NC high-speed rail share bumps up to $545 million

It turns out that North Carolina will get a bit more money for high-speed rail than we first reported this morning: A total of $545 million.

The Federal Railroad Administration says North Carolina will receive $520 million to fund nearly 30 projects between Raleigh and Charlotte that will increase top train speeds to 90 mph and double the daily round trips along the corridor.

And another $25 million for work on a planned new line between Raleigh and Richmond. At the other end of that track, Virginia will receive $75 million toward its work to improve rail lines between Richmond and Washington, D.C.

We don’t know yet what all this means for the future.

The Raleigh-Charlotte money covers more than one-third of North Carolina’s total request for that corridor. Between Raleigh and Richmond, the $25 million is only a few drops of the state’s total request for $3.7 billion to establish 110-mph rail service.

So how do we stack up, nationwide?

North Carolina got more money than the entire northeastern United States, where a total $485 million was divided among at least 7 states.

North Carolina is one of just seven states receiving at least $400 million out of $8 billion distributed among 31 states for high-speed and intercity passenger rail improvements:

* California: $2.34 billion for faster trains between Los Angeles and San Diego
* Florida: $1.25 billion for a Tampa-Orlando route
* Illinois: $1.1 billion for trains from Chicago to St. Louis (with an additional $31 million for Missouri). Illinois gets another $133 million for a Chicago-Detroit route (with additional funds for this route going to Michigan ($40 million) and Indiana ($71 million)).
* Wisconsin: $822 million primarily for a Madison-Milwaukee route
* Washington state: $590 million for trains between Seattle and Portland (plus $8 million for Oregon)
* North Carolina: $545 million ($520 million for Raleigh-Charlotte improvements, $25 million for “congestion mitigation” work on Raleigh to Richmond route). Plus another $75 million for Virginia to fund a third track north of Richmond/
* Ohio: $400 million for a Cleveland-Columbus-Cincinnati line

A full roster of awards can be viewed HERE.