Key agreement signed for passenger rail

Passenger rail through Suffolk took another step closer to reality last week, when the state signed an agreement with Norfolk Southern Railway Company to provide for the upgrading of Norfolk Southern tracks between Norfolk and Petersburg.

The improvements will make the tracks usable for the passenger trains that would carry riders from Norfolk to Petersburg and eventually to Richmond, Washington, D.C., and points farther north.

“The new service will bring direct intercity passenger rail service to one of Virginia’s largest population centers,” Gov. Bob McDonnell said after signing the agreement. “The Hampton Roads region is home to over a million Virginians, including thousands of federal employees and military personnel, who currently have limited transportation choices for travel to Richmond, Washington, D.C., and into the Northeast. This service will provide an alternative to the heavily congested I-64 and I-95 corridors.”

The agreement provides for swift improvements to the tracks, funded by an $87 million Rail Enhancement Fund grant. The projects include upgraded signals, track extensions and connections, train turning and servicing facilities and a track and platform near Norfolk’s Harbor Park, the easternmost point of the tracks.

Suffolk city officials are pushing for a stop in Suffolk’s downtown area. They say it would infuse downtown with redevelopment.

“It’s part of the dream and part of the vision,” City Manager Selena Cuffee-Glenn told City Council members in September.

The construction of a new connection between Norfolk Southern and CSX tracks near Petersburg also is included in the plans. Those improvements will enable passenger trains to run on Norfolk Southern’s busy Heartland Corridor route, the primary rail route serving the Port of Hampton Roads.

“The partnership between the commonwealth and Norfolk Southern is a perfect example of business and government working creatively, cooperatively and quickly to meet a challenge,” said Norfolk Southern CEO Wick Moorman. “We are proud to be part of a timely and forward-looking response to a pressing public issue.”

Construction is expected to begin next year on the project, which is already being designed.

“Connecting Norfolk to the Amtrak network and the Northeast is a major step forward for the mobility of the region,” said Thelma Drake, director of the Department of Rail and Public Transportation, the state agency for rail, transit and commuter services.

The trains will operate at speeds up to 79 miles per hour between Norfolk and Petersburg. Additional departures will be introduced as funding allows.

The state still is working on the necessary agreements for improvements to CSX track and with Amtrak. Those agreements must be in place before new intercity passenger rail service can begin.