Rail system needs funding

A bill by Del. David Toscano may be one key to getting improved passenger rail to Charlottesville and other parts of the commonwealth.
Mr. Toscano has proposed allowing passenger rail to share in the Rail Enhancement Fund, a state fund that now assists freight lines with rail improvements.
“The challenge that we have in Virginia is that we have no way of funding inter-city passenger rail,” he said.
“If we want to build up the grid, states are going to have to be involved with whatever entity is going to be responsible for running the rails.”
For the most part, that’s expected to be Amtrak. Northern Virginia has the Virginia Rail Express, but the rest of the state will either have to build its own light-rail systems or work out better collaborations with Amtrak.

Part of the value of the REF is that it is funded by a dedicated revenue source from Virginia’s car rental tax, generating millions of dollars. As calculated by the Department of Rail and Public Transportation, some of the projects partially funded by this source generate public benefits of 15- or 16-to-1.
For instance, one project from 2006 — improvements at the Port of Richmond, at a public benefit ratio of 10-1 — was estimated to save the equivalent of more than 53 million car miles, nearly 41 million truck miles and save nearly 8 million gallons of fuel over 20 years. The recommended level of REF funding was only $140,000.
Improvements to freight rail lines also aid passenger rail, since passenger trains rent track time from the freight lines that actually own the infrastructure. Improvements to tracks, rail beds or signaling can improve efficiency for both freight and passenger service.

Mr. Toscano’s bill would allow some of this money to feed directly to passenger rail.
One project that could be aided: improved passenger service from Lynchburg through Charlottesville to D.C. Money has been appropriated to help start a three-year pilot program for these improvements, but after that there is no identified funding source. Money from the REF, if available through this legislation, might be part of the answer.
Improvements to passenger rail could help freight lines, too, in the long run. For instance, at some points Virginia will need double-tracking to allow trains to pass each other without waiting. If extra track is laid to serve passenger lines, freight lines also will benefit from the resulting gain in speed and efficiency.

Meanwhile, the estimates of enhanced public benefits from improvements to the Port of Richmond suggest just how much fuel, pollution and driving time can be saved from rail improvements. Similar gains may be expected from passenger rail improvements.
Improved rail service for both freight and passenger lines — that is, moving both goods and people efficiently from one part of the state to another — is also critical to economic development.
“We’ve got some good things in the works,” Mr. Toscano said. “We’ve got to give them a chance to succeed.”
Reliable funding is part of that opportunity for success.