Vermont, New York counties ponder rail service

Public response to proposed passenger rail service upgrades in adjacent Vermont and New York counties has been initially positive, but freight rail operators are more circumspect, at least so far.

Vanasse Hanger Brustlin Inc. is overseeing a study, including a service development plan, involving Bennington and Rutland counties in southwestern Vermont, and Renssalaer, Schenectady, Sartatoga, Warren, and Washington counties nearby in New York. The New York locations currently are served by Amtrak, with Schenectady and Albany-Renssalaer located on Amtrak’s Empire Corridor. But most of the New York State counties have more limited service, while Rutland, Vt. is served by one train per day in each direction, and Bennington, Vt. currently has no passenger rail service at all.

The Federal Railroad Administration awarded Vermont and New York a $500,000 planning grant last year to help prepare existing rail right-of-way for passenger rail service between the Albany, N.Y., area and Rutland. The two states have each chipped in $250,000 in matching funds.

Rex Burke, a planner with the Bennington County Regional Commission, said some regional interests, including freight railroads such as Vermont Railway, Canadian Pacific, and Pan-Am Railways, have voiced the need protect their business interests. But he added, "They’re keeping their minds open. They have concerns about how it will impact them. The project needs to be designed and built in a way that won’t impact those existing operations.”

Public response so far has been upbeat, according to Costa Pappis, project manager at the Vermont Agency of Transportation. “It shows that there’s a big interest in rail, which is great,” Pappis said. Public focus groups have found concerns include more direct connections and shorter train travel times are sought, along with a desire to use passenger rail service as an economic development tool.