DRAFT 
                                                        
                Regional Rail Service 
                  The Vermont Way  
               Authored by Christopher Parker and Carl Fowler 
                        November 30, 2017 
                                            
                                Contents 
         Contents                                              2 
         Executive Summary                                     4 
         The Budd Car RDC Advantage                            5 
         Project System Description                            6 
          Routes                                               6 
          Schedule                                             7 
          Major Employers and Markets                          8 
          Commuter vs. Intercity Designation                   10 
          Project Developer                                    10 
          Stakeholders                                         10 
              Transportation organizations                     10 
              Town and City Governments                        11 
              Colleges and Universities                        11 
              Resorts                                          11 
          Host Railroads                                       11 
              Vermont Rail Systems                             11 
              New England Central Railroad                     12 
              Amtrak                                           12 
          Possible contract operators                          12 
          Dispatching                                          13 
          Liability Insurance                                  13 
         Tracks and Right-of-Way                               15 
          Upgraded Track                                       15 
          Safety: Grade Crossing Upgrades                      15 
              Proposed Standard                                16 
              Upgrades by segment                              16 
              Cost of Upgrades                                 17 
          Safety                                               19 
         Platforms and Stations                                20 
          Proposed Stations                                    20 
                     Existing Stations                                                                                           22 
                     Construction Methods of New Stations                                                                        22 
                  Current and Historical Precedents                                                                              25 
                     Rail in Vermont                                                                                             25 
                     Regional Rail Service in the United States                                                                  27 
                            New Mexico                                                                                           27 
                            Maine                                                                                                27 
                            Oregon                                                                                               28 
                            Arizona and Rural New York                                                                           28 
                            Rural Massachusetts                                                                                  28 
                      
                                                      
                  Executive Summary 
                  For more than twenty years various studies have responded to a yearning in Vermont for a regional 
                  passenger rail service which would connect Vermont towns and cities. This White Paper, commissioned by 
                  Champ P3, LLC reviews the opportunities for and obstacles to delivering rail service at a rural scale 
                  appropriate for a rural state. Champ P3 is a mission driven public-private partnership modeled on the Eagle 
                  P3 which built Denver’s new commuter rail network.   
                   
                  Vermont’s two railroads, Vermont Rail System and Genesee & Wyoming, have experience hosting and 
                  operating commuter rail service utilizing Budd cars.  Twelve rebuilt Budd cars have been purchased and are in 
                  good condition.  The Budd cars offer a lighter footprint of capital and operating costs and a significant 
                  reduction in greenhouse gasses.   
                   
                  Three routes are discussed:  
                           1.) St. Albans to Burlington/Essex Junction,          
                           2.) Montpelier/Barre to Burlington,  
                           3.) Rutland to Burlington.   
                   
                   The routes total 142 miles of which 125 miles are operated or planned to be operated by Amtrak and are 
                  already rated for 59 mph passenger service.   
                   
                  Amtrak’s Vermonter operates from Montpelier Junction through Waterbury and Essex Junction to St. Albans 
                  on track owned by Genesee & Wyoming’s New England Central Railroad that was rebuilt with ARRA funds for 
                  the purpose of enhanced passenger service.    Amtrak’s Ethan Allen will soon be extended north from Rutland 
                  through Middlebury to downtown Burlington.  The track is being rebuilt to 59 mph. 
                   
                  Service could supplement, not replace, existing LINK commuter busses.  The railroad passes close to several 
                  large employers the LINK bus does not reach, notably the Global Foundries campus, Fletcher-Allen’s Fanny 
                  Allen campus and Saint Michael’s College.  The LINK, will better serve the University of Vermont, Fletcher 
                  Allen’s main campus and National Life.   Twenty-four major employers are adjacent or very close to the tracks 
                  and are identified within this White Paper.   
                   
                  Passenger equipment has been purchased and the majority of track identified in suggested routes is already 
                  rated for passenger service.  The one-size-fits-all approach to urban rail service, does not always apply to a 
                  regional rural approach or as we call it, The Vermont Way.