Launched in June 2007, the Crescent Corridor is a nearly $2.5 billion public-private partnership (PPP) to build a rail corridor spanning from Louisiana to New Jersey. NS officials said this endeavor will expand and improve its rail network from the northeast to the southeast, expedite the delivery of cargo shipments, and reduce highway congestion by diverting truck traffic. When it is completed, NS said it will stretch across 2,500 miles from New Orleans to Newark, N.J. and run through New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Georgia, Alabama, and Louisiana.
"Norfolk Southern's Crescent Corridor program comes at a critical time for our nation's economy, environment, and transportation infrastructure," said NS CEO Wick Moorman in a statement. "The Crescent Corridor will stimulate job growth, economic development, and local tax revenues, while delivering substantial public benefits for communities and shippers. We are grateful for the wide bipartisan support the Crescent Corridor is receiving on Capitol Hill."
The Crescent Corridor's first phase is expected to be completed by 2013, according to NS officials.
NS cited the following as benefits of the Crescent Corridor upon its completion:
-$326 million in tax revenues to states and communities;
-1.3 million long-haul trucks diverted from interstates;
-$146 million in accident avoidance savings;
-1.9 million tons in CO2 reduction;
-$575 million in congestion savings;
-$92 million in highway maintenance savings; and
-169 million gallons in fuel savings.
In September, the state of Pennsylvania, the lead state on its Crescent Corridor endeavor, submitted an application for $300 million in federal funding to receive financial assistance with Crescent Corridor.
The funding the state of Pennsylvania applied for was submitted as "The Crescent Corridor Intermodal Freight Application," and it is for federal stimulus that is part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) Program. Introduced by U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood in February, TIGER's objective is to ensure that economic recovery funding is rapidly made available for transportation infrastructure projects and that project spending is monitored and transparent.
NS officials said this application seeks $300 million for new intermodal facilities at Memphis, Birmingham, and Franklin County, Pennsylvania, as well as the expansion of intermodal terminals in Harrisburg and Philadelphia. They added that track improvements in the five partner states will be comprised of ten passing tracks, 557 individual speed improvements, and 393 miles of track with upgraded rail improvements.
In terms of current developments regarding the Crescent Corridor, Rudy Husband, NS spokesman, told LM that NS is currently working with state DOT's in Alabama, Tennessee, and Pennsylvania on new terminal projects in Birmingham, Memphis, and Greencastle, Pa., as well as expanding existing terminals, in Harrisburg, Pa. and Philadelphia.
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