New River Valley Project

The New River Valley project will return passenger rail service to the region for the first time since 1979. This project will fund the infrastructure necessary to operate passenger trains from Roanoke to the New River Valley, including track, signaling, and a passenger station platform.

The New River Valley Passenger Rail Project will bring passenger rail service to the region for the first time since 1979. This project will focus on the rail corridors between Roanoke and the New River Valley (NRV), addressing needs for infrastructure improvements, including track, signaling, tunnels, and a railway platform, with the goal of extending passenger rail service westward. In Summer 2022, VPRA completed a feasibility study to examine potential passenger rail station locations in and around the New River Valley.

Now we are conducting an assessment of additional infrastructure needed to support the expanding service to NRV, which includes track construction alternatives from the Virginian Line to the Blacksburg Branch, multimodal connections to the station, and a layover facility for passenger trains.

After the environmental review and preliminary design, a final site alternative will be identified to move forward with engineering and construction. Any federal funding that may be awarded to the NRV Station project will trigger a National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) study, which will be informed by the work done during the environmental review and preliminary design.

Potential Station Facility

The New River Valley Passenger Rail Station Authority is a separate regional entity established in 2021 by the Virginia General Assembly to create and support passenger rail in the region by constructing a station facility.

The New River Valley Passenger Rail Station Authority is supported by the New River Valley Regional Commission, and its membership is comprised of the following: Montgomery, Pulaski, and Giles counties, Radford, the towns of Blacksburg, Christiansburg, and Pulaski, Radford University and Virginia Tech.

Winter 2024 Open House Presentation

FAQs

Project FAQs Coming Soon! Check out the General FAQs to learn more about VPRA and the Transforming Rail in Virginia program.

Schedule

Development: 2016 – 2022

Environmental Review: 2022 – 2025

Preliminary Engineering: 2022 – 2024

Final Design: 2024 – 2025