North Carolina’s passenger train schedule will grow on June 5 with the launch of a third daily round-trip train between Raleigh and Charlotte, leaving each city at midday, NCDOT said today.
The schedule expansion means that Raleigh residents will have the option to catch a southbound train at 6:50 a.m., 11:50 a.m. or 4:50 p.m. each day for the trip to Charlotte, which takes about 3 hours and 12 minutes. (See story with partial timetable.)
The northbound trains will leave Charlotte’s Amtrak station at 7:30 a.m., 12:30 p.m. and 5:15 p.m. Each train also stops along the way at Cary, Durham, Burlington, Greensboro, High Point, Salisbury and Kannapolis.
North Carolina recently won $545 million in federal stimulus grants to beef up and speed up the state’s passenger rail service. Plans include faster trip times and more frequent trains, with the scheduled addition in 2012 of a fourth daily round-trip between the state’s two largest cities.
One of the daily trains running through the state now is Amtrak’s Carolinian, which travels from Charlotte to New York. The other current train and the new one starting in June both serve the Amtrak Piedmont route between Raleigh and Charlotte.
One-way fares between Raleigh and Charlotte are $25 and up, depending on how and when you buy your ticket from Amtrak.
Bruce Siceloff reports on traffic and transportation. A News & Observer reporter, editor and blogger since 1976, he took over the
Comments
Who paid?
Wed, 03/31/2010 - 00:55 — link0612Hey guys, who paid for those roads and highways you drive on for free? The train system has a much lower subsidy than the Interstate system. If you're curious where your money is being funneled, question the Interstate first; it's taking dozens of times more money than Amtrak is.
I-85 yes every day
Tue, 03/30/2010 - 22:40 — yourkillingmeI wanted to know the cost of the train per trip. Average number of riders and the amount of tax money that is used to operate the train and pay personnel. What ya scared the truth may come out. Would have been some good info in this article.
When is the last time
Tue, 03/30/2010 - 21:53 — John_BurnsI-85 paid for itself?
passengers pay
Tue, 03/30/2010 - 20:10 — FlowerpowerThe passengers on the train--the customers--pay for the train, just as buyers of any other service UNDER CAPITALISM pay for the service.
cost?
Tue, 03/30/2010 - 19:19 — yourkillingmeTo much to ask how much this is costing the tax payers? or does the train service pay for itself.
Yay
Tue, 03/30/2010 - 18:36 — FlowerpowerThree cheers for the train.