BNSF proposal has small town politically paralyzed. - Trains Magazine
There is a lot more to this story. Traffic is increasing on the BNSF because Dallas and Fort Worth is booming in services, manufacturing and urban sprawl development. The BNSF line itself is planned to be a future heavy rail commuter line to these new suburbs. So Gunter makes sense from that perspective to hold freight trains there. This BNSF line has a large interchange with the ex-RI but now Trinity Railway Express line between Dallas and Fort Worth and there is a small to medium sized yard there along with a diamond. See BNSF trains switching that interchange on the Dallas to Fort Worth trip sometimes.
Additionally, Prosper, TX used to be the refuge of some of the very wealthy. 4000-6000 foot homes in some parts with a lot of land. One of the Dallas Cowboys had a big spread there, I think it was Dione Sanders. Frisco, a little further South is now a big Disney type / retail development and the Dallas Cowboys moved their training facility there. Hence, Gunter was probably looking forward to all that future tax revenue as the sprawl moved past them North.
DFW is planning to expand it's suburbs to close to the Red River border of Oklahoma at some point in 30-40 years. DART the regional transit authority has already built to distant suburbs of Denton (Google A-Train) but plans to go a lot further North. They own the ex-T&NO and former Houston and Texas Central ROW NE from Plano, TX, through McKinney (former KCS interchange) all the way to Sherman and possibly Dennison, TX. BNSF line in above link curves NE to Sherman then North to Dennison where it crosses the Red River on a shared bridge with the UP (former KATY?). BNSF parallels the DART owned former Cotton Belt ROW between Sherman and Dennison.
DFW plans like decades into the future with their rail transit development. Looks like BNSF took the plans into account when it decided on this location. It makes sense from several different angles. I think ultimately BNSF will get their yard at that location. Time will tell though.
There used to also be a former KATY route into Dallas that paralled the BNSF (Frisco line). I believe much of it was taken by the North Dallas Tollway but as you get closer into Dallas it splits from that route and becomes a bike path, so you can probably see it from Google Earth or trace it. It goes through Highland Park which is a close in suburb and it is called the KATY TRAIL now. They also have a local Dallas business that uses the KATY herald and theme that got it's start on the KATY TRAIL (see link below), it's rapidly becomming a franchise if it is not already and so you might soon see it in your states. Frisco, TX uses the hearld of the SLSF railroad on all it's City property and some water towers.......which is kind of strange.
City of Frisco, TX (see logo).
Texas does this a lot. Former T&P right of way in Dallas is called "Pacific Avenue", "Central Expressway" NE of Dallas is named after "Houston and Texas Central Railway".........they relocated the rail line when SP (T&NO) owned it and built the freeway on it's former ROW, One of the main freeways through Austin is called "MOPAC Expressway", list goes on and on.
