Photo feature - Yakima Valley Transportation Co.

The Yakima Valley Transportation Co.

Very few railroads have captured my attention like the Port of Tillamook Bay, but there is at least one other that I have long adored, and that is the Yakima Valley Transportation Company. The first trolleys ran on the beginnings of the line on December 25, 1907, putting into motion one of the longest running electric railways in the United States.

Through the line's interurban expansion days to encompass a total of 48 route miles, to the cessation of passenger service in 1948,and its ultimate end in the mid 1980's, the YVT ran under wires - and loved it. One tale I've heard repeated was the story of UP's attempt to displace the freight motors with a trackmobile in the early 1980's, which was met with great resistance, and (it is rumored) the untimely mechanical demise of the trackmobile...

Once the YVT's parent company, the Union Pacific, quit the freight business on the line, preservation groups quickly stepped in to keep the trolley wires singing. Using the 1776 and 1976, the YVT continued to run as a tourist railroad. Original Brill Master units 21 and 22 were added in the late 1980's. Under various guises, the YVT continued to haul passengers until 1999, when hints of misuse of money forced the ouster of a private company running the show as the Yakima Interurban Lines Association. The trolleys have since sat silently, except for an annual trip made to prevent the default of a charter with the city of Selah, which would allow the city to remove the tracks from within its limits.

My love affair with the YVT began in the late 1980s when, as a newly independant college student, I found myself free to take the trips up there that I had always wanted to. Unfortunately, I missed regular freight service on the line — a significant loss — but was able to soak up a decade of passenger trips and explorations. For a time, I lived in Yakima, and a walking route from work to home was deliberately planned to follow past the YVT shops downtown so I was always free to stop and have a peek.

The final chapter in the YVT book may not have been written yet. A new organization which includes Yakima mayor Mary Place is organizing to make trolley service in Yakima a reality again. Hopefully, as soon as this summer, the cars may again be humming along under the wires, as they do in so few places around the country today. Long live my favorite electrified railroad!

I've long wanted to do a comprehensive page on the YVT, but let's face it — I've got plenty of other things to do. Instead, I'll add this review of the line's surviving equipment. Please enjoy.

YVT 1776
The 1776 is a Portugese-built Brill single truck car that was brought to the United States in 1974 as part of the City of Yakima's bicentennial celebration. The car is a mainstay of the modern passenger efforts along the line.

YVT 1976

Like the 1776, YVT 1976 came to the US from Oporto, Portugal in 1974. Both cars are fine single truck cars with wicker chairs and all the fineries. The 1976 was recently repainted in a livery reminiscent of the YVT's original yellow and green, complete with Yakima Valley Transportation Co. lettering.

YVT 21
Brill Master unit no. 21 was built for the YVT in 1930, and went to the Portland Traction Co. as their 4009 when the YVT ceased passenger service in 1948. The 21 was later liberated to the Puget Sound Railway Museum in Snoqualamie, WA, and returned home to Yakima in the late 1980's. The car is rarely used because of the condition of its wheels.

YVT 22
The 22 was also built for the YVT in 1930, and became PTCo. 4010. Though it was used in Snoqualamie, I have never seen it in service back on the YVT.

YVT 298
In later years, it became obvious that the Union Pacific's intention for the YVT had been the movement of freight. When the old express motors couldn't bear the load, the YVT turned to a dedicated freight motor, purchasing a used 35 ton center-cab motor from the United Railway Co. (Hey! A POTB connection - the United ran to Banks...) and later this 50 ton GE steeple cab motor. It still wears the UP yellow and grey that is wore while finishing its career on the YVT.

YVT A
Every decent, self respecting interurban line had at least a couple of cobbled together, eclectic pieces of function-over-form equipment, and the YVT was no exception. As Exhibit A to that argument, I present linecar A, a 1909 Niles 40 foot flatbed car that was later fitted with a tower for line work, and various racks and storage places. It must have been quite a sight to see the A rattling down Yakima's streets on a work mission.

In addition to the above mentioned equipment, another frieght motor, YVT 297, is preserved in Perris, CA at the Orange Empire Ry. Museum. The car, former Glendale and Montrose 22 and later UP E-100, was purchased by the YVT in 1942 as a backup to the 298. As I understand it, the 297 was more dificult to switch with, and wasn't used as frequently as the 298. I have never been to Perris to see the motor, but definitely plan to some day.

Also, the third YVT master, the 20, was lost in Snoqualamie. The car was stripped of useable parts to keep the 21 and 22 alive, and its hulk was discarded in the brush near the old Puget Sound and Snoqualamie Valley Ry. Museum yard near Snoqualamie Falls. I had the chance to stand inside the 20 shortly before it disapeared for good. The area was shortly thereafter cleared of useable equipment, and flattened to make way for a highway to Seattle. Like the tree that was growing through it, I presume the 20 was demolished in that act.

Photos and more information will be added to this feature later as time allows. Thanks for visiting.

Return to the POTB Railfan's Guide

	YVT 1776	The 1776 is a Portugese-built Brill single truck car that was brought to the United States in 1974 as part of the City of Yakima's bicentennial celebration. The car is a mainstay of the modern passenger efforts along the line.
	YVT 1976	Like the 1776, YVT 1976 came to the US from Oporto, Portugal in 1974. Both cars are fine single truck cars with wicker chairs and all the fineries. The 1976 was recently repainted in a livery reminiscent of the YVT's original yellow and green, complete with Yakima Valley Transportation Co. lettering.
	YVT 21	Brill Master unit no. 21 was built for the YVT in 1930, and went to the Portland Traction Co. as their 4009 when the YVT ceased passenger service in 1948. The 21 was later liberated to the Puget Sound Railway Museum in Snoqualamie, WA, and returned home to Yakima in the late 1980's. The car is rarely used because of the condition of its wheels.
	YVT 22	The 22 was also built for the YVT in 1930, and became PTCo. 4010. Though it was used in Snoqualamie, I have never seen it in service back on the YVT.
	YVT 298	In later years, it became obvious that the Union Pacific's intention for the YVT had been the movement of freight. When the old express motors couldn't bear the load, the YVT turned to a dedicated freight motor, purchasing a used 35 ton center-cab motor from the United Railway Co. (Hey! A POTB connection - the United ran to Banks...) and later this 50 ton GE steeple cab motor. It still wears the UP yellow and grey that is wore while finishing its career on the YVT.
	YVT A	Every decent, self respecting interurban line had at least a couple of cobbled together, eclectic pieces of function-over-form equipment, and the YVT was no exception. As Exhibit A to that argument, I present linecar A, a 1909 Niles 40 foot flatbed car that was later fitted with a tower for line work, and various racks and storage places. It must have been quite a sight to see the A rattling down Yakima's streets on a work mission.