CvilleRail is an advocacy group based in Albemarle County, Virginia that is dedicated to providing convenient, cost-effective, clean, and comfortable passenger rail service from Charlottesville to Washington, D.C. Our 501(c)3 organization, established in 2005, regards the need for viable alternatives to the automobile as a critical transportation improvement to preserving the environment both locally and globally.
The Route 29 and I-66 corridors between Charlottesville and Washington become more congested every day, yet most travelers between these destinations use the highway because other options are unattractive. Bus service is slow, unreliable and inconvenient, while seats on the limited passenger trains are difficult to secure because current AMTRAK policies reserve most seats for long-haul passengers. If you live in Charlottesville, you can drive or you can fly, but you can’t take the train.
At CvilleRail, our mission is to change that. Through public education, grassroots advocacy and legislative action, we work to bring more frequent, reliable, affordable and accessible passenger rail service to the Piedmont corridor.
Please join our effort. Register below for updates, news and action alerts.
Our Internet Mail Manager is generously sponsored by Virginians for High Speed Rail. Your registration information comes only to CvilleRail. We do not share your information.
Taking the Train Cuts Traffic Congestion
The Washington Metropolitan Area is one of the nation’s worst traffic nightmares. In 1993, the Virginia Railway Express (VRE) was created to help address some of the problems of commuters who live in the Washington suburbs and drive into the District on a daily basis. It was designed to provide an affordable, convenient, and safer alternative to driving to work. Today, VRE trains shuttle 3.3 million riders annually between Fredericksburg, Manassas, Alexandria, Arlington, and WashingtonDC. During peak traffic hours, VRE trains carry enough commuters to take one full lane of traffic off I-66 and I-95 every hour.The problem for Charlottesville is that VRE does not service our area.
Trains Are Environmentally Friendly
Did you know that trains produce a fraction of the air pollution per passenger mile of cars or planes?
According to the Sierra Club’s calculations of the air pollution generated per passenger mile for different modes of transportation, the 236 mile round trip to Washington from Charlottesville spews 4,118 oz. of damaging chemical emissions into the atmosphere by plane, 2,258 oz. by car, and only 708 oz. by train. Making train transportation more readily available will help protect our environment by reducing toxic emissions caused by vehicles.
One of America’s most successful intercity rail systems – the Cascades line in the Pacific Northwest – saved the environment from more than one thousand tons of auto emissions by taking 603,000 passengers out of their cars between Eugene, OR and Vancouver, BC last year and giving them the alternative of riding the train.
Other environmentally sensitive reasons to take the train include that public rail transportation is generally twice as fuel-efficient as private automobiles and it requires only enough land for a single track, compared to lanes and lanes of highway spread across the landscape.
We can help preserve our own Route 29 corridor, with its beautiful vistas and rolling landscapes, by giving people an environmentally responsible alternative to traveling by car.
Passenger Rail Grows the Economy
Public Transportation, particularly rail, spurs “transit-oriented development” that helps create a vibrant environment where people can live, work, and shop with ease. The American Public Transit Association cites numerous examples of the investment in lively, mixed-use corridors and transit-oriented living environments that has been generated in America’s urban centers by new or improved rail facilities. Plans for Charlottesville include the revitalization of West Main Street into a mixed-use corridor with a lively streetscape of shops, restaurants, offices and living spaces, tied together by a pedestrian promenade that gives it the same feel and function as the Downtown Mall. What an exciting and welcoming experience this could be for visitors who arrive by train at Union Station for a day, a semester, or a weekend. With Union Station as the portal for arriving and departing Charlottesville–Washington passengers, the train will be a catalyst for the urban revitalization of West Main Street that will stimulate new investment and keep the city’s economy moving forward.
Passenger Rail Offers Choice
Rail is the best choice for people who don’t drive, such as children and many senior citizens, and for those who want an end to battling traffic. Once their passengers arrive in Washington, connections at Union Station to Metrorail, city buses, VRE commuter trains, and taxis provide them with fast transportation to anywhere in the D.C. area. In Charlottesville, arriving passengers will find both the Downtown Mall and the University of Virginia to be an easy walk or free trolley ride away from the station on West Main Street. CTS buses also serve this corridor. With good planning, tour vans and buses, shuttles and taxis can meet incoming trains and take passengers sightseeing or to any destination in the Charlottesville area.
