ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Friday, July 19, 1996 TAG: 9607190054
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-3 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: GREG EDWARDS STAFF WRITER
A study of proposed passenger-rail service between Bristol and Richmond and Washington, D.C., along Norfolk Southern track entered its second stage Thursday when the Commonwealth Transportation Board agreed to pay for it.
During its regular meeting this month in Fredericksburg, the board voted to fund the second part of the study, which will look at the passenger service's potential interference with Norfolk Southern's freight business and examine ways to lessen conflicts through such things as new rail sidings, switches and signal systems.
The board approved $500,000 for the study, of which $465,000 will go to Frederic R. Harris Inc., a Fairfax consulting firm. Harris also conducted the first phase of the study, issuing a report in the spring of 1995 that found the proposed service to be economically viable.
The latest study will use computer modeling to determine where bottlenecks of passenger and freight traffic could occur, explained Leo Bevon, director of the state Department of Rail and Public Transportation. It also will involve a resolution of NS' liability concerns, he said.
The Transportation Board wants the study completed as quickly as possible, and Bevon said he hopes that can be accomplished within a year.
An assessment of the proposed passenger service, which has been pushed by Roanoke Mayor David Bowers and other local officials in Southwest Virginia, was ordered by the 1993 General Assembly.
State lawmakers provided $250,000 to fund the study's first phase, which looked at the service's construction, equipment costs and potential ridership. The report on that research concluded that the proposed service would pay for itself over its first 20 years, bringing in $1.04 for every $1 spent on operation and maintenance.
Trains from Bristol, which would stop in Roanoke and other Southwest Virginia communities, would split in Lynchburg for the final legs of their trips to either Washington or Richmond. On their return runs, trains from those two cities would combine in Lynchburg.
High-speed trains, which tilt to take curves easier, would be used for two trips a day in each direction. The tilt trains would allow for higher speeds without having to rebuild the track. They would make it possible to travel from Bristol to Washington in 6 hours and 40 minutes, a time competitive with car travel.
Operating costs of the service over 20 years, including the purchase of four trains, would be $284.3 million, the first phase of the study found. A maintenance and storage building would have to be built in Lynchburg at a cost of $12.7 million. Stations in individual towns would cost an estimated $500,000, which would be paid for by the towns themselves.
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