The 14-step plan to bring passenger rail back to the Lehigh Valley has yet to reach its initial phases. However, decisions being made now could determine whether the process even leaves the station.
The Lehigh Valley Transportation Study’s Technical Committee voted to go forward with setting up several first moves during Tuesday’s virtual meeting, including identifying a partner, a destination , putting together a feasibility study and, most importantly, seeking funding to complete those steps and proceed with the 10- to 12-year process.
Liz Hynes, a senior transportation project manager, said to qualify for any federal funding, the rail would need to meet a need. The destination — New York or Philadelphia — has to be identified, as well as whether there’s a demand for it and the criteria for the service.
“In addition to the geographic market, it’s also the time to think about what travel market you want to serve,” said Hynes, whose firm, WSP, was hired by PennDOT to analyze Lehigh Valley passenger rail . “Is it commuter rail that is bringing people during weekday peak periods from the Valley to wherever that other place is? Or is it a more of a like intercity service that really focuses more on maybe leisure trips or nonwork trips for existing residents. It could be one, it could be both.”
Hynes added that part of the feasibility study will be to see how rail fits into such things as the Lehigh Valley Planning Commission’s comprehensive plan “Future LV: The Regional Plan” or whether to reclaim rail trails for trains.
Lehigh County steps forward
Hynes said the feasibility study will cost about $450,000, including $250,000 in consulting fees and $200,000 for consultant management costs, which will include hiring one. She said this is the step to get needed data and other answers on whether to keep moving forward. A project sponsor must also be identified to apply for funding.
LVTS Secretary Becky Bradley said that funding cannot be taken out of such programs as the Transportation Improvement Plan, a regionally agreed-upon document that’s required by federal law and is developed in collaboration with state and public transit providers.
“That’s just the way the federal money works and the standards for the usage of those funds,” Bradley said. “That really does mean we have to get the money from someplace else. That’s really the position we’re in right now.”
Rick Molchany, chair of the LVTS Coordinating Committee, said Lehigh County is willing to fund half of the $450,000 needed for the feasibility study. Molchany also is the county’s general services director.
“So we have identified in our budget half of the commitment to move this forward should the technical committee move this forward with a full, formal positive recommendation to our committee next month,” he said.
Molchany said he would reach out to Northampton County for a potential share.
Is it worth it?
Committee member Dave Hopkins, who is Easton’s director of public works, said he hated to be a “Debbie Downer” but wanted to know if bringing back passenger rail is even worth the effort. He said he didn’t want to spend money on studies for a “romanticized idea.”
“Let’s forget politics here,” he said. “Is this thing real? Because there are so many impediments to getting a passenger rail from here to New York. I’ve heard whispers that it’s possible to get from maybe Allentown to Philly, and that’s fine. Maybe that’s why Lehigh County wants to do it. Has anyone come up with a true assessment of what this thing is doing?”
Bradley said that’s the purpose of the feasibility study.
“I don’t think we can specifically answer that question without Phase 2, but that will definitely tell us what we can or cannot do,” she said. “And then I think it’s a very tough decision on what has to happen after that.”
Molchany said getting that data will help answer a lot of questions.
“It would help us to set up who the project sponsor would be and if there’s truly economic benefit, and the making of economic development,” he said, “and also if there were the possibilities to partner with SEPTA and New Jersey Transit, because those are critical components as we move forward.”
Committee Vice Chair Ryan Meyer, from the Lehigh-Northampton Airport Authority, said there seemed to be a lot of open ends, and questions what would the study focus on.
“We know we have to make some decisions on this, and we did exactly what we needed to understand what our next step is and what the cost is, because if this was easy, we’d be done. Right?” Bradley replied. “So this is a big, complicated thing and understanding the process for that and working on pieces of that process is really where we’re at today.”
She added that a summary memo of the meeting will be presented to the Coordinating Committee, which will jointly meet with the Technical Committee, on Aug. 21.
Morning Call reporter Evan Jones can be reached at ejones@mcall.com .
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