Richmond-Hampton Roads rail plan gains speed

Momentum is building for running conventional passenger trains between Norfolk and Richmond, Va., as an interim step to getting high-speed rail, The Virginian-Pilot reports. The budget approved by the Virginia General Assembly last week waives a 30 percent match on state Rail Enhancement Funds, clearing a financial hurdle that will allow construction to begin later this year and for trains to run within three years.

"We can advance the
project with state funds; otherwise, it would not have been able to go
forward," said Jennifer Pickett, a spokeswoman for the Virginia Department
of Rail and Public Transportation.

Pickett said there’s ample
money in the Rail Enhancement Fund – which comes from taxes on rental cars – to
cover the capital costs of upgrading the existing freight tracks to accommodate
passenger trains with a top speed of 79 mph.

The route roughly follows
Interstate 95 between Richmond and Petersburg, then U.S. 460 between Petersburg
and South Hampton Roads, with a terminus at Harbor Park in downtown Norfolk.

"I would describe this
as a watershed event," said Barry Bishop, executive vice president of
Greater Norfolk Corp., which has been lobbying for higher-speed trains to
Hampton Roads.

"It gets us in the game,"
he said. "This is a beginning, not an end. It’s far more likely we’ll get
federal funding with some rail service in place. High-speed service will come
incrementally."

The budget is still subject
to approval by Gov. Bob McDonnell, but Pickett said state rail officials are
confident of his support.

Months ago, it wasn’t clear
the Hampton Roads region could even work together to push for rail service.
President Barack Obama’s emphasis on high-speed rail motivated leaders to work
together to try to take advantage of new funding opportunities.

Brad Face, co-chairman of
Virginians for High Speed Rail, said, "The region and the state very
quickly made critical decisions which have historically been politically
difficult. In the last few months, we’ve seen this unanimous expression of
support for what really needs to be done because there is a realization there
is little else we can do to present transportation options for Hampton
Roads."

The state highway
department recently forecast that interstate funding for Hampton Roads over the
next 30 years would be cut in half.

"My observation is
that on both the state and federal levels, rail is where they’re putting money
for transportation," Virginia Beach Mayor Will Sessoms said. "If we
don’t take advantage of it, shame on us."

Pickett said it was clear
after two hearings in Hampton Roads on high-speed rail in recent months that
there’s "such overwhelming support for rail transportation in the
region." Close to 1,000 people showed at a high-speed rail hearing in
Norfolk.

That’s when the state’s new
rail and public transportation director Thelma Drake, a former U.S. House
member from Hampton Roads, sought ways to tap into the Rail Enhancement Fund
for the service. Still, many things need to fall in place before passenger
trains to South Hampton Roads become a reality.

Agreements need to be
reached with Norfolk Southern and CSX Transportation, which own the rails that
the passenger trains would share with freight traffic. Both railroads are
interested in partnering with the state to make it happen.

"We recognize that
passenger service is something of value to the public," Norfolk Southern
spokesman Robin Chapman said. "We are willing to share our tracks given
certain conditions are met."

Norfolk Southern needs to
be able to preserve and grow its freight capacity on the line, to protect
itself from liability, and to be compensated for the use of its tracks, Chapman
said. Norfolk Southern estimates it will cost $75 million to upgrade its tracks
along U.S. 460.

The state is working with
CSXT on an estimate to upgrade its tracks around Petersburg and into Richmond.
Details also have to be worked out with Amtrak to operate the service.

Funding also must be
identified to subsidize operations. The legislature also agreed to task the
state rail department to study how to create a sustainable rail operations fund
for not only the Hampton Roads service, but also other passenger rail in
Virginia

Money would still need to
be found for likely stations at Harbor Park in Norfolk – where the track would
tie into the light-rail line now under construction – at Bowers Hill in
Chesapeake and in Petersburg. It would be the
first passenger rail service from Norfolk since 1977. Amtrak runs two passenger
trains daily from Newport News.

Meanwhile, the state is
still pursuing high-speed rail service both between Washington and Richmond and
between Richmond and Hampton Roads, which is more expensive and depends on
federal funding.