Triangle Transit Authority Regional Rail Line

Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) Excerpts relating to Boylan Heights                      

 The following are excerpts from the Triangle Transit Authority (TTA) Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) document on the proposed regional rail system. The downtown Raleigh station will be located on the northern edge of the Boylan Heights neighborhood.

 Summaries of the DEIS document are available from TTA in both written and CD-ROM format. Call TTA at 485-7421 for a copy of this document.

 The Boylan Heights Association has until July 20 to submit a written response to the DEIS. In addition, a public hearing will be held on June 25 at 7:00 p.m. at the Raleigh City Council Chambers, 222 West Hargett Street, Room 201.

 S.2              Purpose of the DEIS

 The purpose of the DEIS is to convey information necessary for TTA, the Federal Transit Authority, local governments, and citizens to choose a locally preferred alternative (LPA) for regional rail station location.

 “The DEIS is being circulated for review by the public for a minimum period of 45 days. Written comments should be sent to TTA or FTA…Public hearings are being held to provide an additional opportunity to make comments.

 “Following the comment period, the LPA will be selected by the TTA Board of Trustees for approval by the FTA. After adoption of the LPA and approval by the FTA, the project will enter into the next phase during which the preliminary engineering will be advanced further and a Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) will be prepared for the project Comments received on the DEIS from both the public and government agencies will be addressed in the FEIS.”

 S.4.2           Description of Regional Rail Alternatives

 General Trackwork Location

 Durham to Dowtown Raleigh. “In downtown Raleigh, a fly-over structure would take the Regional Rail tracks from the north side of the NCRR railroad right-of-way to the east side of the CSX right-of-way.”

 Terminal Station Options

 Alternative A.  A low-cost one-track design, including the minimum amount of second track where needed for two trains traveling in opposite directions to pass. The lower cost is generally achieved by the use of a single track at-grade crossing of the D&S Junction in east Durham; intermittent use of one of two existing track locations and relocation of freight tracks between downtown Cary and downtown Raleigh.

 Alternative B1. A one-track alternative that includes an extensive D&S Junction fly-over, construction of new Regional Rail track between downtown Cary and downtown Raleigh, and primary use of 25-foot track separations.

 Alternative B2. An alternative that includes the same features as B1 plus two tracks for the projects full length except for a 1,200-foot single track section in downtown Raleigh.

 Alternative C. A two-track alternative that was developed for evaluation by the NC Department of Transportation’s Rail Division in cooperation with TTA. This alternative adjusts the Regional Rail track location to better accommodate future improvements to the freight/intercity tracks and allow for planned higher intercity passenger train speeds. This alternative also includes all Regional Rail design characteristics requested by the freight railroads, and provides a future second freight/intercity track with the minimal cost impacts.

 S.5.2           Street, Highway, and Traffic Impacts

 Train Operational Impacts at Grade Crossings

 “A new [at-grade] crossing of Boylan Avenue would be included in Alternatives A, B1, and B2. The crossing is near a residential neighborhood. Traffic signals could be used at these locations because only Regional Rail trains would use the crossings. The TTA would work closely with the Boylan Heights community to plan suitable crossing protection systems. Federal Railroad Administration (FTA) grade crossing requirements would be met if applicable.”

 “The Regional Rail trains would operate through the crossings at 7.5 to 15-minute frequencies during the peak period and half that frequency (15 and 30 minutes, respectively) during off-peak periods in each direction. When a single train passes through a crossing, the gates would be closed approximately 40 to 45 seconds at most crossings. When trains from opposite directions pass through a crossing at nearly the same time, the gate closure time could rise to as much as 95 seconds. These train crossings can increase vehicular traffic delay and can result in queuing of vehicles, which could impact adjacent intersections.”

 Traffic Impacts on Neighborhood Streets

 “In addition to the impacts on arterial streets, localized increases in traffic volumes could also occur on neighborhood streets near stations. Such impacts would occur from traffic that might choose to divert to local streets from congested thoroughfares to reach stations. Five stations were identified with a potential to result in this type of impact…and Downtown Raleigh (Boylan Avenue). Mitigation could include such low-cost measures as turning restrictions, installing traffic signals, traffic calming treatments, and neighborhood parking controls. In cases where low-cost solutions are inadequate, geometric improvements to arterials to reduce the diversion of traffic, such as the addition or turn lanes or roadway widening, would be considered.”

 S.5.4           Parking Impacts

 “Spillover parking impacts in station areas occur when the demand for parking exceeds the parking supply. Without adequate parking supply, potential transit riders could either park on-street, or not choose transit. The lack of suitable land for desired station parking constrained the size of the parking lots at several station alternatives. The potential for spillover parking demand exists at Duke Medical Center, Downtown Durham, Alston Avenue/NC Central, Downtown Raleigh, and NE Regional stations. Options are available to mitigate this impact, which will be pursued with those affected during preparation of the FEIS.”

 S.6.4           Visual and Aesthetic Resources

 “Moderate visual change would occur at several locations. Changes would include loss of vegetation exposing the tracks to view or partial view, loss of intervening buildings, replacement of commercial buildings with parking lots, introduction of aerial structures into the views of or from historic resources, and blocking views of two National Register-eligible bridges with new bridges. These impacts would be distributed throughout the corridor with the greatest concentration between the Town of Morrisville and Downtown Raleigh.”

 S.6.6           Noise and Vibration

 “Ground-borne noise impacts would occur at one extremely sensitive building in the Boylan Heights neighborhood near downtown Raleigh. Sharp Regional Rail track curves over the railroad wye in downtown Raleigh could cause wheel squeal as the Regional Rail trains pass through them.

 A variety of options exist for mitigating noise impacts related to the train moving along the track, including construction of noise barriers at the affected sites. In almost all the areas with train noise impacts, studies found that noise barriers would be a cost-effective means for mitigating these impacts. The barriers, however, would be as high as 16 feet with Alternatives B2 and C. Alternatives A and B1 would need fewer barriers and lower barriers.”

 S.6.7           Historic and Archaeological Resources

 “Regional Rail alternatives A, B1 and B2 would have an adverse effect on up to eight of the 45 historic resources eligible for the National Register within the project’s Area of Potential Effect [, including the Boylan Heights neighborhood]. Ten resources would be adversely affected with Alternative C [none of them in Boylan Heights]…None of the adverse effects results in the physical destruction of the resource. Most adverse effects would entail alteration to the resource’s setting or noise impacts.

 S.6.13                   Secondary and Cumulative Impacts

 “Regional Rail could encourage development or redevelopment at many of its station locations. Such development is a part of the objectives of the project and would be in keeping with comprehensive plans adopted by the cities or towns of Durham, Cary, Morrisville, and Raleigh.”

 S.8.2           Alignment

 “Alternative A would clearly be the least desirable from the perspective of impacts to current and future railroad operations. Alternative C would in general be the most desirable from a railroad perspective. Alternative C would best accommodate future improvements to the freight/passenger tracks to allow for high-speed passenger trains. Alternative C would require, however, the greatest alteration of existing tracks in the near-term, with its reconfiguration of the why in downtown Raleigh. In general, the differences between Alternative C and Alternative B1 and Alternative B2 from a railroad operations perspective are not great.”