• Rails-to-trails and rail banking . Rails-to-trails refers to the practice of converting an underutilized freight rail into a recreational trail. This practice is done on a more permanent basis. Alternatively, in instances where there is potential for freight demand to resume, rail banking may be employed to temporarily convert a freight line into a trail. Rail banking is established through a written agreement and may require permanent structures, such as bridges and trestles, remain intact. Loftus-Otway et al. (2008) describe the process of ROW abandonment and acquisition through rail banking as challenging due to inconsistencies with ownership, agreement types, and legal language used. • Route Acquisition . Route acquisition is employed to retain rail service by preserving railroad corridors for a provisional period. For example, the Rail Corridor Preservation Act of 1988 gave the North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) authority to “purchase railroads and preserve rail corridors to reassemble critically important portions of rail corridors that have been condemned” (NCDOT, 2019). NCGS § 160A-498 states that: o A city or county may acquire property, by purchase or gift, to preserve a railroad corridor established by the Department of Transportation. A city or county that acquires property to preserve a railroad corridor may lease the property or use the property for interim compatible uses until the property is used for a railroad. The statute was designed to curtail abandonment along rail corridors and provide a strategy to evaluate their significance to economic development, their significance within the community, and the potential for restoration if abandoned. Figure 47 shows rail corridors owned and preserved by NCDOT. • Shared-use arrangements . Given the capacity to move more people, many urban areas are considering passenger rail to preserve mobility and reduce congestion. With the shortage of available right-of-way in urban areas, the use of existing freight corridors provides an alternative solution for developing passenger rail services. A shared-use agreement documents a negotiation between local governments and freight railroad companies to share existing tracks in a manner that ensures the continuation of service reliability and efficiency. These agreements outline conditions within which the ROW and track may be used and typically include assurances of safety, no negative impact on freight services, and no expectations of subsidies of passenger rail services (Loftus-Otway et al., 2008). One example of a successful shared use rail corridor is the New Jersey River Line. Loftus-Otway et al., (2008, p. 83) describe the implementation of the arrangement for the New Jersey River Line as follows: “Given that the line was significantly under capacity, the introduction of passenger service was seen as a way to justify retaining the line as an operational freight carrier. The [Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), however, initially denied the right for the line to operate both services simultaneously. A compromise was reached in which freight trains would only be allowed access to the line at night. This restriction further alarmed freight interests who felt that the limitation would hamper the competitiveness of the line. Despite significant cost overruns in its construction, the ridership on the River Line has exceeded expectations and there have been no significant reports of problems for the freight customers on the line due to the nighttime deliveries.”
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