Challenge
Imagine being able to travel from Raleigh to Washington, DC by train in 4 hours. This could become a reality as the North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) works hard to restore intercity passenger rail service and complete the Southeast Rail Corridor, by addressing the S-Line missing link. This ambitious effort includes a large-scale multi-jurisdictional visioning effort aimed at understanding and exploring how transit can positively impact the diverse communities along the S-Line, and more importantly, how these communities can prepare and leverage the benefits of transit.
Solution
Kittelson led the Transit-Oriented Development (TOD) study for the 95-mile S-Line passenger rail corridor. Transit supportive development varies in different places and achieving successful TOD along the 95-mile S-Line corridor requires a deep understanding of each community’s unique contexts and values. The Team tailored goals and recommendations to individual communities, addressing a range of aspects from high-density development to protecting rural areas and the celebration of history. The process concluded with a community-driven corridor-wide vision for S-Line’s TOD. This vision included an implementation plan comprised of policy and regulatory changes, targeted infrastructure investments, and funding and partnership next steps to actualize a future transit-supportive S-Line.
The Outcome
This study plays a key role in shaping a holistic vision for future inter-city and commuter rail service, one that not only looks at the technical and engineering viability of the Southeast Corridor, but also takes into account the land use and community influences and partnerships necessary for transit’s success. The TOD Study helped secure a $4.3 million RAISE grant that will advance S-Line to its next phase of more detailed planning and engineering for mobility hubs and supporting infrastructure along the corridor.
