|
- News Release
- Date: July 31, 2002
- Southeast High-Speed Rail
Tier I Final Environmental Impact Statement Completed
The North Carolina Department of Transportation and the Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation have completed the Southeast High-Speed Rail Tier I Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS).
The Southeast High-Speed Rail project will develop and operate high-speed passenger rail service in the 500-mile corridor from Washington, D.C. through Richmond, Va. and Raleigh, N.C. to Charlotte, N.C. In March, the transportation secretaries of North Carolina and Virginia announced the preferred route would extend from Washington, D.C. through Richmond, South Hill, Henderson, Raleigh and Greensboro to Charlotte. The route will also include a rail connection to Winston-Salem.
The FEIS document contains the analysis for selecting the preferred high-speed rail route, as well as public and agency comments – and responses to those comments- on the Draft Environmental Impact Statement. The public can review the Final Environmental Impact Statement at 19 locations throughout the corridor. All comments must be submitted to the NCDOT Rail Division by August 30.
After the public, state, local and federal agencies review the FEIS, the U.S. Department of Transportation will issue a Record of Decision, allowing the second study phase on the selected route to begin. In the second study phase, the state transportation departments will more closely analyze the impacts of track location and incremental improvements. As these studies are completed, they will be used to acquire the permits needed for construction.
During the past few years, the North Carolina Department of Transportation and Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation held dozens of information workshops, formal public hearings and small group meetings to discuss the project and solicit public input. The agencies also conducted numerous interviews with community leaders in both states. More than 80 percent of the feedback from both states indicated support for high-speed rail. Mayors, Chambers of Commerce and other business groups echoed that support and worked together to tout the economic and quality-of-life benefits of a high-speed rail system.
Almost three years of environmental study and public involvement yielded information and analysis of potential environmental impacts, engineering feasibility, revenue, ridership, and costs. This analysis indicates the preferred route would have the best potential for high-speed rail service while having the fewest environmental impacts.
However, completion of the Southeast High-Speed Rail Corridor is dependent on securing federal funds to help develop the route. Congress currently is considering several pieces of legislation that would provide dedicated funding for development of high-speed rail corridors. If funding is approved, the Washington to Charlotte corridor could be completed as early as 2010. The route would later be extended to Atlanta and Macon, Georgia, Columbia, South Carolina and Jacksonville, Florida.
-
- ***
-
- Contacts:
David Foster - NCDOT, dbfoster@dot.state.nc.us, 919-733-7245, ext. 266
Tamara Neale - VDOT, Tamara .Neale@VirginiaDOT.org, 804-786-6458
|
