Another proposal is being floated to revive the isolated Black Mesa & Lake Powell Railroad in northeastern Arizona for tourist operations.

The all-electrified BM&LP was built in the early 1970s to haul coal 78 miles from the Kayenta Mine near Kayenta, Ariz., to the Navajo Generating Station power plant at Page, near Lake Powell. It ceased operations in August 2019 with the closure of the Navajo Generating Station; the joint closure cost the Navajo Nation hundreds of well-paying jobs and a major source of economic infusion. The trackage has sat unused since the catenary was removed not long after closure, and was officially turned over to the Navajo Nation in February 2024. The rail corridor and its parallel service road are now under the care of the Navajo Nation’s Division of Economic Development.

The Navajo Nation has explored potential reuse of the corridor since the railroad’s closure, including reversion to farmland, railbike operations, tourist train operations, and a recreational trail. Most proposals have been stymied by the region’s relative remoteness and lack of economic resources.

Now a new company is proposing tourist operations on the track, using “sustainable” vehicles powered by solar and hydroelectric power.

Sunbeam Tours and Railway, or STAR, has announced plans to “transform cultural sustainable tourism” with zero-emissions electric rail vehicles, which will make the Navajo Nation accessible to tourists while creating economic opportunities for the local Navajo population. The company was founded by Celesta Littleman, a former Navajo Generating Station employee and now an M.B.A. student at Arizona State University.

Littleman received an Emergency Operating Agreement for STAR from the Navajo Nation in June, after a lengthy process that spanned five years and two Navajo administrations. Now, the company is preparing to complete a feasibility study and potentially acquire and test rail vehicles, to be powered by renewable solar/hydroelectric power provided by the Glen Canyon Dam and operated through Arizona’s Grand Circle Region.

Great idea! It goes from nowhere to nowhere across some noteworthy unattractive terrain. Another fantasy success story.

In its defense, Kayenta does have twice as many fast food joints as Orbisonia...

I'm not sure that is accurate. Not advertising, but I see McDonalds, Taco Bell, and Burger King all in a row along US160. Orbisonia doesn't have even a one of those.....

In its defense, Kayenta does have twice as many fast food joints as Orbisonia...