North Kingstown, RI – In an effort to enhance freight rail service, expand commuter rail, grow Rhode Island’s economy, and improve track safety, U.S. Senator Jack Reed (D-RI) today joined federal and state officials, the president of Providence and Worcester (P&W) Railroad Company, and local business leaders in celebrating the ribbon cutting for the new Rhode Island Freight Rail Improvement Project (FRIP). Reed actively worked for over a decade to make the project a reality, securing over $55 million for the project in both the House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate from fiscal year 1995 to fiscal year 2001.

“The completion of this project is essential to Rhode Island’s economy and ensures the stability and growth of freight rail to our state. While the project was originally only about freight rail, with the passage of additional legislation I authored, this track will now play an essential role in expanding commuter rail service to South County,” said Senator Reed, the top Democrat on the subcommittee that oversees mass transit programs. “Securing federal funding for this project was an uphill battle, but the upgrades to this track will boost our state’s economy and improve our transportation infrastructure for future generations. It is a great example of the extraordinary work that can be accomplished through the combined effort of state and federal governments working with the private sector.”

The FRIP consists of 22-miles of track from Central Falls to Quonset Point/Davisville, including 17 miles of dedicated freight track (10 miles of new track and 7 miles of rehabilitated track) and 5 miles of shared use of two rehabilitated electrified lines.

In the early 1990s, plans for high speed passenger rail along the Northeast Corridor promised to create more traffic on Amtrak’s tracks and forced the installation of wires above the tracks that would preclude the movement of double-stack containers and tri-level auto cars which are the standard size rail cars for modern freight service. Recognizing the potential negative impact on Rhode Island’s freight rail service and overall economy, then-Congressman Reed along with then-Governors Sundlun and Almond, worked with Amtrak and federal officials from the Clinton Administration to emphasize the opportunity for Amtrak to undertake a cooperative approach to support freight rail in the state.

In 1994, Reed secured language in appropriations legislation to urge a cooperative relationship on design and cost issues. In May of 1997 The Boston Globe noted: Getting federal funds for the Quonset Point freight rail project - a project to upgrade the rail service at the site of a former Navy base to facilitate the movement of freight that came into the port - was a pipe dream until Reed began to lobby Representative Bob Carr, the Michigan Democrat who was chairman of the subcommittee with jurisdiction over such projects. At Reeds urging, Federal Railroad Administration officials directed Amtrak to build its high speed infrastructure so that it would not preclude the movement of taller, more modern freight trains along the Rhode Island section of the corridor or prevent the construction of a second set of tracks dedicated to freight rail service.

In addition to his work with Amtrak and federal officials, Reed also worked with the state and P&W Railroad to develop the FRIP. Reed also worked with federal officials to ensure that the federal Harbor Maintenance Tax did not apply to Quonset Point, which was instrumental in retaining and expanding the auto import business in Rhode Island. The completion of the FRIP project signals that Rhode Island continues to welcome economic growth and opportunity.

“After years of hard work, this project has kept our states rail infrastructure up to date, while at the same time allowing high quality passenger service to thrive,” concluded Reed. “I am pleased to have worked to make this project a reality.”

Construction of the project began in 2002.