A series of railroad-track improvements will create more than a thousand jobs in the Philadelphia region, Gov. Rendell, Mayor Nutter and CSX officials said yesterday, the Daily News reports.
The improvements, which involve lowering tracks so that trains can pull double-stacked freight containers under bridges and overpasses, will "vastly improve the corridor," said CSX spokesman Wes Irvin.
"The project will shave five hours off of transit time, which will improve efficiency, ease highway congestion, and improve our rail connection to the Midwest," Rendell said in a news release.
The improvements will address 16 bridges to allow double-stack trains on 25 miles of existing track near Hunting Park Avenue in North Philadelphia.
The route extends to near Wayne Junction, through Olney, and then into the Northeast, said Bill Goetz, a CSX vice president. Trains now run through Montgomery and Bucks counties on a route that accommodates fewer trains and has lower capacity.
The project, which will take three years to complete, is expected to create 350 direct construction and railroad jobs, Goetz said, and 900 indirect jobs.
The project will cost about $32 million - $12 million of which will be paid by CSX, $10 million from the state, and another $10 million from the federal government.
(This item appeared in the Daily News Nov. 17, 2009.)
The double stack thing really caught the East Coast off guard. So many routes designed for 4-4-0 steamers and antique rolling stock. I think it was in the early 80's that BN lowered the tracks/ floor of the 8 mile Cascade tunnel to accommodate double stack trains. One of the big obstacles of the ex-NP Stampede Pass over the Cascades is the tunnel can't handle double stack trains. Obviously double stack trains have a few routes to the East Coast but a bunch more routes would be an asset. I approve the projects.
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