Passenger rail service restored after mudslide

Passenger service on a key rail line north of Seattle has been restored following a mudslide.

Burlington Northern Santa Fe spokesman Gus Melonas says the line running Seattle to Everett and beyond was reopened to Amtrak and Sound Transit trains Saturday morning.

A mudslide Thursday about a mile north of Mukilteo covered one of the two main rail tracks through the area. Crews cleared the slide - which was 2 feet deep and about 50 feet long - later that day but the railway required a 48-hour waiting period before resuming passenger service to ensure safe operating conditions.

Freight trains were able to use the other set of tracks and freight travel was not disrupted.

Melonas says about 50 trains daily use the route and the vast majority of those are freight trains.

While the waiting period was in effect, passenger trains still rain between Seattle and Mukilteo. Express buses were available for people commuting between Seattle and Everett.