ANNAPOLIS, Md. — A rail line for a proposed high-speed train from Baltimore to Washington would require more than $200 million in tunnels at its BWI stop, according to consultants studying the project.
The Annapolis Capital reports that the cost of the airport stop has raised further concerns among members of a task force studying the controversial $4 billion magnetic levitation train project.
“The airport tunnel costs 5 percent of the total cost,” said Philip Tarnoff at last week’s meeting of the group.
He said the Maryland Transit Association should consider moving the station outside Baltimore-Washington International Airport and shuttle Maglev riders to it.
But MTA consultant Alex Metcalf said the airport’s two tunnels — one heading north and one south — are necessary to attract business travelers who won’t haul their luggage outside the airport to catch a train.
The Linthicum airport stop would need 15,352 feet of tunnels, while the Union Station stop in Washington would need 4,439 feet at a cost of about $98 million. The Camden Yards stop in Baltimore would include 6,200 feet of tunnel and cost $59 million, said Brenda Bohlke, an MTA consultant.
The trains could get from Baltimore to Washington in about 18 minutes. That trip would take 16 minutes without the BWI stop, Ms. Bohlke said.
In comparison, Amtrak’s Acela line takes about 35 to 45 minutes for the same distance with one stop, and MARC could do it in about an hour with several stops, she said.
The project has come under fire from residents and lawmakers who say it is too costly and destructive to the neighborhoods it will run through.
Community groups in Linthicum, Severn and Odenton oppose the project, which is sponsored by the MTA, the Federal Railroad Administration and several local governments.
Maryland, which would kick in $500 million, is competing with Pittsburgh for the project. The FRA is expected to select which routo to build next year.
The task force, created by the General Assembly, must submit its findings next month.
“Projections are projections like anything else,” said Del. Ted Sophocleus, D-Linthicum. “First you say commuters are the only ones who will ride it. Then you say Washingtonians will pay $52 to come to Baltimore to eat dinner.
“What is the ultimate cost to accommodate tourists and sightseers? There’s limited space in Washington, Anne Arundel County and certainly Baltimore.”
Task force members also heard something many local residents already suspect: Most of the system’s riders won’t live in communities the rail line runs through, Mr. Metcalf said.
“People are increasingly tending to live in one city and work in the other or go to the other for recreational activities,” he said.
He told the group that surveys indicate 33,600 people would ride Maglev daily in the first year of operation, bringing in $518,700 in revenue. The numbers are projected to jump to 42,200 daily riders and $643,800 in revenue in 2020 and 58,500 daily riders and $882,400 in revenue in 2040.
“This isn’t some outrageous forecast,” Mr. Metcalf said.