(The following story by Debbie Messina appeared on The Virginian-Pilot website on September 9, 2009.)
NORFOLK, Va. — Norfolk Southern Corp. projects the cost of putting conventional passenger rail on its freight tracks between Petersburg and Norfolk at $75 million, far less than the state’s estimate.
The state estimates released in July show that slightly faster trains, 90 mph versus 79 mph, would cost about $262 million.
Chip Badger, Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation director, said the state numbers include passenger stations and other costs not included in Norfolk Southern’s estimate.
Deborah H. Butler, the railroad’s executive vice president of planning and chief information officer, told a gathering of the Urban Land Institute Wednesday that the $75 million figure for improving the corridor is about half the company’s early estimate.
She said Norfolk Southern supports sharing its railroad right-of-way with passenger trains. However, the company would only help pay for the improvements if there are benefits to their freight hauling service.
And in the Petersburg to Norfolk corridor, Butler said “we have all the capacity we need” and therefore would not contribute financially.