NVDaily: Council backs railbanking as Norfolk Southern moves toward abandonment
Originally appeared in the Northern Virginia Daily
By Ryan Fitzmaurice
Strasburg will not oppose Norfolk Southern’s proposed abandonment of its dormant 48.5-mile rail line that runs from Front Royal to Broadway, provided the corridor is preserved for possible future rail service while allowing interim use as a trail.
Town Council endorsed that position Monday during its work session, approving Mayor Brandy Hawkins Boies’ memorandum as Strasburg’s official response to the railroad without opposition.
Norfolk Southern issued the town an Aug. 19 consultation notice concerning the corridor, which begins at Riverton Junction near Front Royal and passes through Strasburg before reaching Broadway.
The railroad asked the town to respond by Sept. 9, including whether Strasburg has concerns about the proposed abandonment and whether it would be consistent with the town’s land-use and long-range plans.
The town’s materials describe the consultation as part of the federal process associated with proposed abandonment. They do not indicate that Norfolk Southern has filed a formal abandonment application with the Surface Transportation Board.
“I recommend that the town of Strasburg not oppose Norfolk Southern’s proposed abandonment of active rail service given the lack of active rail customers and the corridor’s long period of disuse,” Boies said. “But at the same time, it’s really important for us to make it clear in our statement that we support it based upon the corridor being preserved intact through federal railbanking.”
Under the town’s position, railbanking would preserve the continuous railroad right of way for possible future rail service while allowing interim use such as a multiuse trail.
Unlike the competing rail-with-trail proposal, the trail concept Strasburg has supported would not retain an operating railroad alongside the trail. Railbanking would instead preserve the route for possible restoration of rail service while allowing it to be used as a trail in the meantime.
Boies wrote in the memorandum that potential future rail service would retain priority over any interim trail use.
Strasburg’s position continues its longstanding support for the trail proposal advanced by the Shenandoah Rail Trail Exploratory Partnership.
Council adopted a resolution supporting acquisition and conversion of the out-of-service railroad corridor to a trail in 2021. It reaffirmed its support for the partnership’s original Shenandoah Rail Trail concept in January.
Boies said she brought the response to council rather than submitting comments on the town’s behalf.
“I did not want to submit a statement on behalf of the town without bringing it to you first and gathering your thoughts and making sure there wasn’t any concerns that I was not uncovering there,” Boies said.
Norfolk Southern’s consultation comes as Virginia continues negotiating to purchase the corridor.
In February, the Commonwealth Transportation Board returned the project and its state funding to the Virginia Department of Transportation. Transportation Secretary Nick Donohue said the state would proceed separately with purchasing the corridor before deciding whether it should become a trail, accommodate rail alongside a trail or follow another configuration.
VDOT said in July that its additional public-engagement process was complete and acquisition remained underway.
Neither the town’s memorandum nor Monday’s discussion established how Norfolk Southern’s abandonment preparations relate to the proposed sale, which entity might seek federal railbanking or when the corridor could become available for trail development.
“In the meantime, the corridor can provide a valuable public benefit such as a multiuse trail without sacrificing its long-term transportation function,” Boies said.
