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[quote user="futuremodal"]1.  The Milwaukee PCE for obvious reasons (but worth restating) - arguably the second best rail route between Chicago and the Puget Sound next to the GN/SP&S route.  Would certainly come in handy today to add competitive rail capacity through the Northern Tier states.  The Snoqualmie Pass portion of the PCE is still the best profile for crossing the Washington Cascades, and if BN management wasn't so addled we'd be seeing most BNSF traffic use this line rather than Stevens Pass and Stampede Pass.  In fact, using the ex-GN line westbound and the ex-Milwaukee line eastbound (e.g. directional running) was and is still a part of the Washington State DOT wish list for significantly increasing capacity between Spokane and Puget Sound.Also, the portion of the PCE between Forsyth and Lombard would be a much better route than the MRL/BNSF line via Billings and Bozeman.2.  The ex-SP&S between Spokane and Pasco - a superior profile to the ex-NP route current used, although I would liked to have seen the SP&S itself rerouted from Kalotous to Pasco via Connell, getting rid of the Snake River bridges and allowing bi-directional flow movements to the Pasco yard.  So I guess that makes the ex-OWR&N/ex-NP ROW between Connell and Kalotous 2a?3.  The ex-UP/Milwaukee line through Spokane - When the '74 World's Fair came to Spokane, the powers that be convinced (forced?) the UP to use BN's ex-NP viaduct line through town, with the new Latah Creek bridge thrown in for good measure, so that the UP Union Depot and the ex-GN depot grounds could be used for the park.  Problem is, the ex-NP viaduct is both an eyesore and has low clearances, and has become a planning headache for area street managers.  The ex-UP line avoided downtown with the depot skirting the northern part of downtown right next to the river, then tunneled under the eastern end of downtown.  The depot could have been actively incorporated into the Expo site, so it's not like it had to be torn down for the park.Plus, now UP trains play second fiddle to BNSF trains for getting permission to access the BNSF trackage rights - crews tend to go dead waiting for access at Fish Lake.  Truth is, the BNSF line through Spokane is now a chokepoint as the former three distinct lines into Spokane (GN, UP/Milwaukee, and NP) were converged into one corridor.4.  The ex-NP line from Moscow ID to Lewiston ID - When the USACE finished the last navigation dam on the Snake River, creating the barge port at Lewiston, at first BN management saw an opportunity to use their line for shorthaul grain shuttles from the Palouse grain region to the barge port, and actually spent some decent money on upgrading the entire line from Marshall junction just west of Spokane all the way to Lewiston.  Then something happened on the managerial layer, and soon afterward BN embargoed service from Moscow to Arrow (just east of Lewiston).  The rails just layed there rusting for 20 years before BN finally tore them out prior to selling the entire line to a shortline operator.  BNSF gained nothing by doing this, as grain shippers continued to access the barge ports via trucks, so all they accomplished was severing the key link in the regional supply chain.  Now the lines are owned by the State of Washington in a taxpayer financed bailout, and BNSF itself hardly provides any grain hoppers to the shortline operator, prefering that grain be trucked to it's Ritzville shuttle facility.Now you know why I really despise BNSF....5.  The ex-GN lines in Montana from Havre to Great Falls to Helena to Butte - Yes, the Marias Pass is the best crossing of the Rocky Mountains (not counting Crowsnest and Yellowhead passes in Canada!), but that line from Havre to Helena represented a nice alternative routing to relieve congestion over Marias.  A few new short rail links here and there would have done the trick to make the routing viable without backtracking, but back then as we all know "capacity" was a dirty word in railroading lexicon.  And that line over Elk Park Pass was the best westbound routing over the Divide to the Butte/Silver bow area compared to Mullan, Homestake, Pipestone or Dear Lodge passes.  Again, an opportunity was lost for directional running - Mullan could have been used for BNSF's eastbounds, Elk Park Pass for westbounds. [/quote] FM, you need a girl friend.
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