Rail advocates press on after derailment

A Norfolk Southern train derailment that injured two crew members and halted rail traffic in Morganton for two days earlier this month remains under investigation, but a local advocacy group says the accident has not changed its work supporting passenger service through the city.

“(The derailment is) not affecting us in any way,” said Mimi Phifer, co-founder of Morganton Waiting for the Train.

Phifer said a proposed passenger rail corridor from Salisbury to Asheville with Morganton as a potential stop continues to gain momentum. The North Carolina Department of Transportation has finished a $500,000 scoping project on the line, said Phifer, and officials have entered the second phase of the project, which identifies construction needs for crossings, stations, and stops along the route.

Phifer said the North Carolina General Assembly has set aside funding to complete that phase in 2027.

The third phase involves environmental clearance, preliminary engineering, and construction, said Phifer. Federal dollars will cover 80% of that phase, while state and local sources must provide the remaining funds to the tune of about $133 million.

Phifer noted that North Carolina has not passed a state budget that includes money for passenger rail.

Phifer said Waiting for the Train has “some money already” to contribute to the effort, but the organization has plans to ramp up fundraising.

“We just try to make a little noise,” she said. “You’d be surprised about how many people don’t know there’s the possibility of the train coming through.”

Rail also has an economic impact. North Carolina’s entire rail system, including freight, passenger, and tourism rail, contributes more than $20 billion in annual economic output, supports 88,000 jobs, and generates an estimated $990 million in state and local tax revenue, according to an NCDOT study conducted with N.C. State University.

NCDOT projects the proposed Salisbury-Asheville line would have $59.8 million in annual economic output, 305 sustained jobs, and $1.8 million in recurring state and local tax revenue.

“Per community, every $1 spent on rail equals an economic boost of $5,” said Phifer, adding that in rural communities like Morganton, the number grows to $7.

“It’s like being on a river,” she said. “If you’ve got a train coming through, you’ve got people coming through.”

In a phone interview, Phifer opined about the billions of dollars being spent on beltways around cities like Asheville, Statesville, and Raleigh, saying it was “stunning” how much is being invested in roads when passenger rail is an option.

“In 10 years, (those beltways) will be obsolete and more lanes of traffic will need to be added,” she said, meanwhile, “if the growth of population requires more out of a train, you just add a train car.”

In an email from Phifer, the final bold, italicized, and underlined statement echoed a 200-year-old sentiment: “It’s a sign of a civilized society.”