TIGER Discretionary Grant Application Portageville Bridge Replacement Project
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TIGER DISCretiONARY GRANT APPLICAtiON FOR THE POrtAgeVILLE BriDge REPLACEMENT PrOJECT “A Public-Private Partnership to Invest in Infrastructure” Submitted by: In partnership with: A PUBLIc-pRIVATE PARTNERSHIP TO INVEST IN INFRASTRUCTURE Linking Buffalo, Binghamton, New York City & Beyond by Rail The Honorable Ray LaHood QUICK FACTS Secretary Location: U.S. Department of Transportation n Located near the town of Portage, New York 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE n Found adjacent to Letchworth State Park Washington, DC 20590 n Milepost 366.1 on Norfolk Southern’s Southern Tier Corridor between Buffalo & Binghamton n Spans the Genesee River Southern Tier Corridor: Dear Secretary LaHood, n Bridge connects one of only two-east west rail corridors in New York State It is with much anticipation and great pleasure that I present before you the n The most direct freight rail route between New York State Department of Transportation’s TIGER V Discretionary Grant Buffalo, Binghamton and New York City n application for the Portageville Bridge Replacement Project, a proposed public- 10 short line railroads utilize bridge n Two Class I railroads utilize bridge private partnership between the State of New York, Norfolk Southern Railway n A Canada-U.S. trade corridor Company, Canadian Pacific Railway, and the U.S. Department of Transportation. New York State, as with the nation, is seeking ways to confront the dilemma Bridge Facts: of how to address its aging infrastructure, and we believe this is the type of n Single-track rail structure n public-private partnership that can help lead the way. Six towers built in 1875 n Three spans of pin-locked trusses built in 1903 n 10 spans of deck plate girders built in 1903 A pinnacle of 19th century railroad engineering, the 819-foot-long wrought n 819 feet long iron and steel viaduct referred to as the Portageville “High Iron” Bridge soars n 245 feet above the Genesee River gorge 245 feet above the Genesee River Gorge between New York’s Wyoming and Livingston counties. In the late 1800s and early 1900s, the bridge helped Current Condition: n Structurally deficient & operationally obsolete to usher in an era of economic growth and prosperity for the burgeoning n Weight restriction of 273,000 lbs per rail car, manufacturing communities it was designed to serve, including Binghamton, below industry standard 286,000 lbs Buffalo and New York. Acting as the linchpin for the Erie Railroad’s east-west n Speed restriction of 10 mph instead route, the bridge connected then-fledgling areas with direct and efficient of 35 mph n freight rail access to national and international markets, providing what Emergency Closure & Repairs on 9/9/2009 n Park patrons frequently trespass on bridge was, at the time, the equivalent of an interstate highway super-corridor. Coupled with the New York Central Railroad Water Level Route and the Proposed Project Cost-Share: Pennsylvania Railroad’s Pennsylvania Route, the Erie Railroad’s Southern Tier n $17,000,000 TIGER Discretionary Grant Route, anchored by the Portageville Bridge, gave communities the freight n $46,200,000 NS & CP n access and volume necessary to accommodate and sustain precipitous $5,500,000 NYSDOT economic and population growth unrivaled anywhere in the world at the turn Project Improvements: of the 20th century. n Improves rail service to and from Canada n Removes weight restriction for the entire One hundred years later, transportation planners, freight railroads, and even Southern Tier corridor n casual observers conclude that the bridge is deteriorating from corrosion Preserves a lifeline for 10 short line railroads n Enhances service reliability for trains routed to and fatigue. It now has been deemed structurally deficient and operationally Pan Am Southern in Upstate New York obsolete. Symptoms of a larger problem led by worsening structural and New England conditions, the Portageville Bridge is approaching the end of its useful design n Sustains new intermodal service soon to be life as a rail freight carrying structure. While engineers cannot say precisely launched between Buffalo and the Port of NY when the bridge will need to be taken permanently out of service, they do & NJ along the Southern Tier n Keeps the Southern Tier Corridor intact openly concede that the clock is ticking. Benefit-Cost Ratios: n 12.2 assuming a 3% discounting n 6.3 assuming a 7% discounting A PUBLIc-pRIVATE PARTNERSHIP TO INVEST IN INFRASTRUCTURE Linking Buffalo, Binghamton, New York City & Beyond by Rail As recently as September 9, 2009, after structural cracks and broken rivets were discovered, an emergency inspection and subsequent repairs took the bridge out of commission for three days. Ripple effects of the three-day shutdown demonstrated the loss of the bridge was more than a modest inconvenience. Among the disruptions to commerce were five-hour delays in Norfolk Southern train schedules and substantial operational deficiencies that negatively impacted customers served by the Southern Tier route. The shutdown raised serious concerns from many rail customers, carriers, and transportation planners that depend on this structure to remain competitive not only along this corridor, but to support investments and activities throughout the Disruption to this vital North American freight rail network. Naturally, the Portageville Bridge and the Southern Tier route’s uncertain future stymies economic development and freight economic route is of rail growth opportunities predicated on its continued preservation. particular concern The replacement of the bridge will achieve positive economic impacts. A 2012 because of the growing Benefit-Cost/Economic Impact Analysis by Cambridge Systematics analyzing the importance the railroads period between 2013 and 2042 determined the following benefits in New York State if the bridge is replaced: have recently placed in (1) Freight shipper costs savings of $211 million the corridor. (2) Total transportation benefits of $689 million (3) Benefit-cost ratio for the State (discounted 4%) of 9.6 (4) Business output from construction of $89 million (5) Business output from operations of $447 million These numbers demonstrate that the replacement bridge would enhance New York State’s competitiveness and grow our economy. (A full copy of this report can be found in Appendix 14.2.) A further Economic Analysis that complies with the guidelines set forth by the U.S. Department of Transportation can be found in Appendix 14.1. Ultimately, as the benefit- cost analysis demonstrates, even a temporary routing disruption of freight rail over the Southern Tier will result in considerable public and private costs such that some businesses that ship by rail will close entirely because they no longer remain competitive. Other businesses will transition a percentage (or all) of their shipping to trucks to meet their logistics needs while other businesses will continue to move by rail, albeit with higher transportation costs and along other railroad routes. Among the other impacts are those to businesses that may desire to expand or initiate new freight rail industrial development activities, but will be forced to scale back, delay or even eliminate those plans entirely due to operational inefficiencies associated with a less-than-adequate bridge. Disruption to this vital economic route is of particular concern because of the growing importance the railroads have recently placed in the corridor. The Southern Tier route has new and potentially growing significance as Norfolk Southern, Canadian Pacific and 10 short line railroads view it a central part of their business strategies to meet the nation’s freight transportation needs. A PUBLIc-pRIVATE PARTNERSHIP TO INVEST IN INFRASTRUCTURE Linking Buffalo, Binghamton, New York City & Beyond by Rail Led by the recent advent of commercially viable natural resource extraction methods, the railroads along the Southern Tier have all witnessed, seemingly overnight, a spike in demand for freight rail transport. In many instances, regional carload traffic from 2009 to 2010 has jumped more than 1,000 percent, reinvigorating many former rail yards and rail-served industrial facilities that had been sitting idle for decades. This demand is expected to grow as more companies locate within the region to help meet the nation’s energy needs. Coupled with the exponential growth in regional industrial carload consumption is growth in intermodal traffic over the Southern Tier. Today, approximately half of the Southern Tier’s train start composition is intermodal, accommodating market lanes between Chicago and New England, between Canada and the East Coast, and – if the uncertainty over the bridge’s future is soon resolved -- a new service between Buffalo and the Port of New York/New Jersey. The time-sensitive nature of intermodal shipments means that in traffic the rail segment is susceptible to conversion back to long-distance trucks if the Southern Tier route is severed. In recent years, Based on investment trends from major U.S. railroads, such as the new intermodal the Portageville facility constructed by Norfolk Southern in Mechanicville, New York, and on-dock rail Bridge’s importance investments made by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, the Southern Tier is expected to grow for regional, national and international intermodal train movements to New York State’s — provided the Portageville Bridge is replaced soon. transportation Despite the Portageville Bridge’s glaring operational challenges, which include network has reached speed and weight restrictions along with significant maintenance and inspection new heights with requirements, it remains the integral link for New York State’s Southern Tier route. In recent years, the Portageville Bridge’s importance to New York State’s transportation significant growth in network has reached new heights with significant growth in both local and pass- both local and pass- through rail traffic. At a time when significant freight rail investments and industrial development projects in New York and other parts of the nation are predicated on the through rail traffic.