By Robert B. Case, PhD, PE, Chief Transportation Engineer
Hampton Roads is currently served by Amtrak at stations in Williamsburg, Newport News, and Norfolk. The City of Suffolk asked the HRTPO to find feasible locations for a passenger train station in Suffolk. Suffolk has not had passenger rail service since 1977. If the station were built, travelers in and near Suffolk could use the three daily trains that serve Norfolk and the cities along the I-95 corridor from Richmond to the Northeast. (The two daily Peninsula trains run on a separate track.) Currently, not many Suffolk travelers heading out to the I-95 corridor use the existing Norfolk station, as shown below.
Origins of Trips to Norfolk Station
Source: HRTPO programming of StreetLight; note: each red dot is one trip per day.
To find candidate sites for a train station in Suffolk, HRTPO staff developed a list of spatial requirements, then analyzed sites in the study area to determine whether or not they met those requirements. Stations need a parcel large enough for parking, and a platform located such that trains will not block auto traffic on nearby streets.
The HRTPO preliminary site analysis resulted in the following statuses for the examined sites (shown on the maps below):
- Sites not meeting the subject requirements:
- Washington/Liberty Triangle
- NS Spur along Moore Ave
- Old NS Station Support Parcel
- Sites rejected for other reasons:
- Saratoga Place
- Hall Ave
- Golden Peanut
Rejected Sites
Source: HRTPO programming of Google My Maps
Sites meeting the subject requirements:
- Residential
- Commercial
- Former CSX Industrial Lead Track (ILT) Site
- Main/Commerce
Sites Meeting Subject Requirements
Source: HRTPO programming of Google My Maps
The HRTPO having identified three sites that meet the subject requirements, the City of Suffolk has continued the process of pursuing a train station (e.g. obtaining approvals from Norfolk Southern, the Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation (DRPT), and Amtrak) by hiring a consultant to estimate the ridership of the subject station and the impact on the existing Norfolk station.
For more information, see the full report. All aboard!