Southwestern Vermont rail gets an upgrade to help the region’s economy

The Vermont Agency of Transportation is acquiring $60.3 million in federal dollars to replace 60 miles of rail for freight travel between Rutland and North Bennington, according to an announcement earlier this week.

The funding comes from the federal Department of Transportation, and was supported by U.S. Rep. Becca Balint, D-Vt., U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and U.S. Sen. Peter Welch, D-Vt. 

“Repairing and upgrading our transportation infrastructure is a win-win for Vermont’s rural communities,” said the Vermont delegation in a joint press release. “This federal funding will help improve safety and reliability on the Vermont Railway, and support the development of rural towns up and down the Western Corridor.”

The investment will go toward the Western Corridor railway between Rutland and Bennington counties, upgrading the “old stick rail” — a traditional jointed track using bolts to connect steel rail together creating small gaps, said Vermont Agency of Transportation Rail Director Dan Delabruere. The track will be replaced by continuously welded rail, which is heavier and does not have joints that slow down travel, Delabruere said. 

The revamped rail will improve safety and efficiency of moving freight, which allows for faster shipping of more goods for businesses, reducing costs for companies and customers, Delabruere said. 

Shipping large volumes is challenging for businesses, so more efficient rail transport will hopefully be a boon for the local economy, said Sarah Furman, executive director of the Chamber & Economic Development of the Rutland Region 

“It’s a step in the right direction,” Furman said. “We need to do more to encourage more businesses here and to keep the businesses that we have, so every little bit helps, and I think this is a large investment that’s going to make a big difference.”

On the map

The investment helps to further revitalize the rail industry, which the southwestern region saw wane in the 20th century.

The Rutland Railroad passenger rail service ceased in 1953, said Paul Searls, Vermont historian and Vermont State University professor, which was a “huge blow” to the region’s economy. 

After that rail service ended, the region faced a one-two punch to the economy with the advent of the interstate highway development curving down the eastern part of the state, constructed between 1958 and 1982, Searls said. The interstate development did not extend to Rutland and Bennington counties, further isolating the region economically, Searls said. 

The region’s economic leaders and environmentalists battled over the development of an upgraded four-lane, limited-access highway system crossing the western part of the state over the decades, Searls said, and plans to fully connect the southwestern region through an interstate has yet to come to fruition. 

Herbert Ogden, a former Windsor County senator and a founder of the Vermont Chapter of the Sierra Club, formed the Vermont Association of Railroad Passengers in 1972, and lobbied to bring back passenger service to reduce car travel to lessen the environmental impacts of transportation in the state, Searls said. 

A passenger rail line was restored with the launch of Amtrak’s Ethan Allen Express in 1996, with Rutland as its last stop. In 2015, the state took on an initiative to extend the Western rail corridor project to Burlington, which was completed in 2022. 

Establishing passenger rail from Rutland through Bennington County and over to New York is part of the Agency’s future rail plans, Delabruere said. 

While this investment is focused on freight travel, the upgrade of the Western corridor rail in southwestern Vermont is necessary if the state decides to pursue passenger rail in the region, Delabruere said. “This is a step that could benefit that decision,” he said.  

The railroad connection already exists in the southwestern region, so improving the rail network is minimally disruptive, economical and environmentally efficient, said Christopher Parker, former executive director of the Vermont Rail Action Network, a community organization that advocates for better passenger and freight rail in the state.

Investing in freight and passenger train travel is worthwhile in order to grow the region’s economy, attracting tourists and new residents to the region, Parker said.

“Rutland doesn’t have an interstate, and having the train is a big deal for people who live there and work there,” Parker said. “It’s also a big deal in terms of putting Rutland on the map and making Rutland economic opportunities possible.”  

Read the story on VTDigger here: Southwestern Vermont rail gets an upgrade to help the region’s economy.