Montana Rail Link

What Montana Rail Link does

Montana Rail Link (MRL), incorporated in 1987 and headquartered in Missoula, Montana, was a Class II regional freight railroad historically operating across Montana with connections to the national rail network via BNSF Railway. On January 1, 2024, pursuant to authority granted by the Surface Transportation Board, MRL discontinued all active rail operations and BNSF Railway assumed operations across the former MRL lines under the newly-designated MRL Subdivision of BNSF's Montana Division. MRL retains certain non-operational branch line corridors and now operates as a property administration entity for those retained corridors.

MRL's remaining commercial activity centers on real estate administration. The Real Estate Department administers existing commercial relationships, including active real-estate agreements on retained non-operational lines, and processes applications for utility encroachments (pipeline and wireline crossings) as well as modifications and repairs to existing permitted utilities. Each pipeline or wireline application carries a $1,200 non-refundable fee. MRL is explicitly not accepting applications for new commercial, industrial, or pasturage leases on retained corridors, which materially narrows the active revenue surface. Primary customers are utility operators and existing real estate counterparties.

MRL is privately held and is part of The Washington Companies portfolio, with associated philanthropic activity through the Dennis and Phyllis Washington Foundation. A material environmental incident occurred on June 24, 2023, when a westbound train derailed near Reed Point, Montana, sending 17 cars off the track and 10 into the Yellowstone River carrying asphalt, molten sulfur, sodium hydrosulfide, and scrap metal. The response was managed via a Unified Command structure involving the EPA, Montana DEQ, NTSB, Montana Fish Wildlife & Parks, and other agencies, with environmental remediation ongoing.

Name

Montana Rail Link

Legal name

Montana Rail Link, Inc.

Website

https://montanarail.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1987

Operating status

Closed

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Short description

Montana Rail Link discontinued freight rail operations on January 1, 2024, with BNSF Railway assuming active operations. MRL retains non-operational branch line corridors and now operates as a real estate administrator processing pipeline and wireline crossing applications on retained properties.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Rail Transportation Services

NAICS

Short Line Railroads (482112)

SIC

Railroads, Line-Haul Operating (4011)

akta.pro primary industry

Short Line & Regional Railroads (General Merchandise) (TLADACAI)

Keywords

• Regional freight rail
• Railroad transportation
• Rail corridor real estate
• Utility encroachment permitting
• Short line railroad

Headquarters

HQ city

Missoula

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Personnel, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Rail Freight Operations (Historical): MRL historically generated revenue through rail freight transportation services across Montana, operating as a regional railroad connecting shippers to the national rail network via BNSF connections.
2. Real Estate Administration: MRL retains certain non-operational branch line corridors and administers property agreements including utility encroachments, pipeline and wireline crossings on retained lines. MRL charges a $1,200 non-refundable application fee for pipeline/wireline crossing applications.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Montana Rail Link historically operated as a Class II regional freight railroad providing rail transport services across Montana, connecting shippers to the national rail network via BNSF. Effective January 1, 2024, MRL discontinued all active rail operations and BNSF Railway assumed operations on the former MRL lines. MRL now retains and administers certain non-operational branch line corridors, processing utility encroachment applications and managing existing real estate agreements on retained properties.

Product overview

Montana Rail Link was a Class II regional freight railroad operating across Montana. As of January 1, 2024, MRL discontinued all active rail operations with BNSF Railway assuming operations across former MRL lines (now designated as the MRL Subdivision of BNSF's Montana Division). The company now retains certain non-operational branch line corridors and administers related real estate matters, including pipeline and wireline crossing applications on retained properties. The company also managed the Reed Point Derailment incident response from June 2023, which involved cleanup of asphalt material from the Yellowstone River.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Rail Operations (Discontinued) Class II regional freight rail service across Montana lines, connecting shippers to the national rail network via BNSF. Discontinued effective January 1, 2024, when BNSF Railway assumed operations as the MRL Subdivision of BNSF's Montana Division.
• Real Estate Services Administration of agreements for retained non-operational branch line corridors, including property management for lines owned by MRL following the BNSF transition. MRL is not currently accepting applications for new commercial, industrial, or pasturage leases on retained non-operational lines.
• Pipeline and Wireline Crossing Applications

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• BNSF Railway CompanycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOn January 1, 2024, pursuant to Surface Transportation Board authority, BNSF Railway assumed operations across the former MRL lines on the newly-designated MRL Subdivision of the Montana Division of BNSF. MRL retained certain non-operational branch line corridors and continues to administer those properties.
• Dennis and Phyllis Washington FoundationminorOthersThe Dennis and Phyllis Washington Foundation is the major philanthropy organization for The Washington Companies and the Washington family. Funding comes from personal contributions and annual contributions from The Washington Companies.
• The Washington CompaniescoreOthersMRL is part of The Washington Companies, a collection of operating companies. The parent organization includes Montana Rail Link and the Dennis and Phyllis Washington Foundation.
• Whitewater Rescue InstituteminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerWhitewater Rescue Institute of Missoula, Montana assisted with river assessment and safety protection during the Reed Point derailment response, providing boats and trained personnel for fast water spill response.
• Oiled Wildlife Care Network (OWCN)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerOWCN provided veterinary care and wildlife response during the Reed Point derailment, collecting and treating wildlife impacted by asphalt material.
• Stillwater County Disaster and Emergency ServicescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPart of the Unified Command for the Reed Point derailment response, coordinating local emergency services and disaster response efforts.
• Montana Department of Environmental QualitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPart of the Unified Command for the Reed Point derailment response, providing environmental quality monitoring, water testing, and regulatory oversight.
• U.S. Environmental Protection AgencycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPart of the Unified Command for the Reed Point derailment response, providing federal environmental oversight, river operations dashboard, and regulatory coordination.
• Montana Fish, Wildlife & ParkscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerImplemented emergency river closures, conducted wildlife impact assessments, and coordinated fishing access site closures during the Reed Point derailment response.
• National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB)minorOthersNTSB officials arrived on site to assist in reviewing the Reed Point derailment incident and investigating the cause.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights1 record

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/MontanaRailLink

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Montana Rail Link