Washington state intermodal yard set for refuse-transport upgrades
6/30/2026
By Jeff Stagl, Managing Editor
In mid-June, Snohomish County marked the start of major improvements to its Everett Intermodal Facility in Everett, Washington.
The work is part of a $48.5 million, three-phased project designed to improve the county's ability to transport the area’s solid waste via BNSF Railway to regional landfills in eastern Washington.
The county processes nearly 665,000 tons of garbage annually through its three transfer stations in Everett, Mountlake Terrace and Arlington. The solid waste is trucked to the intermodal facility in north Everett and then placed on BNSF trains for transport to a Regional Disposal Co. (RDC) landfill in Roosevelt, Washington.
The county leases the 15.8-acre intermodal facility to RDC to load and offload refuse containers shipped by rail. The facility is used both by the county for transporting solid waste and by Amtrak for its Amtrak Cascades passenger-rail service.
"The current process utilizes the intermodal yard in Everett, which is served directly from the main north-south BNSF line serving the Puget Sound region. Switching the track for trains to reach the intermodal facility must be coordinated with all passenger (Amtrak and Sound Transit Sounder) and freight railroad services through Everett," said Bill Craig, a communications specialist for Snohomish County Public Works, in an email.
The multiyear, multi-phased improvements will help prevent rail bottlenecks for freight- and passenger-rail operations and increase capacity to better manage increased demand for solid waste services, county officials say.
“Managing the county’s garbage becomes more challenging every year as our communities continue to grow,” said Snohomish County Solid Waste Director David Schonhard in a press release. “By expanding our rail capacity and modernizing the site, we’re ensuring we can continue moving waste efficiently and reliably for years to come.”
The second phase of work calls for creating additional on-site container storage areas at the intermodal yard.Snohomish County Public WorksDue to increased solid waste volumes, the county plans to expand the intermodal facility by adding a new yard track and improving the container storage area.
The three phases of work are planned as follows:
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Phase 1 (estimated at $4.43 million) involves adding a third rail siding on the Snohomish County side of the yard property, increasing working track by 820 linear feet and adding pavement to provide access to 715 linear feet of existing track (converting it to working track);
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Phase 2 ($9 million) calls for creating additional on-site container storage areas; and
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Phase 3 ($35 million) includes the relocation and realignment of the BNSF mainline, the addition of rail sidings and the repurpose of the existing mainline for the county’s dedicated access to the intermodal facility.
The primary purpose of Phase 1 is to increase the rail yard's operating capacity by nearly 25%, county officials say. To be completed by 2026's end, the phase includes constructing a new rail spur, paving a new stacking pad and upgrading the stormwater system.
Phase 2 work is slated for completion by 2027's end.
"We don’t have a timetable yet for phase 3," said Craig.
Ultimately, the project will reduce congestion on the mainline by 30% and help prevent solid-waste pileups, county officials say.
The county previously won a $2 million Better Utilizing Investments to Leverage Development (or BUILD) program grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation to help fund the overall project.
