Durham mayor: The possibilities this federal rail money could unleash are vast | Opinion

Durham is fortunate to be served by intercity passenger rail that connects the city to other areas across North Carolina and can ultimately allow residents and visitors to make their way across the Eastern Seaboard.

Daily, the Piedmont and Carolinian trains, part of North Carolina’s Amtrak service, run between Raleigh and Charlotte, with stops in Durham, Cary, Burlington, Greensboro, Salisbury and Kannapolis. Amtrak also has service and stops in Selma, Wilson and Rocky Mount.

While rail service has been used increasingly as the global pandemic ends, there is growing momentum to expand and enhance intercity passenger rail service in ways that will allow more access to more cities and make travel easier. State and federal officials are now exploring new funding opportunities under the federal bipartisan infrastructure bill.

To better understand those opportunities, the City of Durham and the N.C. Metro Mayors Coalition Rail Response Work Group will be hosting a public meeting at 9:30 a.m. Sept. 7 at the Durham Amtrak Station, 601 W. Main St.

Work group co-chairs are Nick Tennyson, former mayor of Durham and former Secretary of the N.C. Dept. of Transportation, and Susan Kluttz, former Salisbury Mayor, and former Secretary of the State Department of Cultural Resources.

This meeting will provide a better understanding of rail systems in North Carolina, specifically intercity passenger rail and its benefits. The meeting will also provide an opportunity to understand funding streams for rail systems along with the resources cities need to compete for intercity rail funding.

The meeting will include presentations by state transportation experts as well as a look at what we are doing here in Durham. It comes as state transportation officials seek planning grants to improve and expand intercity passenger rail service across the state.

To be clear, this is not passenger commuter rail within metropolitan areas but a service connecting cities.

The federal bipartisan infrastructure bill includes $66 billion for passenger and freight rail infrastructure investment, with $44 billion to be distributed through the Federal Railroad Administration’s discretionary grant program.

As part of its Amtrak Connects US initiative, Amtrak has unveiled early-stage plans that would include more than 30 new routes by 2035, some of them in North Carolina.

The possibilities that this can unleash are vast. Improvements, and expansion could make Durham a more likely destination for tourists making a day trip or going on a long weekend excursion. They could make it easier for parents to visit college-age children at our universities. Enhanced service could bring more customers to Durham businesses.

More and more people are using rail for travel, and system modernization makes it increasingly attractive to travelers. It’s a great time to get on board.

This story was originally published September 5, 2023 at 10:41 AM.