North Carolina Construction News staff writer
More construction is underway in Wake County as North Carolina advances its high-performance passenger rail line connecting the state with Virginia and improving travel between rural and urban communities.
This month, contract crews and N.C. Department of Transportation (NCDOT) workers began building a bridge over the railroad at New Hope Church Road in Raleigh, replacing the existing at-grade crossing. The project, part of the larger S-Line initiative, is expected to take about three years and cost approximately $22.7 million.
Similar work is ongoing at Durant Road in North Raleigh, where construction began in 2024. Roadway embankments have been completed, with bridge construction set to start this summer. Additional work includes acquiring land and preparing grade separations at Millbrook Road in Raleigh and Rogers Road in Wake Forest, where utility work is already underway.
“This project is a game changer for those who travel along the East Coast corridor — once complete, the service will save over an hour of travel time between Raleigh and Richmond,” said NCDOT Secretary Daniel Johnson. “The continued advancement on this important project would not be possible without our partners working together, including the Federal Railroad Administration, CSX, Amtrak, the Virginia Passenger Rail Authority, and NCDOT Rail and Highway Divisions.”
FRA Deputy Administrator Drew Feeley and other federal, state, and private-sector partners visited the site this week to observe progress.
The S-Line project is designed to deliver faster, more frequent passenger rail service connecting North Carolina, Virginia, Washington, D.C., and the Northeast. In December 2023, NCDOT received a $1.09 billion federal grant to construct the first segment of the S-Line from Raleigh to Wake Forest. The department has also secured Federal Railroad Administration approval to move forward with a $58 million design and engineering grant for the full 162-mile corridor between Raleigh and Richmond, Virginia.