on track vol. 1 issue 2 spring 2013
DESCRIPTION
Check out Vol. 1 Issue 2 of NCDOT's Rail Division newsletter. This issue features:-Update on NC Amtrak ridership numbers-Rail Safety efforts-Rail project updatesTRANSCRIPT
Spring 2013
In This Issue
Amtrak Numbers Move
Upward
From the Director
Focus on Rail Safety
National Train Day 2013
in NC
Klumac Road Project
New Rail Car
NCDOT Names New
Mechanical Services
Company
Time Warner Features
Amtrak
In Memoriam: Mark
Sullivan
NC Amtrak Numbers Continue Upward Once again, the Piedmont is posting impressive numbers. According to Amtrak
reports, March 2013 saw a 10.3% increase in ridership over March 2012, and a
21.7% increase in revenue over March 2012. The Carolinian numbers are even
more impressive. The Carolinian had a 60.8% increase in ridership in March over
last year, and a 90.1% increase in revenue. N.C. Department of Transportation
(NCDOT) Rail Division Deputy Director Allan Paul says the numbers are even
more exciting given the suspension of Carolinian service for most of March last
year for track work.
For the federal fiscal year (FFY), Piedmont ridership is up 8.6%, and revenue is up
13.7%. For the FFY Carolinian ridership is up 6.3%, and revenue is up 10%. Paul
says not many state -supported services can claim those kinds of numbers. “It’s yet
another good indication of how well we are maximizing revenues, while still grow-
ing ridership on both trains, ” he says.
From the Director: Economic development, job creation and customer service to North Carolinians.
These are the priorities we focus on daily in the NCDOT Rail Divi-
sion. As we work to deliver projects that best serve the needs of
moving goods and people in our state, we apply these values and
priorities whether it be a crossing safety project, building a track
improvement to more efficiently move trains or serve a new or ex-
panding industry, and providing exceptional customer service to
our passengers.
This newsletter, On Track, is about how we strive toward those priorities, working
with our railroad and private industry partners. In the pages that we plan to send out
quarterly, we will cover the latest on news and information as related to our rail pro-
gram and industry partners statewide. Our goal is for it to give you some useful in-
formation you can apply as you work towards your own transportation-related goals
and objectives. I hope you will find it informative enough to pass along, and that
you will provide us feedback so we can serve you better.
Continued on page 5
A rash of railroad incidents since January prompted NCDOT
leaders to collaborate in looking for new ways to communicate
about safety around railroad tracks. The incidents have includ-
ed train-vehicle collisions at crossings and the deaths of some
trespassers on railroad tracks.
In June, NCDOT Secretary Tony Tata and N.C. Department of
Public Safety Secretary Kiernan Shanahan are hosting a Rail
Safety Summit. It will bring the agencies together with com-
munity and law enforcement groups from across the state to
discuss ways to further improve rail safety and help save
lives. It will focus on improving education, distracted drivers
and trespassers on and around railroad tracks.
The Rail Safety Summit will be held June 20 at the Friday Cen-
ter in Chapel Hill. Among the speakers will be Amtrak Police
Chief Polly Hanson.
In early February, Secretary Tata hosted a Rail Safety
Roundtable to open a discussion of the rail safety issue.
Page 2
Focus On Rail Safety and Crossing Safety Blitzes
Governor Pat McCrory has declared May “Rail Safety Awareness Month” in North Carolina and the NCDOT
Rail Division is reaching out to the public in the months ahead to remind travelers to use care at railroad
crossings. These “crossing safety blitzes” target the at-grade crossings areas that have been identified as
among those with the highest train-vehicular collisions in North Carolina.
At a crossing safety blitz, NCDOT workers partner with local law enforcement, CSX Transportation and Nor-
folk Southern freight train operator police and other train safety advocates, such as Operation Lifesaver to put
rail safety facts into the hands of motorists as they approach the railroad crossing. More than 3,300 fact cards
were delivered in Fayetteville and Charlotte during April and May.
Additional blitzes will be held:
June 12 Greensboro Intersections near MacKay Road
July 17 Dunn E. Cumberland Road Street
NCDOT and NCDPS to Lead
Rail Safety Summit
Where:
Burlington Amtrak Station
High Point Amtrak Station
Salisbury Amtrak Station
Kannapolis Amtrak Station
Selma Amtrak Station
Raleigh Amtrak Station
Greensboro Amtrak Station
Charlotte Amtrak Station
Cary Amtrak Station
Durham Amtrak Station
Rocky Mount Amtrak Station
Wilson Amtrak Station
Fayetteville Amtrak Station
Hamlet Historic Hamlet Depot & Museum
Amtrak Hamlet Station
Lexington Freight Depot
Spencer-NC Transportation Museum
Wilmington Railroad Museum
T R A I N S MA T T E R MA Y 1 1 , 2 0 1 3
NC and Amtrak Celebrating National Train Day!
On Saturday, May 11, Amtrak is joining communities across Ameri-
ca, including in North Carolina, to celebrate the importance of trains
to their towns at the sixth annual National Train Day. More than 200
communities are expected to host events at local train stations, rail-
road museums and other locations commemorating this year’s theme
“Trains Matter.”
Amtrak and NCDOT are hosting events (a variety of train displays,
live musical performances, activities for children and more) at every
passenger train station in the state that day.
North Carolina has more than 3,300 miles of railroad tracks used by
passenger and freight trains as important means of transporting people
and goods throughout the state. More than 938,000 passengers each
year currently ride Amtrak trains to and from destinations in North
Carolina among its 500 national destinations and 21,000-mile route
system.
Our state-owned and operated Amtrak Piedmont train service was
number one in the nation in growth within the Amtrak system during
fiscal year 2012.
For more information, visit www.bytrain.org
Page 3
Klumac Road Project
Project Details:
The PIP project has two key parts:
Building a bridge for train traffic over Klumac Road and an underpass for motor vehicle traffic on Klumac
Road at the railroad crossing; and
Realigning 0.6 miles of Klumac Road from N.C. 150 (Main Street) to just south of Martin Luther King
Junior Drive. Crews will shift the road over roughly a block to accommodate the bridge/underpass con-
struction.
Estimated Construction Cost: $10.6 M
Timeframe: Scheduled for completion in May 2016
Page 4
T R A I N S A T T E R
Page 5
T R A I N S A T T E R
New Rail Car Enters Service
The NCDOT Rail Division’s newest rail car has entered the
Piedmont fleet. The Carolina Lily, named for the state wild-
flower, began carrying passengers April 29.
It is the third passenger car to be refurbished through U.S. De-
partment of Transportation grants under the American Recovery
and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) since the state was awarded
$545 million in January 2010. The Carolina Lily seats 56 pas-
sengers.
NCDOT Selects New Mechanical Services Contractor The N.C. Department of Transportation has awarded RailPlan International Inc. a multi-year contract to pro-
vide mechanical services for NCDOT’s Amtrak Piedmont trains.
“Our service providers help us maintain our trains and ensure that they are in good condition and are safe and
reliable for our customers,” said NCDOT Rail Division Deputy Director Allan Paul. “We look forward to our
new partnership with RailPlan.”
Those services include: preventive and periodic maintenance on all Piedmont equipment, daily turnaround ser-
vicing on the Piedmont train sets in Charlotte and routine maintenance of the Raleigh Capital Yard facilities
and equipment.
RailPlan will take over services currently provided by Herzog, whose contract ends on May 31. The agreement
with RailPlan is effective June 1, and is for five years with two one-year renewable extensions.
RailPlan International provides a wide variety of products and professional services to the North American
passenger rail market.
Page 6
From the Director Continued from page 1
It is an exciting time in railroads in North Carolina and I say that with some level of perspective as a career
NCDOT employee. Twenty-five years ago, two transformational events happened in the state’s rail transporta-
tion efforts. First, NCDOT purchased the 67-mile Dillsboro-to-Murphy rail corridor to preserve it from aban-
donment and leased it to the Great Smoky Mountains Railroad. That was the first corridor to be acquired and
preserved by NCDOT. Also, that summer, Governor Jim Martin convened his Rail Passenger Task Force and
set forth a goal of returning passenger rail service between Raleigh and Charlotte. Today, because of that for-
ward thinking, we have preserved more than 158 miles of rail corridors from abandonment, even returning ser-
vice to some of those miles. Also, we have three round trips daily between Raleigh and Charlotte with the Pied-
mont and Carolinian services.
Two things will happen this year to further transform our rail program. First, the Rail Division begins work on
its Strategic Rail Plan, which will be an integral part of Governor Pat McCrory’s 25-Year Transportation Plan.
Second, we will award $197 million worth of projects under the Piedmont Improvement Program between Ra-
leigh and Charlotte to further modernize that corridor.
One has to wonder what we’ll be doing 25 years from now.
In February, we broke ground for the Hopson Road grade separation and the rail siding between Nelson and
Clegg in Wake and Durham counties. Secretary Tony Tata, FRA Administrator Joe Szabo, and Amtrak Presi-
dent Joe Boardman joined us to celebrate this important step forward. A moment I will not forget was hearing
Assistant Resident Engineer Michelle Gaddy explain to Administrator Szabo the phasing approach on construc-
tion of this railroad project. Being a state railroad guy pretty much all my career, it was good to hear the enthu-
siasm in her voice about taking on this new challenge. That has been the experience as we have moved forward
the Piedmont Improvement Program – the development of a truly capable multi-modal engineering and con-
struction industry in North Carolina.
For the first time for the NCDOT, we have private engineering firms and staffs fully design railroads and con-
struction industries build them. This expanded capability will benefit our state for many years as rail projects
are funded and progressed statewide. With this capability will come jobs and an advantage in economic devel-
opment. — Paul Worley
Cable viewers throughout North Carolina can get an idea of what it’s like to ride the Amtrak Piedmont by way
of Time Warner’s “On Demand” service.
The two-minute video features the sights, sounds and experiences of taking a trip on North Carolina intercity
passenger service, which travels between Raleigh and Charlotte, making stops at downtown area stations in
Cary, Durham, Burlington, Greensboro, High Point, Salisbury and Kannapolis.
The video also features information on North Carolina’s train hosts, automated ticket kiosks and eticketing.
The spot, located on “On Demand” channel 1084, began airing in February and will run through May 11.
Time Warner Showcases Train Service “On Demand”
Page 7
In Memoriam
Mark B. Sullivan, who was a “founding father of North Carolina’s rail program” passed away Sunday, April
14 after an extended illness. He was 77 years old. His wife Kathy, son Tobias and wife, Nicole of Annapo-
lis, Maryland, survive him.
He was a graduate of Syracuse University and served his country as a 1st Lieutenant in the US Air Force.
Mark touched many lives as a dedicated public servant. He began work in state government in August 1968
as a community planner in the Division of Community Planning in the Departments of Conservation and
Development and Local Affairs. He did important work in several other departments and agencies before
ultimately making his way to us in rail.
In 1986, he joined the NCDOT’s Transportation Planning Division as state rail planner in the rail program.
The rail program became part of the Public Transportation & Rail Division in 1990. Mark became Assistant
Director for Planning shortly after the Rail Division was created in 1993.
Mark was a visionary. In this leadership role, he:
Provided key staff support to the Governor’s Rail Passenger Task Force, creation of the Rail Council,
and the Blue Ribbon NCRR Buyout Committee, who recommended state purchase of the private
shares of the NCRR;
Authored the Rail Corridor Preservation Act of 1989 and other important legislation that shaped the
department's Rail Program;
Was instrumental in initiating DOT's rail corridor preservation program and purchase of rail corridors;
Was instrumental in developing the application to designate the SEHSR in 1992 and the strategy for pre-
serving the S-Line for future use;
Developed DOT's strategic corridor map for future planning;
Initiated DOT's first Tiered Environmental Impact Statement as part of the SEHSR EIS, and;
Conceived the idea for use of the "rail triangle" in down-
town Raleigh for a multi-modal center.
Mark’s steadfast dedication helped make our state a better
place. While he will certainly be missed, he leaves behind a leg-
acy of leadership that will serve North Carolina for generations
to come.
Please remember the family in your thoughts and prayers.—
Paul Worley
Mark Sullivan