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Southern Mobility: North Carolina Leads the Way
Thursday, May 13, 2010
Unlike many states where the DOT is little more than a highway department, the Tar Heel State certainly isn’t stuck in the mud when it comes to passenger trains.
A third-daily round-trip between Raleigh and Charlotte will commence operation [PDF] in four weeks, adding a mid-day run to the existing morning and evening departures in each direction. The line should also see a fourth daily round-trip in the next two years. The state continues to invest in its stations, with Durham’s new depot having opened in December and plans in the works for modern multi-modal hubs in Raleigh and Charlotte to complement Greensboro’s crown jewel. (Full disclosure: I grew up and went to college in Greensboro.)
The NCDOT Rail Division, led by Pat Simmons, has made tremendous progress in modernizing the rail lines used by Amtrak trains, with the goal of nearly consistent 90-mph operation between Raleigh and Charlotte within the next five years. Thanks to the Sealed Corridor Program, spearheaded by Dr. Gary Burch Memorial Safety Award honoree and NCDOT Director of Engineering & Safety Paul Worley, grade crossing collisions (such as the this morning in Mebane, NC) will be largely prevented. Station and track work has also been completed in hopes of returning passenger trains to Asheville via Salisbury.
In addition to the Rail Division’s exemplary work, the North Carolina Rail Road (NCRR)—the quasi state-run owner of the tracks between Charlotte and Goldsboro—has completed a study [PDF] of potential frequent commuter service between Greensboro, Burlington and the Research Triangle area (Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill). NCRR found that ridership on such service would be significant: possibly 3 million annual passengers by 2022. This would place it at number 13 amongst current US commuter rail systems by ridership, slightly below the Miami area’s TriRail and the South Shore Line between Chicago and South Bend, IN.
It took two decades of building capacity and expertise in railroading and a culture of intermodal thinking at NCDOT. Now, North Carolina offers an outstanding template for other states to follow. Fast, frequent intercity service, plus expanded light rail and bus networks (like those in Raleigh/Durham, Charlotte, and Greensboro/High Point), equals real travel choices. If all Americans are to benefit from such connectivity, work must be done at the state “highway department”—and in Washington to give states the financing and policy tools to get there.
—Malcolm Kenton
Posted by Malcolm Kenton
Tags: connectivity, dot, frequency, highway, intermodal, north carolina, planning, safety, trains, transportation(1) Comments
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