Transit agency gearing up for update of Virginia’s State Rail Plan

In the federal system, states work with national agencies over years to plan for services and infrastructure for the people who live in the country. That includes the Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation (DRPT) who are beginning to prepare an update to the Statewide Rail Plan.

“In the past, in order to qualify for certain federal grants, you had to have an active state rail plan. That’s changed a little bit in recent years,” said Taylor Holden, a planning and data manager for the DRPT. “However, many states are continuing with this process to kind of maintain that continuity.”

The Commonwealth of Virginia has been investing in rail travel for many years including dedicating funds for the Amtrak Northeast Regional service.

In late 2019, Governor Ralph Northam announced a $3.7 billion investment in passenger rail including the purchase of right-of-way on existing railroads.

Since then, the Virginia Passenger Rail Authority began operations as a separate entity in 2020 and in 2022 the Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation created its first-ever Statewide Rail Plan for the Federal Railroad Administration.

“To look back at the 2022 rail plan, kind of our big accomplishment with that one was that we built it entirely in ESRI story maps,” Holden said. “So it’s all fully digital with multimedia applications, so interactive maps, dashboards, that sort of thing.”

Holden said DRPT provides the long-term planning and the VPRA has taken charge of operations. That includes the construction of a passenger rail station in Christiansburg as well as construction of the new Long Bridge. The DRPT is currently working to secure two future passenger rail corridors from the Federal Railroad Administration.

“There is the D.C. to Bristol corridor, which is an extension of that Roanoke service that is currently being extended to New River Valley so we’ll be studying that,” Holden said. “And then the Commonwealth Corridor is our first east-west connection.”

Among the VPRA’s right-of-way is the line operated by Buckingham Branch Railroad that runs between Clifton Forge and Doswell and Holden said that is the preferred option for the Commonwealth Corridor between Richmond and Charlottesville but it may be expensive because the line is mostly single-track.

The Statewide Rail Plan may cover some of the details and creation of a new plan will soon begin with a public engagement section beginning in early 2026. This will be an opportunity to demonstrate how much activity has been underway.

“Our 2026 plan priorities are to kind of record and discuss Virginia’s changing role in passenger rail,” Holden said. “With VPRA’s creation and the acquisition of all this right of way, it’s a big change for Virginia. Not many states own as much right of way as we do.”

Holden’s comments came during the September 30 joint meeting of the Charlottesville-area and Staunton-area Metropolitan Planning Organization policy boards.

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