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High-speed rail
gets a green light?
by Virginia
Business Staff
May 2003
Is
Virginia finally moving ahead with high-speed rail?
Perhaps, with the recent creation of the Virginia Rail
Authority which might open the door for planning and
funding an upgraded railway system.
A
multi-faceted approach could greatly improve the Old
Dominion’s transportation by creating passenger
rail lines, and reducing truck traffic on interstates
by upgrading freight rail lines. The crown jewel would
be swift passenger rail service from Northern Virginia
through Richmond to Hampton Roads.
One
idea to ease truck-clogged Interstate 81, for example,
would be to upgrade an adjacent rail line at a cost
of $1.6 billion within three or four years. That would
be faster and less expensive than widening I-81, notes
state Sen. John Edwards, D-Roanoke, which would take
up to 20 years and cost $8 billion.
Before
such ideas can be seriously explored, the new rail authority
has to be established. A study on its structure and
funding mechanism might be ready when the General Assembly
meets next year. One approach to financing would allow
the authority to issue bonds that would be paid for
through surcharges on freight and passenger transportation
rates. Still, high-speed rail will be very expensive.
Virginia
Business - May 2003
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