OPINION: The Alaska Railroad was Gov. Bill Sheffield’s legacy and his dream. Let’s expand it.

Gov. Bill Sheffield, who died on Nov. 4, 2022, at age 94, loved the Alaska Railroad. While he was governor, he made the deal to purchase the Alaska Railroad from the federal government for just over $22 million. That transaction, which was made official at the Alaska Railroad transfer ceremony in Nenana on Jan. 5, 1985, made the Alaska Railroad Corp. a state asset and saved the railroad from being shut down.

Sheffield was largely responsible for the present structure of the railroad, which is one reason it is so valuable to Alaskans.

Per the Railroad’s website: “The Alaska Railroad Corporation (ARRC) is a full-service railroad serving ports and communities from the Gulf of Alaska to Fairbanks. Owned by the State of Alaska, ARRC is a self-sustaining corporation operating without state subsidy and providing year-round passenger, freight and real estate services. The Alaska Railroad (ARRC) is incorporated and run like a private business. Appointed by the governor, a seven-member board of directors governs railroad policy and direction. ARRC receives no operating funds from the state, nor are railroad employees state employees. The railroad’s freight, passenger and real estate services generate revenue to cover personnel, employee benefits, operations and maintenance expenses. The railroad also receives federal funding to augment its capital program. ARRC employs approximately 600 Alaskans year-round and more than 700 during the peak summer season. The Alaska Railroad is a powerful economic engine, transporting products and people between Railbelt communities. Annually, trains haul millions of tons of freight, including groceries and other retail commodities, and construction materials for home building and commercial real estate. Freight services also support critical resource industries, such as coal, mining, oil and natural gas. Passenger trains transport more than a half-million people annually.”

Sheffield was a private businessman before he became governor. He founded Sheffield Enterprises, owning 19 hotels in Alaska and one in Whitehorse, Yukon. That’s one reason he believed so strongly that the ARRC should be run like a business. But Sheffield was also a strong advocate of the public interest. As such, he strongly believed that the railroad should remain in public hands.

Sheffield had an advantage over most of us. He grew up in the 1930s, during the Golden Age of railroads. As a child, he rode Streamliner luxury trains between his home in Spokane and his relatives in Seattle. Great Northern Railways’ the Empire Builder and Northern Pacific Railways’ North Coast Limited both traveled through Spokane on their way from Chicago to the Pacific Coast. This was when passenger railroads were still profitable, before they began losing money due to the explosion of government funding for new highways and airports.

Sheffield’s memoir, published in 2018, describes: “As a child, I wanted to conduct trains or buses… the train conductors were the ones I admired most, and I watched them intently whenever we travelled to Seattle to visit family. Strolling down the aisles in their clean and neat uniforms, their confidence mesmerized me as they called out stops with ease, collecting and stamping tickets before slipping them into place above our seats … At least two or three times during my childhood, my mother and I took the train from Spokane to Seattle to visit her brother … The train impressed me, particularly the dining car with its white tablecloths and real silver cutlery. The customer service was exemplary, and it made an indelible impression on my young mind. I relied on my memories of those trips when I became Governor and the state bought the Alaska Railroad. I always insisted on real silverware in the dining cars, not the plastic stuff, and excellent service just like the trains of my youth…”

In the Lower 48, the explosion of government funding for highways and airports beginning in the late 1950s was devastating to American railroads, which were private companies. For example, between 1956 and 1969, a total of 28,800 miles of interstate highways were opened to traffic. In the same period, 59,400 miles of railroad were taken out of passenger service. From 2,500 daily intercity trains in 1954, fewer than 500 trains were left when Amtrak, a public corporation, took over intercity rail service in 1971. This divided passenger from freight railroads, which remained and remain private.

Not so in Alaska. Because the Alaska Railroad was federally owned, it continued to operate both passenger and freight services up until and after it was transferred to the state of Alaska in 1985. It continues to operate that way today. Indeed, it is the only full-service railroad left in the country.

In 1995, Gov. Tony Knowles appointed Sheffield to the Alaska Railroad’s board of directors, where he was elected chairman. In 1997, Sheffield became president and CEO of the Railroad, a position he held until 2001. During this time, he helped establish the railroad’s eligibility for federal funding, facilitating tremendous investments in infrastructure and facilities. In 2004, Sheffield returned to the board of directors, where he remained as director emeritus until his death.

Sheffield was a longtime supporter of passenger rail for commuters. He wanted to see daily commuter trains between the Mat-Su Valley, downtown Anchorage, the Anchorage airport, Dimond Center and Girdwood. That was part of why in 2016, at the age of 88 and after he’d retired from his other activities, he enthusiastically joined our commuter rail committee. From then until the pandemic began in 2020, he attended our meetings and called me regularly, sometimes more than once a week.

Sheffield’s memoir stated: “As part of a long-range plan to increase passenger business, we needed a railroad depot at the airport. The railway connection provides a link for any future commuter rail or expanded tourism business. Through Sen. Ted Stevens, we received $ 28 million to extend the existing track to the airport (and build a depot). Diane Carlson was the engineer at the railroad tasked with leading the project, and she did a fantastic job. In 2002, they held a grand opening ceremony and graciously named the depot after me. The depot is beautiful, featuring long hallways and lighting reflecting the northern lights. They did a wonderful job with the entire design.

In the future, I believe a commuter rail will be built between Anchorage and other areas, and the depot is central to that effort. There are plans underway now to build a hotel in front of the depot, with the depot itself serving as the lobby of the hotel. It’s the perfect arrangement for tourists to catch a plane or a train as they enter or leave the state, and will service any future commuter rail traffic well.”

In 2018 and 2019, Sheffield helped staff our commuter rail booth at Transportation Fairs in Wasilla and Palmer. On his feet for hours, he greeted the public, telling them of the advantages of commuter rail. Surrounding us were at least 50 booths, most staffed by Alaska Dept. of Transportation and Public Facilities employees, explaining all the new highway projects planned for the Mat-Su Valley and the Glenn Highway.

Sheffield loved all forms of transportation. As he stated in his memoir: “As much as I loved planes, I also loved cars. I really just appreciated all forms of transportation, and I still do today.” He was not “anti-highway.”

Yet his memoir also stated: “The railroad is a personal passion of mine. I love the organization and want to do all I can to ensure it succeeds.” His passion for commuter rail was impressive to me as he stood there talking with the public.

At Sheffield’s memorial service on Nov. 21, speakers described him as tenacious — someone who persevered. Lesil McGuire, the daughter of his partner, Cheri McGuire, told us we need to pay forward the gifts that Sheffield gave us.

Alaska is experiencing climate change faster than any other state. Rail gives off about one-third of the greenhouse gas emissions as highway-based transportation. A personal passion of mine as well as Sheffield’s, the ARRC is poised to do something about this: not only with commuter rail, but also by providing the ability to switch more of our passengers and freight from highway to rail-based transportation.

Sheffield was grounded in two worlds: his memory of the Golden Age of rail from his boyhood, plus his present-day passion for the Alaska Railroad. He was using these to advocate for more rail in the future.

July 2023 marks the Alaska Railroad’s Centennial, celebrated on July 15 in Nenana. I hope more Alaskans will join in paying Sheffield’s rail dream forward.

Cynthia Wentworth is a former employee of the Alaska Railroad Corp. Views expressed here are her own and are not necessarily endorsed by ARRC.

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