A railroad through Rappahannock? Norfolk Southern Railway confirms it is studying Front Royal-to-Culpeper rail line
By James P. Gannon
Is there a railroad in Rappahannock County’s future?
That surprising question emerged Monday when County Administrator John McCarthy disclosed that the Board of Supervisors will be briefed at their meeting next week on “rumors” that Norfolk Southern, Virginia’s largest railroad, is studying the possibility of building a new line connecting Front Royal and Culpeper, VA.
“If you run a line from Front Royal to Culpeper, it’s kind of hard to avoid Rappahannock County,” which lies between those two points, McCarthy commented. He emphasized that the reports he has heard of a new rail line study are preliminary and unconfirmed as yet, but he felt they were significant enough to place the subject on the Board of Supervisors agenda for their next regular meeting on Monday, Feb. 4.
McCarthy said he initially heard rumors of the railroad’s study last week when he was in Richmond lobbying for a school-funding bill that would boost state aid to Rappahannock County schools. He said he had heard that the rail study includes the possibility of digging a four-mile long tunnel under the Blue Ridge Mountains that lie south of Front Royal along the northeastern boundary of Rappahannock County.
Reached at Norfolk Southern Corp. headquarters in Norfolk, railroad spokesman Robin Chapman confirmed that the railroad is studying the possibility of a new line between Front Royal and Culpeper as part of a state-sponsored study on ways to relieve truck traffic along the Interstate 81 corridor. The study will be completed this spring, he said.
Norfolk Southern “is studying the concept” of the new rail line, Chapman said, to determine what effects it would have on diverting truck traffic from I-81. The Front Royal-to-Culpeper route would “create a short cut” for Norfolk Southern’s Piedmont Line, which currently runs east from Front Royal to Manassas, and then south along Route 29 to Danville, VA. and points south. The new line could link to existing Norfolk Southern tracks at Culpeper.
With a line directly from Front Royal to Culpeper, “we wouldn’t have to go through Manassas,” and would shorten the route by many miles, the railroad spokesman said. But he cautioned that the study is not yet complete and that the railroad had not plotted a specific route. When asked about the possibility of a tunnel through the mountain south of Front Royal, he said it would be “premature” to speculate on that.
Legislation passed by the Virginia General Assembly in 2007 (HB1581) authorized a comprehensive feasibility study of ways to divert truck traffic from I-81, where about one of every four vehicles is a semi-trailer truck.
That legislation specifically directed the Commonwealth to “consider the option of a new rail right-of-way from Front Royal to Culpeper to expedite more efficient uses of the Norfolk Southern Piedmont Line.”
Jennifer Pickett, Chief of Policy and Communication for the Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation, said the “Culpeper Bypass” rail line is being studied by Norfolk Southern as part of this broader study of diverting truck traffic from the I-81 Corridor.
The railroad will report its findings and conclusions to the agency, to be incorporated in a study report expected to be issued to the public this spring, Pickett said. The study will identify which possible improvements to railroad facilities would provide the greatest benefits, and at what cost.
Norfolk Southern Railway operates more than 2,000 miles of track in Virginia, or 60% of all railroad track mileage in the state, and is a major carrier up and down the East Coast and reaching into the Midwest. It is one of the nation’s four major railroads, operating 21,000 miles of track in 22 states. The company’s revenues in 2007 exceeded $9.4 billion.
Front Royal is the home to the Virginia Inland Port, a major facility that links trucks with railroads for the transport of ocean-going containers to and from the port facilities at Hampton Roads. Any new railroad line from Front Royal to Culpeper would be likely to carry trains of shipping containers linked to the import and export trade.
Though it is far from certain that any such rail line will be built in the future, the mere possibility of a rail line crossing Rappahannock County–the first in its history–would raise controversial questions about routing, the impact on the county’s environment and rural character, and the possibility that a rail line would attract industrial development.
With the county already embroiled in the controversy raised by Dominion Virginia Power’s proposal to build a second high-voltage electrical transmission line through Rappahannock, the possible rail line would invite another battle with big stakes for the future of the county.
-- James P. GannonComments
Comment from Monica Worth
Time: January 28, 2008, 4:56 pm
The Board of Directors at RLEP discussed this issue at its meeting January 22 and Board member Phil Irwin, who has knowledge of the proceedings, has agreed to continue tracking the matter in the weeks and months ahead. (Rappahannock County) may also feel the impacts of a second rail initiative as research is apparently underway on an extension of passenger rail service from Manassas to Front Royal. Although this line may not run through Rappahannock, the resulting implications for development along the corridor are cause for continued attention.
The many challenges ahead underscore the need for RLEP, other groups, and county residents to increase our capability to be proactive in local, state and even national matters regarding zoning, property rights, and planning, as well as energy, transportation, and other leading issues that pack an environmental wallop.
The foundation of individual and collective vision, activism and civic duty built by Rappahannock’s caring community and government is ever more valued. The need to vigorously build on that foundation is ever more clear. Thankfully, that legacy of care includes many opportunities to get involved.
-Monica Worth
President, RLEP
Comment from AC9725
Time: January 29, 2008, 9:05 am
The Commonwealth just announced joint funding with Norfolk Southern to upgrade the existing Norfolk Southern “B” Line, running from Manassas Junction to Front Royal. Currently this line, which runs through Prince William County and crosses US 29 in Gainesville, then through Fauquier County, crossing US 17 at Delaplane, and then crosses through Manassas Gap at Linden into Warren County and reaches to Front Royal, is primarily a single track railroad with passing sidings.
There are currently no signals on this line, and trains operate by what are called “track warrants” (verbal permission from the train dispatchers in Greenville, S.C. to operate between specific points on this line in designated time frames). When the upgrades are completed, the line will be double-tracked with signalling and other improvements.
Currently there are no passenger trains operating on this line, but I’ve no doubt that, when the line is double-tracked and signalled, Virginia Railway Express will be very interested in expanding their operations along this route, to serve the rapidly growing residential developments in the Haymarket and Gainesville areas.
Currently the freight traffic on this line operates to the Virginia Inland Port on US 340 north of Front Royal, and the line is also a link for rail traffic to operate north to Hagerstown and Harrisburg, Pa.
Whether NS will pursue a new rail line through Rappahannock County remains to be seen. Railroads are private property and do not enjoy the right of eminent domain for taking a new right-of-way as public entities and government agencies do without major concessions and agreements. Condemining private property for a railroad is a very expensive proposition, and the cost of building a rail line today where none exists is an undertaking of extraordinary proportions.
Here’s the news blurb that just came out over the wire services last Tuesday:
Virginia and Norfolk Southern officials announced $57 million in joint funding to improve NS’s rail line between Manassas, VA and near Front Royal, VA. The line is used by NS trains operating between its former Southern main line and Harrisburg, PA. A spokesman said that the state will provide $40 million in funding and NS will provide $17 million in funding for the project, which will allow for additional sidings, more double track, and a new signal system on the line. (Railway Age, wire services)
–Art Candenquist
Comment from conductorchris
Time: February 2, 2008, 4:14 pm
This project would be a major benefit to the environment. Mostly for its impact on reducing truck traffic on I-81 (trucks use many times more fuel and create much more pollution than moving that cargo by rail), but also because trains that now pass through Manassas would use less fuel (because it’s shorter and because this line would be like an interstate vs. stop and go traffic). The downside is that it impacts Rappahanock County, but it’s benefits even more people in Manasses and along the route from there towards Front Royal (by routing train traffic away from them).
Actually, railroads do have eminent domain rights, as a public utility similar to a utility. Not that this cancels the usual environmental impact process.
–Christopher Parker
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