High Speed Rail Line Crosses Lake Gaston
August 6, 2010

Two alternate routes for the proposed Southeast High Speed Rail line now being discussed cross Lake Gaston on the old railroad bridge that's located a couple miles east of the Interstate-85 bridge near Buoy 23. In both cases, the proposed realignment of the rail-line will impact homes and roads on both the north and south sides of the lake.

The project includes approximately 162 miles of high speed rail as part of an overall plan to extend high speed passenger rail service from the Northeast Corridor (Boston to Washington, DC) southward through Virginia to Charlotte, NC. The Richmond to Raleigh portion includes nearly 100 new bridges/overpasses that, when combined with existing bridges/overpasses, will create a fully grade-separated system.

It is expected that once complete, freight trains would join the passenger service on the new rail line.  

After a number of years of planning for the project, a draft environmental impact statement and diagrams have recently been made available for public review. And there have been public hearings in both Brunswick County in Virginia and Warren County in North Carolina. In the Lake Gaston area (in fact, between Petersburg and Norlina) new tracks will need to be placed because tracks were removed after rail service ended there in the mid-1980s.

A preferred right-of-way route is expected by the end of this year. The U.S. Department of Transportation will need to review and approve that recommendation. A decision from the federal government is anticipated in the spring of 2012. Construction could begin between 2013-17, depending on the availability of funding, with construction expected to take between three and five years.

North of the lake

In both designs, the rain line stays close to the existing right-of-way near the bridge with some minor changes to remove curves. In design one, the line in the area near Route 903 is moved a few hundred feet to the west, with a new bridge crossing the road west of Bracey Drive. [Map - Very large file] In design two, the bridge for Route 903 is about where it is now. [Map - Very large file]

South of the lake

Both proposed routes place the line between Granite Hall Shores and the development along Smith Creek. It runs fairly close to the existing right of way. In both cases the first turn is reduced by moving the line slightly east. In design one, Paschall Road remains where it is now but an overpass is created and an access road is added to allow highway access to some homes. In that design, the line continues south considerably further west that the existing right-of-way [Map - Very large file ]. In design two, the rain line closely follows the existing right-of-way and a portion of Paschall Road is relocated further south. [Map - Very large file]

Maps & Discussion

For more information about the proposed routes, there are extensive maps and discussion on the website http://sehsr.org/deis/deis.html with a link to aerial photos with the proposed routes. [ Click here to download Virginia maps ] [ Click here to download North Carolina Maps ]