A Virginia Department of Transportation study counted 4.4 million trucks traveling through the Shenandoah Valley each year. In 2004, Norfolk Southern estimated that an expenditure of $875 million could take 500,000 trucks off Interstate 81 each year, but it can’t justify making the entire investment itself. “The capital investment will be greater than the benefits we would receive from it,” said railroad spokesman Robin Chapman. “We could not justify that spending on our own.”
Now, according to the Associated Press, the Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation is working with Norfolk Southern to examine the feasibility of state involvement in upgrading Norfolk Southern’s track. The study will look at rail improvements not just in Virginia but in an arc from Harrisburg, Pa., to Knoxville, Tenn.
Makes sense — certainly a lot more sense than the multi-billion dollar boondoggles proposed for upgrading I-81. If rail is the more cost-effective alternative, we need to consider it. On the other hand, if Norfolk Southern can’t justify investing in its own railroad track, I question whether the Commonwealth is justified subsidizing the project any more than any other transportation project.
Update: Be sure to read the informative commentary by “Anon 10:50” in the comments section, outlining the analysis of Norfolk Southern CEO Wick Moorman. Intermodal traffic is increasingly profitable for the railroad company but there are special challenges serving the I-81 corridor in Virginia.
