Passenger Rail and Freight Rail Partnerships: Case Studies in Boston, Chicago, and Denver

016279242016PDFTech ReportNCITEC Project No. 2013-35Best practicesCase studiesFreight transportationInterviewingLiterature reviewsPartnershipsPassenger transportationRailroad transportationShared use corridorsFreight TransportationPassenger TransportationRailroadsUnited StatesMississippiBOSTON, MASSACHUSETTSDENVER, COLORADOCHICAGO, ILLINOISMississippi State University. National Center for Intermodal Transportation for Economic CompetitivenessGoetz, Andrew R.Ratner, Keith A.Cidell, Julie L.Minn, MichaelBrady, SylviaMississippi State University. National Center for Intermodal Transportation for Economic CompetitivenessUnited States. Dept. of Transportation. Research and Innovative Technology AdministrationUniversity of Denver. National Center for Intermodal TransportationUniversity of Illinois at Urbana-ChampaignEastern Washington UniversitySalem State UniversityUS Transportation CollectionWith population and traffic congestion growing in urban areas throughout the United States, the demand for passenger rail service is also growing. The opportunity exists to minimize environmental and social impacts of expanding rail transit by sharing existing corridors with freight rail operators. The purpose of this study is to evaluate existing agreements between freight and passenger rail services and identify issues, challenges, and best practices of shared-use corridors. This research includes an analysis of the existing literature, in-depth interviews with national experts, and in-depth interviews with local area experts in three case study cities with substantial experience in shared-use rail corridors: Boston, Chicago, and Denver.75