(The following column by Scott Saylor appeared on the Charlotte News & Observer website on January 29. Saylor is president of the North Carolina Railroad Co. This article is adopted from a talk he gave recently to the North Carolina 21st Century Transportation Committee in Charlotte.)
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Just a few weeks ago, Congress, for the first time in 32 years, increased vehicle fuel economy standards.
Just a few weeks ago, Charlotte residents voted overwhelmingly to keep in place a tax to help pay for improved mass transit.
And just a few weeks ago, the Association of American Railroads reported that 2007 was the U.S. railroads’ second-best year ever for total volume, intermodal traffic and revenue — and oil hit $100 a barrel.
People and businesses in this country and North Carolina are beginning to think differently about our transportation future. Travel and shipping delays caused by crowded, dangerous highways, environmental pollution from exhausts and soaring energy costs are weighing on public opinion and the political process.
We are under no illusions that trains are going to replace highway construction. But traditional thinking will not meet future transportation needs, which are so important to North Carolina’s economy and jobs.
The North Carolina Railroad can help. We envision in 2020 a North Carolina Railroad with:
* Double tracking increased by 50 percent, mainly between Charlotte and Raleigh
* Freight shipments surpassing 2 million carloads. (Currently 1.5 million.)
* Rush hour commuter rail service linking the Piedmont, Triangle, Metrolina and Eastern North Carolina
* Safer crossings and bridge overpasses that will save lives and time and remove highway bottlenecks.
* Better performance for the trains we already have between Charlotte, Raleigh and on to the northeastern U.S..
There is a real urgency to reach these goals. Four million people — or the equivalent of South Carolina’s entire population — will arrive by 2030. Highways can’t carry that entire load.
* * *
Today the NCRR corridor is 317 miles long, from Charlotte to the Port of Morehead City. It is a true corridor for commerce. Each day approximately 70 freight trains, carrying 1.5 million freight cars annually, use the corridor. Daily traffic includes eight Amtrak trains. Industries with 24 percent of the state’s economic output rely on the North Carolina Railroad. Virtually every major manufacturer looking to expand or locate in North Carolina evaluates our rail service as part of their decision making.
Within North Carolina, Norfolk Southern picks up or drops off 254,000 railcars of products along the North Carolina Railroad corridor. Those 254,000 railcars are the equivalent of replacing 762,000 trucks on the state’s already badly congested highways. Removing the exhausts of those 762,000 trucks also helps in the fight for cleaner air.
Those are great benefits for North Carolina, but we’re not satisfied. We are making the necessary investments to increase our capacity for freight and passenger service. With our public and private partners, we are about half way through a $160 million capital investment program in the corridor through 2012.
Since 2001, we have completely replaced old, lightweight rail with long “ribbons” of high quality seamless steel, called welded rail. That allows today’s bigger, heavier trains to operate smoothly and run faster. Other projects will include better signaling and eliminating more curves in the track, which improves average speed.
We also have under way a $450,000 capacity study to determine whether commuter rail and freight might co-exist on the North Carolina Railroad. Until now, much of the attention has been on light rail. Commuter rail is different. Commuter rail would use the existing NCRR line and run primarily in the morning and evening rush hours.
The commuter study area spans Greensboro to Goldsboro. The model can be extended to the southern Piedmont and Charlotte.
* * *
The good news is the NCRR has the right-of-way to accommodate increased investment in rail infrastructure. There will be no need to purchase expensive additional right-of-way, but protecting what we have will be more crucial than ever as service expands.
We can have a North Carolina Railroad that has even faster, safer and better freight and passenger service and is environmentally and energy friendly. We can have a North Carolina Railroad with a capacity that will significantly improve our state’s ability to recruit new and expanding business and jobs.
We have straightforward, cost-effective plans than can help address transportation needs. We urge more investment in faster, safer and better rail service for businesses and for what will soon be the 12 million people of North Carolina.