3. Engineering Evaluation - Charlotte to Raleigh

Passenger rail service between Raleigh and Charlotte, North Carolina currently requires approximately three hours forty minutes travel time. The Governor of North Carolina, James B. Hunt, Jr. has stated his goal is to reduce the travel time between Raleigh and Charlotte to two hours.

In pursuit of high speed rail service for this corridor the State of North Carolina, in conjunction with Amtrak, commissioned JBM Engineers & Planners, Inc. to conduct an engineering analysis of two prospective rail routes - called the Northern Route and the Southern Route - between Raleigh and Charlotte. The Northern Route traverses Raleigh-Cary-Durham-Greensboro-High Point-Salisbury-Kannapolis-Charlotte over the North Carolina Railroad (NCRR). The Southern Route traverses Raleigh-Cary-Sanford-Charlotte over the CSX Transportation (CSX), NCRR, NS, and Aberdeen, Carolina, and Western Railway (ACWR) (see Map 2).

The purpose of this evaluation was to determine the civil costs (i.e., track, signalization, and infrastructure improvements) necessary to upgrade each route to establish an approximate two hour running schedule.

Map 2: Raleigh - Charlotte, North Carolina
Potential High Speed Rail Corridors

The findings of the engineering evaluation are formally documented in a report completed in September 1996. The report has a quantitative review of 64 individual track segments and five by-pass alternate alignments with recommended improvements and corresponding costs. The report also contains a comparative analysis of the individual segments, supporting documents, and typical construction details used to estimate costs.

3.1 EVALUATION SUMMARY

The Northern Route consists of 173.3 miles of track that runs through Raleigh - Cary - Durham - Hillsborough - Burlington - Greensboro - High Point - Salisbury - Kannapolis - Charlotte on the Norfolk Southern Railroad (NS) track leased from the North Carolina Railroad (NCRR). Approximately 53.4 miles is currently double tracked and is in generally good condition. The Southern Route consists of approximately 154 miles of single track running through Raleigh - Cary-Sanford- Charlotte on CSX Railroad (CSX), NCRR, and the Aberdeen, Carolina, and Western Railway (ACWR) track. The majority of this track is generally in fair to poor condition.

To determine the capital improvements necessary for two-hour rail service between Raleigh and Charlotte, JBM developed criteria and standards for examining each route. These included:

• maximum track speed: 100 mph
• maximum track curvature: 1 degree
• super elevation: 6 inches
• unbalance elevation: 3 inches
• signalization: required along entire route; compatible with 100 mph traffic
• track standards: class 6 (Federally required for high speed rail)
• minimum clearances: 23 feet 6 inches vertically; 15 feet horizontally
• grade crossing protection: all crossings grade separated or gated
• right-of-way available for high speed travel

Table 3-1: Capital Cost v. Population Served along Potential Charlotte - Raleigh High Speed Rail Corridors
Route	Preliminary Cost (in millions)	Population Served*
Northern Route (Charlotte - Kannapolis - Salisbury - High Point - Greensboro - Burlington - Durham - Cary - Raleigh)	$371.4	2,513,800
Southern Route (Charlotte - Cary - Raleigh)	$385.7	1,086,000
*Source: NC Office of State Planning (1995)

JBM then examined each route based up these criteria. A comprehensive cost analysis of each route indicated that upgrading the Northern Route or the Southern Route would be similar in cost. This suggested that the Northern Route would be the most cost effective route for a two hour schedule, since it serves a larger percent of the state's population and thus would have the greatest benefit in ridership (see Table 3-1). Subsequently, engineering efforts focused primarily on the evaluation of the Northern Route and identification of necessary infrastructure improvements.

After the initial evaluation of the basic track improvement required for a two hour running schedule, JBM was asked to estimate costs for additional enhancements to the Northern Route. These enhancements fall into two general categories:

1. Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) Projects and Other Recommendations. These improvements were recommended by various NCDOT branches in order to better coordinate SEHSR development with projects included in the Transportation Improvement Program (TIP). They include grade separations for planned highways, recommended grade crossing closings, connector roads, etc.
   
   
2. By-pass Alternates. These improvements were also recommended for analysis by NCDOT. They include construction necessary to by-pass five urbanized areas with numerous grade crossings by acquiring property and building a completely new right-of-way around these areas.

3.2 FINDINGS AND CONCLUSIONS

Based upon the above evaluation, JBM and NCDOT have reached the following conclusions and findings.

Two-hour rail service on the Northern Route is more feasible. The Northern Route, which runs parallel to the I-40/I-85 corridor through the major population centers of North Carolina, presents the best potential for short term development. Most of the engineering can be completed without acquiring a great deal of property, as the North Carolina Railroad right-of-way is 200 feet for much of its route. Estimates of upgrading this route place the cost between $371.3 million and $525.5 million, depending on the amount of grade separation, new bridges, track, and additional right-of-way acquired.

Future upgrades to speeds greater than 100 mph may not be practical along the Northern Route. Efforts to further increase speeds on the Northern Route beyond 100 mph and reduce the travel times, however, would likely be cost prohibitive due to the extensive urban development along the existing railroad right-of-way. In other words, with the implementation of this design, the Northern Route will have reached its maximum speeds at reasonable costs.

The Southern Route should be preserved as an additional high speed route. The Southern Route, on the other hand, is a much better candidate for the future development of a higher speed electrified (i.e., 125 to 150 mph) corridor. Such speeds require minimal curvature that is not achievable along the Northern Route due to extensive urban development. Therefore, the State should preserve the Southern Route for long term development of a non-stop passenger rail corridor linking Raleigh to Charlotte when passenger demand warrants it. Such a corridor would allow high speed service directly from Raleigh to Charlotte and could complement the services provided on the northern route.

In sum, JBM's evaluation shows that upgrading either route to achieve the goal of two-hour rail service between Raleigh and Charlotte is feasible. The Northern Route provides the best potential for revenue and ridership since it serves more of the state's population, while being similar in cost to the Southern Route. NCDOT intends to continue engineering studies on the Northern Route to better refine the upgrades necessary for high speed rail service.

The following page contains tables summarizing the costs for the Northern Route as well as the by-passes proposed for the Northern Route. Tables 3-2 and 3-3 show the costs to complete the Northern Route, including both the original evaluation's estimates and the costs based on the NCDOT recommendations. 3-3 lists the additional costs for the five proposed by-passes. The "By-pass Cost" column is the total construction cost for the by-passes. Because constructing the by-passes will eliminate upgrading costs along portions of the currently existing Northern route, the "Deduct" column shows the amount subtracted from the total cost. This leaves the amount in the "Net Additional Cost" column as the final costs added to the Northern Route total.

Table 3-2: Raleigh-Charlotte Preliminary Cost Summary (Northern Route)

Table 3-3: By-pass Alternates Cost Summary
BY-PASS ALTERNATES	BY-PASS COST	DEDUCT	NET ADDITIONAL COST
#1 - Cary	$ 20,941,089	$ 15,715,188	$ 5,225,901
#2 - Mebane	$ 52,511,141	$ 27,772,520	$ 24,738,621
#3 - Gibsonville	$ 39,254,362	$ 25,549,711	$ 13,704,651
#4 - China Grove	$ 68,727,644	$ 15,454,809	$ 53,272,835
#5 - UNCC	$ 25,227,174	$ 11,651,201	$ 13,575,973
TOTAL NET ADDITIONAL COST			$ 110,517,981

3.3 GENERAL ASSUMPTIONS AND LIMITING CONDITIONS

• Running time improvements for different segments are interdependent. In other words, to achieve the running time improvement determined for a particular segment, adjacent segments will also have to be upgraded.
• Running time calculations are based upon a uniform acceleration/deceleration rate of 2 ft/sec².
• Existing speed restrictions due to grade crossings can be eliminated through appropriate crossing improvements.
• Municipal restrictions and regulations will, if necessary, be modified so as not to adversely affect train speeds.
• Costs for projects already scheduled or under construction in the North Carolina Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) are not included in this evaluation.
• Costs for environmental mitigation are not included in this evaluation.
• Running time is not calculated for by-pass alternates. By-pass track lengths are only slightly different from existing track lengths and therefore running times will not change significantly from calculated times along improved track.
• The estimated Northern Route improvements do not include the cost of further track improvements that may be identified by operations simulation analysis for the enhancement of freight and commuter rail service, rolling stock, maintenance, passenger stations and intermodal access facilities.

3.4 DATA SOURCES

• NCDOT provided reports of previous studies and aerial photos of select route segments.
• Track charts and right-of-way maps were obtained from all three operating railroads - CSX, NS, and ACWR.
• A hi-rail trip was made over the Southern Route with representatives from each operating railroad (CSXT, NS, ACWR) familiar with existing conditions. JBM also conducted on site visits of each route. During these visits, JBM representatives visually surveyed and took photographs to document existing conditions.

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Chapter 4