Kelso–Longview, WA | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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_01.jpg) The transportation center with the clock tower in the background | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| General information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Location | 501 South First Avenue Kelso, Washington[1] United States | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Coordinates | 46°08′32″N122°54′47″W / 46.14215°N 122.91316°W /46.14215; -122.91316 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Owned by | City of Kelso andBNSF Railway | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Line | BNSFSeattle Subdivision | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Platforms | 1side platform | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Tracks | 2 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Connections | Greyhound Lines RiverCities Transit | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Construction | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Parking | Yes | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Accessible | Yes | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Other information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Station code | Amtrak:KEL | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| History | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Opened | 1912; 113 years ago (1912) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rebuilt | 1995; 30 years ago (1995) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Passengers | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| FY 2024 | 34,374[2] (Amtrak) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Services | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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TheKelso Multimodal Transportation Center (also known asKelso–Longview) is anAmtraktrain station located near downtownKelso,Washington,United States. The station also serves the neighboring city ofLongview, which is located just across theCowlitz River. The station is served byCascades andCoast Starlight trains.Greyhound Lines provides national and regional bus service, whileRiverCities Transit provides local transit. Shuttle vans,taxis andrental cars can also be hired at the station.
Kelso's first train station was built for theNorthern Pacific Railroad. The first small depot was a wooden structure in the 100 block of Front or First Avenue. By 1906 the citizens of Kelso petitioned the Northern Pacific Railroad for a better passenger and freight depot. This was granted and a new, brick passenger and a wood freight depot was built. A grand opening reception was held February 12, 1912.[3][4] The line was also operated by passenger trains by theGreat Northern Railway andUnion Pacific Railroad under a joint service agreement.
In 1970 theNorthern Pacific Railway merged with several other railroads to create theBurlington Northern Railroad. The station remained in active freight service until the early 1980s when Burlington Northern suspended freight service there and transferred that service to thePortland,Oregon hub.Amtrak service to Kelso began on July 12, 1971, a few months after the company took over national passenger rail service.[5]
The station was staffed by a ticketing agent until the 1990s when the station was locked up due to vandalism.
In 1994 and 1995, the station was inundated with water damage when the nearby Cowlitz River peaked over the dike at 22 feet (6.7 m) and flooded the basement and platform area, which ultimately led to the approval of the remodel.[citation needed] In the mid-1990s the station underwent extensive remodeling to make it look like the passenger stations of a bygone era. The interior and exterior were rebuilt to resemble historic train stations, and a 30-foot-tall (9.1 m) clock tower was constructed outside the station.[6] The refurbished station was formally dedicated on September 23, 1995.[3][7]
Greyhound service to the depot was temporarily disrupted from 2006 to 2007 after a dispute with the city over maintenance costs.[8]
Although the AmtrakCascades runs betweenEugene,Oregon andVancouver,British Columbia,Canada, there is no train that starts at one terminus and ends at the other. However, each day eight AmtrakCascades trains (four northbound and four southbound) stop at the Kelso Multimodal Transportation Center.[9] TheCoast Starlight has runs one train daily in each direction betweenLos Angeles,California andSeattle.[10] The next northbound stop on both Amtrak trains is inCentralia and the next southbound stop is inVancouver.
The intermodal center is also served by intercityGreyhound buses from Portland and Seattle, as well as local buses operated byRiverCities Transit, the local transit authority.
| Year | 2011[11] | 2012[12] | 2013[13] | 2014[14] | 2015[15] | 2016[16] | 2017[17] | 2018[18] |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | 26,972 | 26,560 | 28,892 | 30,326 | 31,017 | 31,660 | 29,937 | 31,228 |
| YOY Difference | - | -412 | 2,332 | 1,434 | 691 | 643 | -1,723 | 1,201 |
| YOY Difference % | - | -1.52% | 8.78% | 4.96% | 2.28% | 2.07% | -5.44% | 4.31% |
A head-on crash between a Burlington Northern andUnion Pacific train occurred just south of Kelso on November 11, 1993. Five crew were killed in the accident and subsequent fire, which was fueled by approximately 10,000 U.S. gallons (38,000 L) of diesel fuel on board the trains. The double track corridor in the area served around 60 passenger and freight trains per day, making it one of the busiest rail corridors in the United States at the time of the accident.[19] The Kelso station was used as a staging area for Burlington Northern's Incident Response Unit.
Numerous special events are held at the station each year, the most notable of which is the KelsoChristmas Celebration at which the mayor lights theChristmas tree that adorns the clock tower andSanta Claus makes a visit via the AmtrakCascades train.
Between 1999 and 2004, the Kelso City Council held its meetings in the station's basement, because City Hall had been torn down to make way for a new bridge spanning the Cowlitz River.[20][21]
