Governor Rendell Announces $12.9 Million Rail Investment in 10 Counties

HARRISBURG, Pa., May 13 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Eleven rail projects will restore or expand rail service and enhance safety in 10 counties with a $12.9 million state investment from PennDOT's Rail Freight Capital Budget/Transportation Assistance Program, Governor Edward G. Rendell announced today.

"Investing in freight rail infrastructure makes businesses more competitive and pays huge economic dividends for communities," Governor Rendell said. "These investments will help businesses safely and efficiently handle more freight which would otherwise travel by truck on our already congested highways and bridges."

The capital budget program is funded through state capital bond dollars repaid through General Fund revenues. The grants, which are authorized by the General Assembly, are administered by PennDOT's Bureau of Rail Freight. The grants were approved today by the State Transportation Commission.

For more information, visit www.dot.state.pa.us or call (717) 783-8800.

Media contacts:

Erin Waters, PennDOT; 717-783-8800

Gary Tuma, Governor's Office; 717-783-1116

Editor's Note: Following is a list of rail freight improvement grant recipients, the amount of funding, and a brief description of the projects:

Allegheny County:

• Allegheny Valley Railroad Company -- $1.4 million to reconstruct and replace track, replace the main line turnout and install crossties.
• Pittsburgh and Ohio Central Railroad -- $1.3 million to bring out-of-service tracks in the Scully Yard back into service, increasing yard capacity, and rehabilitate the west yard and bring 1,200 feet of track on Neville Island back into service.

Allegheny, Washington counties: Wheeling & Lake Erie Railway Company -- $526,653 to replace the entire track structure in the Greentree and Hickory tunnels; remove and replace new ballast; install tunnel drains; and improve surface and line track.

Armstrong County: Kiski Junction Railroad Inc. -- $4.3 million to extend a spur nine miles along the Allegheny River for a total of 10 miles, providing rail service to an expanding coal mine.

Clearfield County: River Hill Coal Company Inc. -- $525,000 to install a new scale, purchase loading equipment and rehabilitate 2,000 feet of track.

Mifflin County: SEDA-COG Joint Rail Authority -- $713,580 to reconstruct 1,114 feet of street running track in the Borough of Lewistown.

Montour County: United States Gypsum -- $1.6 million to build 10 industrial tracks at the company's new Washingtonville site for unloading raw materials and shipping out finished Sheetrock Brand products. The work includes 26,000 feet of track, including 11 switches.

Northumberland County: D&H Railway Company -- $793,100 to construct bulk-commodity receiving, handling and transfer infrastructure at Boyd Station.

Schuylkill County: Locust Valley Coal Company -- $202,300 to rehabilitate track, including replacing cross ties, switch timbers, joint bars and to repair misaligned rails and three bridges.

Warren County: Allegheny & Eastern Railroad -- $900,000 to construct a new siding, replace culverts, install new turnouts, switch ties, cross ties and for ditch and grading work.

Westmoreland County: Westmoreland County Industrial Development Corporation -- $595,000 to replace an aging, low-capacity wooden pile trestle bridge with a steel pile trestle bridge.

SOURCE Pennsylvania Office of the Governor