next For Uinta Basin Railway? |url=https://railfan.com/after-court-rejects-approval-whats-next-for-uinta-basin-railway/ |access-date=April 2, 2024 |website=railfan.com |language=en-US}}</ref> The [[Surface Transportation Board]] approved construction of the line in December 2021,
==Past efforts==
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==Utah Department of Transportation study==
[[File:Uintabasinrail-whitmorepark-indiancanyongrade.png|thumb|Map of the Whitmore Park alternative to route the rail line underneath the [[Roan Cliffs]] and West Tavaputs Plateau. Also visible is the existing route of [[U.S. Route 191 (Utah)|U.S. Route 191]].]]
In 2012, the [[Utah Department of Transportation]] (UDOT), working with the regional Six-County Infrastructure Coalition, began studying transportation in the basin, which is a major oil-producing region.<ref name="trains"/> The study determined that the existing infrastructure was unlikely to be able to move the expected volume of oil. In 2013, HDR Engineering, working with the state, began surveying the area for a rail line.<ref name="trains"/> After examining 26 potential routings, the state recommended a route east through the Indian Canyon from the [[Union Pacific Railroad]]'s [[Central Corridor (Union Pacific Railroad)|Central Corridor]] line near [[Soldier Summit, Utah|Soldier Summit]] to [[Duchesne, Utah|Duchesne]] and [[Roosevelt, Utah|Roosevelt]] in the basin.<ref name=UDOT>{{cite report|chapter-url=http://www.udot.utah.gov/main/uconowner.gf?n=22029103377080492|title=Utah State Rail Plan|website=udot.utah.gov|publisher=[[Utah Department of Transportation]]|chapter=1,4,6,7
In late 2014, after selecting the routing, the state began studying the cost, estimated to be up to $4 billion.<ref name="kuer">{{cite web | url=http://kuer.org/post/rail-line-would-deliver-uinta-basin-energy-markets | title=Rail Line Would Deliver Uinta Basin Energy to Markets | publisher=KUER.org | date=14 July 2014 | access-date=20 October 2014 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141020062157/http://kuer.org/post/rail-line-would-deliver-uinta-basin-energy-markets | url-status=live | archive-date=20 October 2014}}</ref> With a total of $8.2 million in funding from the state, the Department of Transportation also began work on the [[Environmental Impact Statement]] (EIS) for the railroad, with planned to complete the document by the end of 2016.<ref name="trains">{{cite web | url=http://trn.trains.com/news/news-wire/2014/10/utah-looks-to-build-new-railroad-to-tap-oil-boom| url-status=live | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141011192032/http://trn.trains.com/news/news-wire/2014/10/utah-looks-to-build-new-railroad-to-tap-oil-boom| archive-date=2014-10-11 | title=Utah looks to build new railroad to tap oil boom | publisher=Trains Magazine | date=9 October 2014 | access-date=20 October 2014}}</ref> Several months after beginning work on the EIS, however, the state decided to end study of the route, citing rising costs identified by closer study.<ref name="dec2014"/> Kevin Van Tassell, a member of the state legislature's transportation committee, said the state would "look at other systems to move product out of the basin other than the railroad at this time."<ref name="dec2014"/>
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Of the 3 routes remaining under study, the Surface Transportation Board recommended one called the Whitmore Park alternative as having the least environmental impact, and approved its construction.<ref name=stbapproval>{{cite report |url= https://dcms-external.s3.amazonaws.com/DCMS_External_PROD/1639603742088/51032.pdf |publisher=Surface Transportation Board |date=December 15, 2021 |title=DECISION Docket No. FD 36284 SEVEN COUNTY INFRASTRUCTURE COALITION—RAIL CONSTRUCTION & OPERATION EXEMPTION—IN UTAH, CARBON, DUCHESNE, AND UINTAH COUNTIES, UTAH}}</ref> This alternative is based on the Indian Canyon alternative surveyed by UDOT. The route was modified to include [[horseshoe curve]]s and [[Spiral (railway)|spirals]] to scale higher up the [[Roan Cliffs]] and West Tavaputs Plateau, which would allow the length of the tunnel into Indian Canyon to be shortened to {{convert|3.1|mi|km}}. Other modifications included using a longer route and side canyons to scale the Roan Cliffs, avoiding a landslide area identified as a risk by UDOT, and adjusted routing in parts of the basin for easier land access rights.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://uintabasinrailwayeis.com/ |title=Uinta Basin Railway Environmental Impact Statement| publisher= Surface Transportation Board |year=2019 |access-date=December 17, 2019}}</ref><ref name=routeoptions/> In September 2020, it was announced that Drexel Hamilton Infrastructure Partners, LP (DHIP) would fund construction for the line and have the exclusive right to develop the line, thus giving the rail project the green light to start construction.<ref>{{cite journal |url=https://www.railwayage.com/freight/short-lines-regionals/uinta-basin-railway-green-lighted/?RAchannel=news |last=Vantuono |first=William |title=Uinta Basin Railway Green-Lighted |date=September 8, 2020 |access-date=September 12, 2020 |journal=[[Railway Age]]}}</ref> In December 2020, environmentalist groups filed a lawsuit attempting to block construction, claiming the project is primarily to benefit fossil fuel extraction. Some of the funding allocated to the project was instead intended to help diversify the economy of rural Utah away from fossil fuels.<ref name=hcn>{{cite news| work=High Country News |last=Kaiser-Schatzlein |first=Robin |title=Lawsuit over proposed fossil fuel railway in Utah moves forward |date=December 15, 2020 |access-date=January 21, 2020 |url=https://www.hcn.org/articles/energy-industry-lawsuit-over-proposed-fossil-fuel-railway-in-utah-moves-forward| url-status=live | archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20211114/https://www.hcn.org/articles/energy-industry-lawsuit-over-proposed-fossil-fuel-railway-in-utah-moves-forward| archive-date=2021-11-14}}{{cbignore}}</ref>
[[File:Helper UT retired power plant (-0098).jpg|thumb|The retired [[Carbon Power Plant]] at the junction of [[U.S. Route 191|US 191]] and [[U.S. Route 6 in Utah|US 6]] inside the [[Price River]] Canyon. Also visible is the [[Central Corridor (Union Pacific Railroad)|Central Corridor]]. The Uinta Basin Rail line would connect to the main a few miles west of this point.]]
The Surface Transportation Board issued their approval in December 2021. Environmentalist activists are organizing efforts to block construction, citing the pristine nature of the mountains where construction will take place and concerns cost overruns are likely given the difficult terrain.<ref name=motherjones>{{cite magazine |url=https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2022/05/an-oil-train-is-set-to-destroy-pristine-utah-mountains-why-wont-biden-stop-it/ |magazine=Mother Jones |issue=May 2022 |title=An Oil Train Is Set to Destroy Pristine Utah Mountains. Why Won't Biden Stop It?}}</ref> In 2022 construction contracts for the railroad's construction particularly for the tunnels along the route were announced with [[AECOM]], a joint venture with [[Skanska]] & [[W.W. Clyde Company]], and [[Obayashi Corporation]] as principal partners.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20220513005554/en/Rio-Grande-Pacific-Corporation-Announces-Engineering-and-Construction-Teams-for-Uinta-Basin-Railway-Project |title=Rio Grande Pacific Corporation Announces Engineering and Construction Teams for Uinta Basin Railway Project |author=<!--Not stated--> |date=May 13, 2022 |work=Business Wire |access-date=May 13, 2022}}</ref> The [[US Forest Service]] granted right-of-way through {{convert|12 |miles}} of [[Ashley National Forest]] and upheld the decision when challenged by several environmental groups.<ref>{{Cite news |date=July 8, 2022 |title=Forest Service upholds decision on Uinta Basin Railway |url=https://www.trains.com/trn/news-reviews/news-wire/forest-service-upholds-decision-on-uinta-basin-railway/ |access-date=2022-07-10 |work=Trains |language=en-US}}</ref> A $28 million grant by the Utah Community Impact Fund Board was also upheld in July 2022 after being challenged.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Maffly |first=Brian |date=July 16, 2022 |title=Uinta Basin Railway on track after Utah judge approves state grants for railroad funding |url=https://www.sltrib.com/news/environment/2022/07/16/uinta-basin-railway-track-after/ |access-date=2022-07-17 |website=The Salt Lake Tribune |language=en-US}}</ref> This line could create spillover pressure to reopen the [[Tennessee Pass Line]] to avoid a surge in oil trains through the [[Moffat Tunnel]] and down into [[Denver]].<ref>{{Cite news |last=Williams |first=David O. |date=2023-05-05 |title=Billionaire Colorado landowner no longer pursuing Tennessee Pass rail line |url=https://coloradonewsline.com/2023/05/04/colorado-tennessee-pass-rail-line/ |access-date=2023-05-06 |work=Colorado Newsline |language=en-US}}</ref> On August 18, 2023, a Federal Appeals Court halted the project pending "''a more fulsome explanation'' for the Board’s conclusion that the Railway’s transportation benefits outweighed the project’s environmental impacts".<ref name="TDP 2023-08-28">{{cite news|last=Schmelzer |first=Elise |date=August 18, 2023 |title=Proposed railway that would bring millions of gallons of crude oil through Colorado halted by federal judge |url=https://www.denverpost.com/2023/08/18/uinta-basin-railway-utah-colorado-project-halted/ |work=[[The Denver Post]] |location=[[Denver, Colorado]] |accessdate=August 19, 2023 }}</ref> since the Forest Service decision relied on the Surface Transportation Board’s environmental review, the Service withdrew its record of decision and amendment in February 2024.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Gutierrez |first=Emily |date=2024-02-20 |title=Forest Service pulls Uinta Basin Railway's special use permit, halting approval of project trying to ship waxy crude oil along Colorado River |url=https://www.skyhinews.com/news/forest-service-pulls-uinta-basin-railways-special-use-permit-halting-approval-of-project-trying-to-ship-waxy-crude-oil-along-colorado-river/ |access-date=2024-02-21 |website=Sky-Hi News |language=en-US}}</ref> In August 2023, a Federal Appeals Court halted the project pending "''a more fulsome explanation'' for the Board’s conclusion that the Railway’s transportation benefits outweighed the project’s environmental impacts".{{r|TDP 2023-08-28}}<ref>{{Cite magazine |date=2023-12-05 | first1=Marybeth |last1=Luczak |title=Report: Court Will Not Rehear Uinta Basin Railway Case |url=https://www.railwayage.com/regulatory/report-court-will-not-rehear-uinta-basin-railway-case/ |access-date=2023-12-06 |magazine=Railway Age |language=en-US}}</ref> In March 2024 the project backers petitioned the [[Supreme Court of the United States|US Supreme Court]] to decide if "...National Environmental Policy Act requires an agency to study environmental impacts beyond the proximate effects of the action over which the agency has regulatory authority". On June 24 the Court agreed to review the Appeals court ruling.<ref name=SCOTUStrains>{{cite news |title=Supreme Court to review decision blocking Uinta Basin project |url=https://www.trains.com/trn/news-reviews/news-wire/supreme-court-to-review-decision-blocking-uinta-basin-project/ |access-date=25 June 2024 |work=Trains.com |publisher=Kalmbach Media |date=25 June 2024 |location=Waukesha, Wisconsin}}</ref>
==References==
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