(The following article by Ginny Skalski was posted on the Durham Herald Sun website on July 6.)
DURHAM, N.C. — Norfolk Southern says it’s hanging on to 21 miles of abandoned rail corridor between downtown Durham and Person County because it believes there’s a chance trains once again could rumble through the area.
The corporation earlier had talked with state and local governments about selling the corridor, but took it off the market late last month.
Durham city and county officials had hoped to turn the land into a paved trail for bicyclists and pedestrians.
“Recent business developments, such as the current rail renaissance with more freight traffic and potentially more commuter operations, have resulted in a more conservative retention of our assets which we believe may be of value to the corporation in the future,” Norfolk Southern said Wednesday in a statement issued to The Herald-Sun.
The paper first reported Wednesday morning that the railroad company had taken the corridor off the market.
The state Department of Transportation has agreed to pay half the purchase price for the corridor, then would lease the land to Durham for interim trail use.
The state ultimately hoped a light rail system could run along the corridor from downtown Durham to the 5,300-acre Treyburn community in northern Durham.
NCDOT officials still are talking with Norfolk Southern about buying a 3.5-mile spur off the main line known as the Duke Beltline. It runs through a northern portion of downtown.
But Norfolk Southern appears to be holding off on the sale of the corridor, which ends at Timberlake in Person County, for a better deal.
The state was prepared to offer $3 million for the stretch, a figure that Durham city and county leaders hoped to match — bringing the total price tag to $6 million.
“[Norfolk Southern] is continually reviewing and evaluating our branch line network based on changes in the marketplace. Several years ago we were more aggressive in disposing of assets in order to raise cash,” the railroad company’s statement said.
Bill Bussey, president of the Triangle Rails to Trails Conservancy, has said he hopes the railroad will reconsider.
“It would basically give us 40-plus miles of trail from Timberlake down to Jordan Lake,” Bussey said. “It would go right through Durham. It would make a world-class greenway trail.”