Now the home of a Wal-mart, Staples and other retail shops, Wickford Junction soon will see the addition of a commuter rail station. Officials last month broke ground on the $52 million project that will extend Mass. Bay Transportation Authority service to South County for the first time. Officials expect the station and accompanying parking garage to open late next year or in early 2012.
The R.I. Department of Transportation is overseeing the project. The agency’s director, Michael P. Lewis, recently took some time to answer questions about what the station, its anticipated economic impact and the future of MBTA service in Rhode Island.
PBN: You and federal officials broke ground on Wickford Junction recently. What’s the first activity people passing by will see?
LEWIS: In the beginning, most of the activity will involve the mobilization of construction equipment and field offices on the site. The first steps would involve minor tree cutting and land clearing as the contractor prepares to begin the earthwork necessary to establish a foundation for the new station. Also, our contactor, Manafort Brothers, will begin construction of walls that will support the new track and train platform.
As this is a design-build contract, much of the winter will be dedicated to design work during the traditional winter shutdown period.
Most of the train platform and the parking garage will be built with precast concrete components. Construction of the train platform may begin in late fall, but will be quite evident next spring. Also next spring, people will see construction of the parking garage begin. Less visible to passersby will be about $7.5 million of track work being performed by Amtrak with DOT funds.
As construction extends into next summer, the platform will be finalized with railings, benches and a covered awning. As construction winds down in fall 2011, the building of access roads to connect the station to Route 102 will be under way. All totaled, our goal is to have the station ready for service in about 16 months.
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PBN: Most of the project cost is being covered by the federal government. Would the project have happened without that support?
LEWIS: All DOT projects are supported by federal funding, typically from the Federal Highway Administration. On certain projects, funding is provided from other sources for their modes of transportation.
This does two things. First, it lessens the amount of funds from our normal program needed for this project, which in turn can help fund other important road and bridge projects. Secondly, it can make a significant difference in the timeline of a project’s implementation. Large projects sometimes need to be broken down into smaller contracts or projects, or phased in over time so they can be built with available funding.
There is a mix of funding sources for the project. The overall project will cost $52 million, with the Federal Transit Administration providing the biggest share, totaling $44.9 million. The FTA dollars include $4.4 million in funds made available as a result of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. About $9 million in state bond funds will be used as well.
We view the support of the FTA as a critical piece of the project and allowing us to move forward with station construction. It also helps us open the station in a timely manner after the opening of the InterLink commuter rail station at T.F. Green Airport.
PBN: Do you expect the project, once complete, to spark economic development in the area?
LEWIS: We expect many benefits from having expanded commuter rail service in Rhode Island, and economic development certainly is one of them. All we have to do is look north to Massachusetts and see the impact of the expansion of commuter rail in the past 20 years and how that has impacted economic development.
The Wickford Junction area is already an established commercial and retail center. The addition of a commuter rail station can hopefully spur more transit-oriented development in and around the station. This could include a range of uses and services, including residential, retail and daycare facilities.
A chief benefit is providing another transportation option for commuters who travel to Providence or even Boston each morning. Congestion is quite heavy on Interstate 95 from Warwick into Providence and north toward Boston, and we’ve seen traffic volumes climb steadily on Route 4 in North Kingstown and East Greenwich. Building new highways or widening our existing highways would be very expensive and in many instances cost-prohibitive. We can’t build our way out of congestion. We need to provide an alternative to the automobile for the commuter and this new rail service is it.
PBN: Have DOT and MBTA agreed on a schedule yet for service to and from the station? If so, what is it?
LEWIS: Initially we expect 11 daily trips between Warwick and Providence, six trips northbound and five southbound. Some of these trains will just provide in-state service between Warwick and Providence and some will continue on to Boston. It should be noted that we have worked to provide an option for a “reverse commute” to the airport, such that someone working in Warwick or looking to catch an early flight can do so.
It should be noted that these trips represent startup service only. By spring 2011, we expect to increase the number of roundtrips from Warwick to Providence from five to eight. We’ll be well poised to extend that service to Wickford once the station opens in late 2011 or early 2012.
PBN: There has been talk about extending MBTA service down to South Kingstown and Westerly and perhaps even Connecticut. What’s the potential for that to happen?
LEWIS: We are very excited about the extension of South County Commuter Rail, and view service to Warwick and Wickford as the first phase of expanded commuter rail in Rhode Island. As we work toward construction and commencement of service, we are studying other future stops in Rhode Island. We are currently conducting a feasibility study which includes a site assessment and operational analysis for potential service to Kingston and Westerly. In addition, future intermediate stops are being considered in East Greenwich and Cranston, and at the ground-breaking ceremony for Wickford Junction, FTA Administrator Peter Rogoff announced new funding for preliminary engineering and environmental reviews for a station in Pawtucket.
With respect to extended service into Connecticut, we have had informal discussions with the Conn. Department of Transportation regarding future extension of Shore Line East trains into Rhode Island. The aforementioned study will also examine this possibility in further detail.
It should be noted that development of new commuter rail stations is a long process when using federal funds. Even at the conclusion of the study process, considerable planning, design work and construction would be needed to make additional stations a reality. We’re optimistic about being able to expand commuter rail in the future, but don’t want to create an impression that this will happen in the short term. Our priority now involves this new service to Warwick, and late next year to Wickford.
