Newspaper Page Text
The ADVANCE, June 16, 2021 /Page 4A (Ttie Afruance
GDOT State Rail Plan Outlines How Rural
Railway Upgrades Can Benefit Communities
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JEFF DAVIS
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GDOT Graphic
GDOT Map of Railway Projects in the Vidalia Area,
By Deborah Clark
Regional Editor
dclarkadvance@gmail. com
A railway restoration
project is ongoing right
outside of Vidalia as the
Heart of Georgia (HOG)
and the state Department
of Transportation link up
to finish the HOG - Mid-
ville Line. Portions of the
line, from Swainsboro to
Nunez and Nunez to Oak
Park have already been
completed. The current
work will connect the line
from Oak Park to Vidalia.
This track segment
north of Vidalia has been
out of service for years,
but when the rehabilita
tion is complete, the work
will reconnect two HOG
lines, providing better
service through an inter
change with the Georgia
Central Railroad and high
way proximity to nearby
Interstate 16. The project
is part of the GDOT State
Rail Plan which aims to up
grade the state’s commer
cial and passenger railway
lines.
In order to accomplish
the goals and objectives set
forth in the State Rail Plan,
GDOT proposes a Rail
Service and Investment
Program, which is contin
gent on funding. Projects
in the Rail Service and In
vestment Program seek to:
• Increase Rail’s modal
share
• Modernize Short
Line RR infrastructure
• Extend the reach
of the Port of Savannah
through Inland Ports
• Alleviate blocked
crossings
• Promote Passenger
Rail Projects opportunities
Central RR and high
way
GDOT’s Rail Plan ex
ecutive summary, 2021,
notes that Georgia’s rail
roads are integral to the
economy by keeping peo
ple and business moving.
GDOT prepares a State
Rail Plan every five years
as required by the Federal
Railroad Administration
with a purpose of setting
the vision for freight and
passenger rail in the state
for the next 20 years. The
2020 Georgia State Rail
Plan provides updates
on conditions that have
changed and important
short-term and long-term
opportunities for invest
ment including:
• The increasing de
mand for passenger and
freight rail services
• Upgrades to the
GDOT-owned rail to en
sure economic competi
tiveness
• Supporting opera
tional improvements to
maximize efficiency of the
rail network and multi
modal connections.
Since the last plan
completed in 2015, the
state has made significant
investments in rail
infrastructure including
the opening of the Mason
Mega Rail project at the
Port of Savannah and has
leveraged $18 million in
CRISI grants to improve
the short line railroad in
frastructure. These invest
ments in rail create a com
petitive edge for Georgia
for growth in freight and
logistics. Highlights of the
2020 Georgia State Rail
Plan are:
• Role of the rail sys
tem in Georgia
• Benefits to the state
• Rail system trends
and needs
• Potential investments
and opportunities for pas
senger and freight rail
• Funding sources
available for system invest
ments
The summary points
out, “With upgraded in
frastructure, Georgia’s
small railroads could bring
more benefits to local com
munities and the state’s
economy. Georgia’s short
line network - primarily in
more rural parts of the state
-presents opportunities to
improve and expand.”
Improving these rail
roads can:
• Boost rural economic
development by providing
an inexpensive option for
transportation of raw ma
terials
• Reduce emissions
and wear and tear on Geor
gia’s roads and bridges by
diverting freight from the
highway network
Types of Improve
ments:
• Upgrading track seg
ments to be Heavy Axle
Load (286,000 lb) compli
ant
• Upgrade rail, ties, bal
last, joints, and/or bridges
to meet FRA Class II track
standards
• Build or restore in
dustrial customer sidings.
The summary states
that unused rail corridors
in Georgia provide oppor
tunities for reactivation
or repurposing. Unused
rail corridors can be “rail-
banked,” have rail service
restored, or formally aban
doned.
“Railbanking” lines
provide an opportunity for
an “interim use” designa
tion to be applied to the
corridor. This allows for
use as recreational trails
while the rail corridor
maintains its legal status as
a transportation corridor.
The Silver Comet Trail in
Northwest Georgia owned
by GDOT is a prime ex
ample of a railbanked cor
ridor.
Unused rail corridors
can provide opportunities
for economic development
by providing access and
using available assets to re
store service for industry
or tourism. These improve
ments can be eligible for
FRA grants, or state fund
ing on state owned lines,
according to the summary.
Abandoned rail lines
have been through a pro
cess with the U.S. Surface
Transportation Board that
removed their legal status
as a continuous corridor.”
It is recommended that rail
abandonment is avoided to
leverage opportunities to
reuse or restore unused rail
corridors,” the summary
stated.
Georgia DOT’s mis
sion extends well beyond
highways. The Depart
ment’s Office of Intermo-
dal Programs:
• Assists in the devel
opment of 104 safe, well-
maintained public-use air
ports throughout the state;
• Promotes and sup
ports 15 urban and 110
rural public transportation
transit programs;
• Helps to integrate
freight, passenger and com
muter rail services on more
than 5,000 miles of track
in the state, including 540
miles it owns and leases to
private operators for rural
economic development;
and
• Works with US Army
Corps of Engineers to
maintain the navigability of
ship channels serving ports
in Savannah and Bruns
wick as well as throughout
the 137 miles oflntracoast-
al Waterway in Georgia.
Greg Morris is the
12th District GDOT rep
resentative.
For more information,
visit the Georgia Depart
ment of Transportation
web site.
Rail
continued from page 1A
management zones to pro
tect all state waters within
the project limits,” the news
release stated. Those inter
ested in following the proj
ect progress were invited to
visit https://t007616-vida-
lia-gdot.hub.arcgis.com /.
The railroad line tar
geted for clean up was pre
viously owned by Central
of Georgia Railroad Com
pany, which was issued a
certificate and decision
from the Interstate Com
merce Commission to
abandon and discontinue
service along the section
of the railroad between
the City of Vidalia and the
community of Hester in
1983. In July 2004, GDOT
acquired this section of
railroad from Central of
Georgia Railroad Com
pany in the interest of pre
serving the railroad corri
dor for possible future use,
according to a statement
from GDOT. Since that
time, there has been no rail
service along this section
of rail and the corridor is
overgrown with thick veg
etation and the tracks have
fallen into a state of disre
pair, the GDOT statement
points out.
The cleanup project
in Toombs County is ex
pected to commence this
summer and this “initial
phase” is anticipated to be
completed in the fall. The
old line actually extends
through Montgomery
County and into Jeff Da
vis County, culminating at
Hazlehurst, the home of
Beasley Timber Company,
which is one of the larg
est lumber processing sites
in North America. With
federal focus on strength
ening the country’s infra
structure and lessening the
carbon footprint of hauling
products on highways by
trucks, there is a renewed
emphasis on utilizing the
country’s railways as a safer
and more environmentally
sound alternative.
Portions of rail lines
surrounding Vidalia have
already been rehabilitated
per the state’s long-range
plan for upgrading rail ser
vices. (See sidebar article,
GDOT State Rail Plan).
GDOT’s “Railroad Re
habilitation, Vidalia to Hes
ter” (project #T007616)
has focused new attention
on the old railroad line
which roughly parallels
Georgia Highway 130 (Ad
ams Street) then turns right
and toward Amberwood,
an established neighbor
hood inside Vidalia’s city
limits. Remnants of the
old railroad track, which
once crossed Highway 280
via an overpass, can still be
seen in downtown Vidalia
and in the countryside.
In the years since ser
vice on the line was aban
doned, parts of the track
have been pulled up and
paved over and homes have
been built next to the old
line. What concerns Betty
and Phil Moxley and their
neighbors, who own homes
on Brenda Lane in Amber-
wood, is what comes next?
“I love trains, but I don’t
want one running through
my backyard,” said Betty,
whose father and grand
father worked for the rail
road.
This is not the first
time Amberwood residents
have raised questions about
the old rail line. In 1997, a
proposal to use the railroad
bed for a “Rails to Trails”
recreation site encountered
fierce opposition from Am
berwood residents and was
abandoned.
Retired Vidalia attor
ney Charles Andrew was
one of the proponents of
creating a greenspace on
top of the old railroad bed
that ran through Amber
wood Subdivision. “The
federal government was
encouraging taking aban
doned railroad tracks to
make green spaces.” The lo
cal proposal was to tie Vida
lia into a regionwide “Rails
to Trails” project offering
hundreds of miles of sce
nic trails for hiking, jogging
and biking. “We had a huge
effort. Everybody from
Augusta to Jacksonville,
Florida, wanted it,” Andrew
said, noting that about
80 Amberwood residents
started a grassroots move
ment to protest the pro
posal. They feared bringing
a recreational corridor into
their community would
not only invade their pri
vacy, but also invite crime.
Local leaders responded by
calling a halt to the project.
The idea was scrapped and
never to be revisited.
“It just died on the
vine. That was the great
est disappointment of my
civic career,” Andrew said.
“I think it could have been
the single best historical
and environment benefit to
Vidalia, as important as the
Vidalia onion.”
Betty Moxley said she
is fully aware of the old rail
way line since it is included
in the plat for her property
and is an obvious part of
the landscape. “We knew
the state owned the old rail
road,” she acknowledged.
Moxley’s home is one of
four houses on a cul-de-sac
on Brenda Lane. Three of
the homes back up to the
old railroad line, including
the Moxley home. Through
the years, Betty and Phil
have tried to keep the area
between their property
and the railway cleared of
debris and vegetation for
appearance and safety pur
poses. The Moxleys had
heard nothing new about
the old railway line for the
15 years they have lived in
Amberwood Subdivision
until last week.
“My neighbor asked
me if I had heard about a
railroad rehabilitation pro
gram,” Betty said. After a lit
tle research she discovered
the name of the GDOT
contact for the local proj
ect and has been in touch
with him frequently. After
learning of the state’s plans,
Moxley and others who live
in the subdivision have also
been calling legislators and
local officials in an effort to
find out what will happen
next.
Betty said she and her
husband have driven all
the way to Hazlehurst to
look for the remains of the
old track. In downtown Vi
dalia, a piece of the track
is visible behind the park
ing lot of First Methodist
Church. The old railway
bed goes through the front
entrance of one Amber
wood resident’s property,
she said, pointing out, “If
they reestablish the rail
road, he will have to have a
railroad crossing at the end
of his driveway. There are
places where this track is in
people’s backyards.”
Betty said there are
100-foot pines on the
land that belongs to the
state right behind her own
house. “There is no way
to get to that area without
crossing my yard. I asked
the GDOT contact if they
could use eminent domain
to come onto my property.
He said they did have that
option but would repair
any damage.”
Through the years,
the Moxleys have had to
contend with people walk
ing down the tracks and
crossing their yard to get
to a nearby pond to fish.
“We had to fence our yard
because of that.” Betty said
she does not want a railroad
or recreational site adjacent
to her property. “I don’t like
either option. I like what I
have, a backyard.” She con
tended that a commercial
enterprise running through
her neighborhood would
bring down property val
ues. “The whole neighbor
hood will experience train
whistles and rumblings.”
For Betty, “It’s personal.”
She tutors children in her
home, many of whom have
learning disabilities. “Can
you imagine trying to teach
a dyslectic child math with
those distractions?”
She emphasized, “This
will impact the city ofVida-
lia. They will have to build
multiple crossings and re
route traffic.” She added,
“We have considered start
ing a petition and we are all
willing to do something,”
Moxley said of her neigh
bors. “For this phase of the
project, it is too late to do
something. (At this point)
they are only clearing the
tracks to see the rail beds,
but I believe it is an assess
ment. I don’t think people
know what the potential is.”
Justin Thrift, a rail de
velopment specialist for
GDOT, said of the project’s
title as a “rehabilitation” is
a little bit of a misnomer at
this point. “We (GDOT)
don’t have any immediate
plans to do any type of re
construction activities on
this line. We plan to do an
Please see Rail page 9A
“I love trains, but I don't want one
running through my backyard.”
- Amberwood Resident Betty Moxley