North Carolina Railroad

The North Carolina Railroad (reporting mark NCRR) is a 317-mile (510 km) state-owned rail corridor extending from Morehead City, North Carolina to Charlotte, North Carolina. The railroad carries over seventy freight trains and eight passenger trains daily. It is managed by the North Carolina Railroad Company.

History

In 1848 the North Carolina legislature authorized a railroad that would connect the eastern part of the state with the piedmont. NC Senate President Calvin Graves cast the deciding vote, ensuring the railroad would be built, but ending his political career because it would not pass through his district. In 1851 Senator Graves was given the honor of lifting the first shovel of dirt as construction of the railroad began in Greensboro. Three years later, in 1854, the railroad's first president, businessman John Motley Morehead, dubbed the rail line "the tree of life" for the state. By 1856 the first train traveled along the entire route, from Goldsboro to Charlotte.

In 1858 the Atlantic and North Carolina Railroad was completed, opening 96 miles (154 km) of rail between Goldsboro and Shepard's Point, now Morehead City. Efforts to consolidate the Atlantic and North Carolina with the NCRR were initiated in 1866, but it would take until 1989 to complete the merger and consolidate the railroads from Morehead City to Charlotte.

In 1895 the North Carolina Railroad was leased to Southern Railway Company (later Norfolk Southern) for a 99 year period. Southern Railway/Norfolk Southern retained control of the railroad until 1999, when NCRR and Norfolk Southern reached an exclusive Trackage Rights Agreement for Norfolk Southern’s continuing freight and maintenance operations on the NCRR line for 15 years, renewable for an additional 30 years.

One year prior to the establishment of this new lease with Norfolk Southern, in 1998, the State of North Carolina agreed to buy out the remaining 25% private shares of NCRR stock, making it a privately run company, with the voting stock fully owned by the state. In 2000, the General Assembly established by statute that North Carolina Railroad Company revenues are to be used for improvements to the NCRR line. A year later, the implementation of a Corridor Improvement Program that serves as the blueprint for upgrading the railroad was put into place and the first projects, $10 million worth of improvements along the corridor between Goldsboro and Morehead City, were completed. That same year the North Carolina Railroad Company approved a contract with Norfolk Southern and the North Carolina Department of Transportation to complete $30 million of improvements that would eliminate 20 minutes of daily passenger travel time between Raleigh and Charlotte in a double tracking project near Greensboro. NCRR's corporate capital improvement program is funded from NCRR capital funds generated through its freight agreement with Norfolk Southern. NCRR does not receive any state appopriations, and its properties are subject to North Carolina city and county property taxes, most but not all of which are paid by Norfolk Southern under the agreements.

Also in 2001 a corridor upgrade between Raleigh and Selma was completed, allowing for an increase in speed on the rail from 49 to 59 miles per hour (79 to 95 km/h). Two years later, in 2003, the Neuse River Bridge in Kinston was replaced. It was the first bridge completed through the Corridor Improvement Program. This nearly 100-year old structure developed a large crack in the east abutment after Hurricane Floyd, making it unsafe for further use. The new bridge is designed to carry the faster, heavier cars that are common on today’s freight routes. In May 2006, a new bridge over Highway 54 in Research Triangle Park was completed to replace the old single track bridge that had substandard clearance and, because of its narrowness, caused a significant bottleneck on Highway 54. The new bridge is double-tracked to increase train capacity and speed. The improvements will allow traffic to flow smoothly and safely on the road below while allowing both freight and passenger trains to move along the corridor.

NCRR Today

Recently, North Carolina Railroad Company added three new passing sidings over eight miles and centralized traffic control between Raleigh and Selma (30 miles) in order to increase capacity for both freight and passenger trains. The Company is also replacing several other bridges along the corridor to improve safety, efficiency, and speed. Other improvements made by the NCRR since 2001 include rail and bridge upgrades between Raleigh and Morehead City, NC at a cost in excess of $60 million. In 2010, the Company completed commuter rail investment and ridership studies for the segments between Goldsboro and Greensboro, through Raleigh.

Beginning in 2008, the North Carolina Railroad Company is working with the North Carolina Department of Transportation and Norfolk Southern to improve crossing safety on the eastern portion of the line by upgrading gates and crossing signals. The Company is also working with these parties to add or replace double track between Charlotte and Raleigh in an initiative to extend higher speed passenger rail south to Charlotte from Washington via Richmond, Virginia.

The North Carolina Railroad was instrumental in encouraging the economic development of North Carolina in the 19th century, helping to define new markets, new industries, and new cities and today NCRR continues to contribute to the state’s economy. The North Carolina Railroad carries over one million carloads of freight each year and about 300,000 passengers. Based on a 2007 study by the Research Triangle Institute, the North Carolina Railroad saves North Carolina industries $198 million in transportation costs annually, and the total impact on North Carolina economic output is $338 million annually. In 2005, in counties bordering NCRR tracks, industries using rail freight services accounted for $143 billion in output, more than 24% of North Carolina’s total economy. NCRR freight transportation also has environmental benefits, conveying $65.7 million in external benefits (cost savings).

References

• http://www.ncrr.com/ncrr-history.html
• http://www.whistlestopncrr.com/
• Research Triangle Institute Study, May 2007