Va. pitches $75 million plan for train to Richmond

[Blue_Tires]

With the prospect of high-speed rail at least six years off, state officials want to spend $75 million on an intermediate step that they say could become reality in half that time: a conventional passenger train from Norfolk to Richmond.

Thelma Drake, director of the state Department of Rail and Public Transportation, told the Hampton Roads legislative caucus Thursday that the money would be spent on upgrading the existing Norfolk Southern tracks, now used solely by freight trains, for passenger service.

She said the train, with a top speed of 79 mph, could be in service within three years.

In an interview later, Drake said the state is still pursuing high-speed rail service, but that is a much more expensive proposition and depends on federal funding. In the meantime, she said, she believes there is a growing public appetite for an alternative to the automobile.

"There's been a sea change," said Drake, a former congresswoman from Hampton Roads. "The public and our elected officials have come to understand that we just can't build enough roads. They want us to expand their transportation choices."

When and if high-speed rail - at speeds up to 150 mph - becomes possible, she said, new track would need to be constructed to accommodate it.

Money for the conventional rail service would come from the Rail Enhancement Fund, an existing pool of state money that comes from a tax on rental cars. Under law, the fund can be used to finance 70 percent of rail projects, with the remaining 30 percent coming from railroad companies or other sources.

http://hamptonroads.com/2010/02/va-pitches-75-million-plan-train-richmond