The Greenline is a proposed $138 million mass transit line for the Upper Schuylkill Valley region in southeastern Pennsylvania in the United States. It is still in the planning stages and its construction is not guaranteed. The line is being advocated by a group called Citizens for the Train.[1] No operator has been selected.
Planning stages
Citizens for the Train is currently spearheading the Greenline's planning stages, and concluded a preliminary study (performed by engineering firm Gannett Fleming Inc.) to determine the feasibility of the project. The group is putting together $250,000 for an alternative analysis to see if a different transportation project, such as widening roads or adding bus routes, would work better. The study was slated for completion by the end of 2009.[2]
Citizens for the Train will pursue an estimated $1.5 million for an environmental and engineering study. When approved, funding for the project will be sought from both public and private sources.[2]
Due to the ill-fated $2 billion Schuylkill Valley Metro (SVM) project, the Greenline proposal has received overwhelming support from regional politicians and businesses alike. Its relatively inexpensive start-up costs ($138 million + purchase of ROW from Norfolk Southern vs. $2 billion) have made the Greenline not so much a successor to the SVM, but rather a realistic alternative.[2]
The bulk of the route is the Phoenixville Industrial Track. Never a prominent line for former tenant, the Pennsylvania Railroad, the route actually gained momentum in its later years. With the help of PennDOT, the single-track line received a substantial infrastructure upgrade via Conrail in the late 1980s. New wooden ties were laid, and drainage was significantly improved. In addition, grade crossings received additional protective hardware, including flashers and gates.[3] Freight service continued through 2004, when sole customer American Sweetener Corporation, whose plant was located at the end of the line in Devault, closed its doors. NS applied to officially discontinue rail service on the line in October 2007, which became effective that December.[4] Since minimal track improvements are needed due to the recent upgrade, the Greenline essentially has a ready-made railway awaiting it, which Citizens for the Train plans to purchase from NS.[1]
The River LINE's unique rail cars offer a tighter turning radius than typical main line light rail vehicles, and thus are capable of the street running needed on Moreland Road. The rail cars are also used regularly in Italy, the Netherlands and Switzerland.
The Greenline will be only the second light rail operation in the United States to utilize these units; the River LINE marked the first.
Another less expensive optin would be refurbised Budd Rail Diesel Cars, which last travelled through Phoenixville in July 1981 when SEPTA operated diesel trains between Pottsville and [Philadelphia]].
